CONGRATS!
If you're reading this, then it means that you are the EIC for the next year! You have earned this position and I know you will create an amazing book! While the other tabs are tips and tricks, and information about how to complete the job to the best of your abilities, on this page I just want to share some things that I learned or noticed during the past year as EIC.
This year will be the worst and best year of your life. Most likely, you are a senior, and the stress of college apps, other extracurricular, and the huge responsibility of being EIC is pilling up and overwhelming. Time management is an absolute lifesaver, as well as being on top of everything. Know anything and everything that is happening with spreads and content so that you know when things are getting done so you don't have to stress about them yourself. Start all of your college apps early! Most of my early deadlines for colleges were November 1, and yearbook deadline was October 30, which made for many sleepless nights and countless tears.
Here are some other things that I learned....
1. Make the style sheet early so that you can finalize it ASAP. While I made the style sheet over the summer, it took a while to work out the kinks and that made it harder for deadline because everything had to be checked again to make sure it was in accordance with the latest style sheet version. Memorize the style sheet, and make sure everyone else does to. For 99% of the design questions that people have, your answer will be "Check the style sheet!" so make sure that when people go to check it, it is as easy to understand as possible. Bold, use all caps, color code- do whatever you have to do so that people can understand and do the design right.
2. The ladder will become your best friend. Again, get this done early. You should know how many pages your book will be (usually 216 but might get bigger with more kids), and with that information, work backwards in a spreadsheet so that everything has a page (I'll include a template on the ladder tab). Knowing what every single page will be used for before the year starts is important, and by looking at the ladder and knowing what content will be on every page for a certain deadline helps with coverage planning.
3. Decide what kind of staff you want to have. This, I personally think, is the most important. Do something at the beginning of the year to make sure that everyone on staff can trust each other and so that they know each other's strengths and weaknesses. For me, it was really important to make sure everyone knew that they could come to me with anything. I wanted to have an open relationship with everyone and if they had a family obligation or a legit reason something wasn't done or they couldn't attend something, I wanted to make sure that everyone was comfortable telling me. However, the one thing that I did not do so well was enforcing mini deadlines. This is super super important. While to some extent they need to feel comfortable, they also need to know that the work needs to be done. There is not an excuse for that. If I could go back and do it again, I would make sure that at the beginning of the year, I enforced mini deadlines more and talked with the advisor to make sure mini deadlines affected people's grades. Do team bonding things, take breaks in class to have dance parties, do lip sing battles, have holiday parties, just make it fun. I know you love yearbook, but you have to share that love, and that sense of family, with those around you in order to get them to love it just as much and work just as hard.
4. Be prepared to teach. I was thankful this year that I had great editors who stepped up a ton and helped to teach and mentor the newbies, but I don't know what your scenario is. I suggest making power points or lessons for the first week of school, or if you can have a boot camp one day in the summer, so that everyone knows at least the basics right away. In the How To Get Started tab I'll include some of the power points and activities that I used to start the year. The staff views you as someone who knows it all, and you are responsible for teaching them and showing them. If there is an edit to make, DO NOT do it for them. Even though it may take 5 times as long as doing it yourself, call them over and explain to them why it's wrong and how to fix it and have them do it. Check it again, and praise them if it's right. Everyone loves to be rewarded and acknowledged for good work, no matter how small. And encourage them to ask questions!! The more open of a relationship your have with your staff, the better. If they have a question about anything, even if your answer is "Check the style sheet!" or "It's on the ladder!" make sure that they know they can ask if they need help.
5. You are the face of the yearbook. This alone, is a huge responsibility. Every single thing that you say or do is being watched by your staff and it lets them know what is ok and what is not ok to do. While you will do a lot of behind the scenes things that nobody except you notice or even know about, you still have to make sure that you go to events and write captions and copy like everyone else. The staff will not ever know about everything that you do for the yearbook, so you have to show them that you at least do the bare minimum (event and content wise). People are going to talk about you behind your back, and you can either confront them or ignore them, but either way you have to respect them, and show them that you deserve their respect too.
Those are just a few things, but overall, just enjoy it. If you're a senior, it's your last year. Enjoy every single excruciating detail that you have to fix, every time you hear the shutter click at an event, and every work night and holiday. Don't wish to have the deadline be over, or have the late work night end, because you will never get that time with some of your closest friends back. Over the past three years, 603 has become my home. I have cried in the closet, I have had dance parties during work night, I have watched High School Musical countless times on that promethean, and I have had more belly aching laughs there than any other place in the world. 603 will always be a huge part of who I am. It is where I first felt like I belonged and mattered somewhere, where I learned to step up and become a leader, where I made some of my closest friends, and where some of my best memories from high school are. One of the hardest things about leaving for college will be not having a safe place to go and cry, laugh, or just hang out and where I know that all of my fears and worries will disappear the second I walk in the door.
So, on that note, enjoy it. This will no doubt, be the most stressful year of your life so far, but live and enjoy every single day because soon it will all be gone. I hope that you have the best year of your life and that you make the best yearbook you ever have!
All my love,
Elena Becker
Aquila EIC 2016-2017
This year will be the worst and best year of your life. Most likely, you are a senior, and the stress of college apps, other extracurricular, and the huge responsibility of being EIC is pilling up and overwhelming. Time management is an absolute lifesaver, as well as being on top of everything. Know anything and everything that is happening with spreads and content so that you know when things are getting done so you don't have to stress about them yourself. Start all of your college apps early! Most of my early deadlines for colleges were November 1, and yearbook deadline was October 30, which made for many sleepless nights and countless tears.
Here are some other things that I learned....
1. Make the style sheet early so that you can finalize it ASAP. While I made the style sheet over the summer, it took a while to work out the kinks and that made it harder for deadline because everything had to be checked again to make sure it was in accordance with the latest style sheet version. Memorize the style sheet, and make sure everyone else does to. For 99% of the design questions that people have, your answer will be "Check the style sheet!" so make sure that when people go to check it, it is as easy to understand as possible. Bold, use all caps, color code- do whatever you have to do so that people can understand and do the design right.
2. The ladder will become your best friend. Again, get this done early. You should know how many pages your book will be (usually 216 but might get bigger with more kids), and with that information, work backwards in a spreadsheet so that everything has a page (I'll include a template on the ladder tab). Knowing what every single page will be used for before the year starts is important, and by looking at the ladder and knowing what content will be on every page for a certain deadline helps with coverage planning.
3. Decide what kind of staff you want to have. This, I personally think, is the most important. Do something at the beginning of the year to make sure that everyone on staff can trust each other and so that they know each other's strengths and weaknesses. For me, it was really important to make sure everyone knew that they could come to me with anything. I wanted to have an open relationship with everyone and if they had a family obligation or a legit reason something wasn't done or they couldn't attend something, I wanted to make sure that everyone was comfortable telling me. However, the one thing that I did not do so well was enforcing mini deadlines. This is super super important. While to some extent they need to feel comfortable, they also need to know that the work needs to be done. There is not an excuse for that. If I could go back and do it again, I would make sure that at the beginning of the year, I enforced mini deadlines more and talked with the advisor to make sure mini deadlines affected people's grades. Do team bonding things, take breaks in class to have dance parties, do lip sing battles, have holiday parties, just make it fun. I know you love yearbook, but you have to share that love, and that sense of family, with those around you in order to get them to love it just as much and work just as hard.
4. Be prepared to teach. I was thankful this year that I had great editors who stepped up a ton and helped to teach and mentor the newbies, but I don't know what your scenario is. I suggest making power points or lessons for the first week of school, or if you can have a boot camp one day in the summer, so that everyone knows at least the basics right away. In the How To Get Started tab I'll include some of the power points and activities that I used to start the year. The staff views you as someone who knows it all, and you are responsible for teaching them and showing them. If there is an edit to make, DO NOT do it for them. Even though it may take 5 times as long as doing it yourself, call them over and explain to them why it's wrong and how to fix it and have them do it. Check it again, and praise them if it's right. Everyone loves to be rewarded and acknowledged for good work, no matter how small. And encourage them to ask questions!! The more open of a relationship your have with your staff, the better. If they have a question about anything, even if your answer is "Check the style sheet!" or "It's on the ladder!" make sure that they know they can ask if they need help.
5. You are the face of the yearbook. This alone, is a huge responsibility. Every single thing that you say or do is being watched by your staff and it lets them know what is ok and what is not ok to do. While you will do a lot of behind the scenes things that nobody except you notice or even know about, you still have to make sure that you go to events and write captions and copy like everyone else. The staff will not ever know about everything that you do for the yearbook, so you have to show them that you at least do the bare minimum (event and content wise). People are going to talk about you behind your back, and you can either confront them or ignore them, but either way you have to respect them, and show them that you deserve their respect too.
Those are just a few things, but overall, just enjoy it. If you're a senior, it's your last year. Enjoy every single excruciating detail that you have to fix, every time you hear the shutter click at an event, and every work night and holiday. Don't wish to have the deadline be over, or have the late work night end, because you will never get that time with some of your closest friends back. Over the past three years, 603 has become my home. I have cried in the closet, I have had dance parties during work night, I have watched High School Musical countless times on that promethean, and I have had more belly aching laughs there than any other place in the world. 603 will always be a huge part of who I am. It is where I first felt like I belonged and mattered somewhere, where I learned to step up and become a leader, where I made some of my closest friends, and where some of my best memories from high school are. One of the hardest things about leaving for college will be not having a safe place to go and cry, laugh, or just hang out and where I know that all of my fears and worries will disappear the second I walk in the door.
So, on that note, enjoy it. This will no doubt, be the most stressful year of your life so far, but live and enjoy every single day because soon it will all be gone. I hope that you have the best year of your life and that you make the best yearbook you ever have!
All my love,
Elena Becker
Aquila EIC 2016-2017