1. CHAPTER 14 PREPARING PRINTED MATERIALS

2. School Publications Can Be Aimed At A Number Of Groups, Each With A Different Purpose. Some Of These Are:  School Publications Can Be Aimed At A Number Of Groups, Each With A Different Purpose. Some Of These Are:  Teachers – The Goal Here To Improve Staff Morale And Provide Information  Students – The Goal Here Is To Help Students Take Advantage Of The Educational Opportunities And Communicate Information To Them  Parents – The Goal Is Usually To Cultivate A Partnership Between School And Parent  Civic Groups – The Goal Here May Be To Keep Them Informed And Produce A General Positive Attitude, Or It May Be To Garner Support Regarding A Particular Issue Of Election Proposal  Commercial Groups – The Goal Here Will Be Similar To Civic Groups

3.  The objective of each publication, and the audience it is to meet, must be clearly in mind during the planning and production of the publication  KNOWING THE AUDIENCE – Some considerations are:  What does the audience know?  Use comfortable words – “One mark of the educated person is the ability to communicate at a level that a specific audience will understand.” (page 240)  What is the interest level of the audience?

4.  CHOOSING CONTENT – Publications must gain the attention of the intended audience, but it must have proper content as well.  While the focus may be on school accomplishments, it should also review school needs or problems, and possible solutions  Content should focus on people, not buildings and programs – students learning, teachers teaching, and people involved in education  If the audience is concerned about a topic, it should be treated in the publication  People are interested in reading about the unusual, things that are different than when they went to school

5.  DETERMINE WHO SHOULD WRITE THE PUBLICATIONS – Options are:  Staff members who have a talent or flair for, as well experience in, writing  Go outside the school system to a local editor or publications firm  Larger systems can hire a person with experience in this area

6.  KNOWING HOW TO PRINT IT – A balance is required here between a dull publication and one that is two expensive because the school went overboard in the printing – Desktop Publishing offers a low cost option to most school systems now.  DETERMINING PRINTING PRIORITIES – Setting priorities for the system’s printing jobs is important. The printer must have the priorities clearly in mind to avoid deadline embarrassments

7.  GETTING EXPERT ASSISTANCE – A system can get advice from an employee if one with expertise is available, a parent or friend of the system, or an outside expert hired because of their experience in the field. Some publishing options are:  Printing by school system students in a printing course or program  Printing by a commercial printer – some warnings here:  Get quotes  Have penalties for missed deadlines  Give the printer directions in the layout of the publication  Keep copy of all materials submitted  Make copies of all corrected proofs returned to the printer  Changes made at the proof stage increase costs  Give printer realistic deadlines that are meaningful to the school or system

8.  SAVING MONEY ON PRINTING COSTS – Printing can be a major expense and some possible ways to save money are:  Prepare Camera-Ready Copy  Use Desktop Publishing  Use traditional layouts  Use Bendays or Tints for a Second Color impact  Edit effectively  Plan to avoid tight deadlines  Avoid elaborate designs and bleeding  Use standard size paper  Avoid dating publication  Get the most out of expensive printing items  Don’t insist on full justification  Use photos wisely

9.  DESIGNING AND LAYOUT OF PUBLICATIONS – Publication should prepare attractive and inviting design without wasting money. It must be attractive to the eye at first glance so that potential readers will respond and not discard.  Prepare each publication for three kinds of readers.  The 30-second reader  The reader who flips the pages and who only sees eye-catching messages  Usually he pays attention to things like copy- break and blurbs  The two minute reader – he looks over the entire publication quickly  Use informational headlines  Use captions and photos  The group that will read most of the stories and articles – this is the smallest group

10.  Use white spaces to keep the publication from being too imposing  Break up large blocks of text  Maintain page balance between text, photos, copy-breaks, and headlines  Determine which stories deserve emphasis – all stories are not created equal  Consider the relationship between facing pages  Color is expensive, use it wisely  Don’s print over illustrations  Choose ink and paper carefully – contract between ink and paper is important

11.  GETTING THE MOST OUT OF TYPOGRAPHY – This refers to changing typeface and fonts to effect design  The body type must be easy to read  Avoid script, italic, and bold type for the body  Use upper and lower case for the body  Use columns on all publications – print across 8.5 inch paper is not effective in getting attention – in landscape printing use at least three columns  Use a type size that is easy to read – less than 8 point is not effective (this is 16 point Times New Roman)  Specify type to the printer

12. USE PHOTOS TO ENHANCE PUBLICATIONS – Considerations in the use of photos are:  They should communicate a message and relate directly to a story  Actions shots containing kids are best  Note the tips, page 254 DISTRIBUTING PUBLICATIONS –All is lost and money is wasted if the designated audience does not see the publication.  After the fifth grade students do not bring home information  Bulk mailing is inexpensive, however its procedures are sometimes difficult  Inclusion in local newspaper can be cost effective  Placing copies around the community can be effective  Use real estate agents, welcome wagons, and such  Put copies in all local libraries

13.  EVALUATING SCHOOL PUBLICATIONS  Questionnaires have a large downside – they are seldom returned, and this self- selecting sample is not statistically accurate  Interviews, in person or telephone, provide results with greater reliability  Focus groups, randomly selected give accurate feedback  Experts with no vested interest can help in evaluation

14.  DECIDING WHICH PUBLICATIONS TO PRINT  Periodic newsletters are a must in every school  Staff newsletters are a must for school systems  The School Calendar is a must for all school systems  Flyers for distribution at school board meetings are helpful  A school brochure can be given to every guest to enhance public image  Teacher-Recruitment brochures  Special topic publications should be developed as the need arises  Happy-Grams can be used in schools  “I have an idea to help schools” forms can be circulated through out the community  The Annual Report – The cost of this report must be weighed against effect and usefulness

15.  THE ROLE OF STUDENT PUBLICATIONS  to limit controversy, all student publications must be governed by a clear system wide policy  News-sheets and newspapers can enhance school perceptions – surveys indicate 45% to 75% of parents read the school newspapers students bring home