Chapter Yearbooks

So, you want to create a chapter yearbook. Great! With a little creativity and a lot of coordination, you can create some amazing results. This guide is designed to help you with every aspect of creating a simple chapter yearbook. When you're through, your chapter’s year of USY will be remembered always as a special one.

Yearbook staff
A large part of creating a yearbook is coordinating a staff to help you. Whether or not you are the actual chief editor, you will need others to work with you in this project.

You will need an editor-in-chief who organizes every aspect of the yearbook from its conception to its publication. The editor sets (and obeys) dealines, makes phone calls, uses a computer for layout and typesetting, and is a creative person. If you, as communications vice president, are not the editor, make sure that the editor keeps in close contact with you so that you and the rest of the executive board know what’s going on with the yearbook.

It helps to keep your advisor constantly involved in the yearbook. This keeps you and the yearbook staff aware of what your limits are and the adults aware of what you and the staff are doing. An advisor is especially helpful when it comes time to publish and distribute the yearbook.

Planning and organization
First, choose theme for your yearbook. For some chapters, who already have a popular cheer or slogan, this is easy; for others, this may not be. You may want to look at old USY and school yearbooks for thematic ideas. Hebrew or Yiddish words may inspire a creative theme.

Next, decide on a style for the yearbook. This goes along with your theme; it can be flashy and eye-catching, elegant and fancy, or more traditional and simple. Whatever you decide, try not overdo it. Always be aware of your limitations.

The first really major decision you must make is how you are going to publish the yearbook. Most likely, you will use a computer with a good desktop publishing program either at your synagogue or at the editor’s home. My personal favorite is Adobe PageMaker, but there are other very good ones. You could also do a cut-and-paste job. While this doesn’t sound very glamorous, it’s cheap and some very neat yearbooks have been created via the cut-and-paste route.

You also must decide how you are going to print the yearbook. Will you simply print out fifty copies on the computer or will you have a professional printing job? Investigate the pros and cons of all possibilities before you decide.

Content and layout
Okay, what (besides lots of pictures) are you going to put in this yearbook? Include tons of stuff from the past year of USY. Always be mindful that this little book represents to your comgregation and community what your chapter has done in the past year and that it can be very special to your members, especially the seniors. Ultimately, it’s up to you and your team, but there are several staple items which you should probably include in your yearbook:

• Editor’s Message
• Chapter Information
• Table of Contents
• Chapter Board(s) (names and pictures, maybe a paragraph from each officer)
• President’s Message
• Year in Review (events, pictures, articles)

Here are a few optional, but very good yearbook sections:

• Sports and activities
• "A Walk Down Memory Lane…" (with pictures from memorable events within
  the past few years)
• Membership directory
• "Extra! Extra!" (Clips from your past year’s chapter newsletter, synagogue
  bulletins, or local newspaper)
• Autographs

Deadlines and getting stuff done
So when should you be doing all of this stuff? Well, the preplanning and organization can happen as early as possible. Obviously, your articles will come a lot closer to the end of the year (April or May), but you can work on many pages well ahead of time. For example, there is no need to wait to do "A Walk Down Memory Lane…" or Chapter Information and you can work on the Year in Review as events occur and you develop pictures.

After all of the planning, you must fairly decide who does what. Then clearly indicate to each member of your staff what you expect from them and their deadlines. Always keep in close contact and don’t leave things to the last minute.

A great way to layout the yearbook is to have a party. Your staff can get together in a relaxed setting (with food, of course) and work on selecting pictures and laying out pages.

Publication and printing
Make sure that your articles are all neatly typed, and that you’ve double-checked that grammar and spelling are correct. Also make sure that you have space for each article. If not, edit appropriately.

Now what about your pictures? A great way to put pictures into the yearbook (especially if you are using a desktop publisher) is through a scanner. However, it is unlikely that your synagogue owns one; someone you know may have one. If not, forget it. Just resort to good ol’ Elmer’s.

Proofread your first print, over and over. Check for mistakes and make sure it looks good. Share copies with your entier staff, advisors, and chapter board and get their opinions. Expect to make many changes and revisions.

You may decide to have the yearbook professionally printed, depending on your schedule or budget. Well beforehand, you should investigate local printing shops as well as huge yearbook companies to compare pricing and timing. You may decide to just print the yearbook on your home computer since you only need about 20 copies. Either way, make sure you have the support of your board and advisors, especially if you are spending big money to have it printed.

Distribution

If your chapter already has a complicated mailing process, then you may want to use it to distribute your yearbook. If, however, you have a beautiful, hardcover book for your only fifteen members, you should simply pass copies out at an event (like elections). Talk to your advisor about which venue to pursue. Be sure to share copies with your Regional and International offices!

Whew! Creating a yearbook is a big job, so you deserve a yasher koach! Remember to always listen to not only your advisor and chapter board, but also to your chapter members, who the yearbook is essentially for. These guidelines should help you along the way, but if you have additional questions, comments, or concerns, contact your regional Communications Vice President or Jason Lustig, your International Communications VP.