Treering Blog

Treering Yearbook Heroes is a monthly feature focusing on yearbook tips and tricks.

In March, Treering Yearbooks announced its 2022 #TreeringMemoriesMatter Design Contest for yearbook advisers, coordinators, and editors to share their unique perspectives from their campus community. It’s time to meet the winners and glean their best practices for yearbook spread design.

Grace Montemar is the Yearbook Club Adviser from Edison Regional Gifted Center in Chicago, IL. Her team earned first place in the middle school division for their “Aesthetic” spread. The reporting and design distinguished this spread.

Tell us about this show-stopper.

While we like to include several recurring spreads that appear in our school’s yearbook each year, we still like to introduce a few new features as well. This fresh feature allowed Yearbook Club to spotlight classmates from various grades whose fashion sense stood out from the crowd. The students who were invited to participate enjoyed answering a brief questionnaire that helped to illustrate their distinctive style.

How does Edison RGC design the book? 

I typically like starting with a general template but then customizing it to suit the needs of the specific spread. Some of my yearbook students prefer creating a layout from scratch, which takes much longer. But if they’re committed to doing it this way (and time allows for it), then it’s totally fine. 

I also try to manage expectations upfront so they understand that there will usually be a lot of polishing involved before their spread is fully ready for publishing in the yearbook. One thing that my yearbook students love is seeing their names attached to their work. It gives them a sense of pride to see their byline displaying their name and grade on any spreads that they’re involved in.

What does your role look like as a club adviser?

My responsibilities include recruiting and training the 6th-8th graders who join Yearbook Club, running the weekly meetings, empowering the students to help build the ladder and decide content, art directing them in designing their layouts, and helping them to proofread, edit, and write copy. 

I also handle the marketing aspects––sending announcements to key channels for sharing with the intent of promoting sales with parents, as well as encouraging photo submissions.

How do you gather photos?

Pre-pandemic, the majority of photos were taken by myself, and/or I recruited parents who had an eye for photography to cover events that I couldn’t attend. With in-person events slowly starting to happen this school year, I’ve been able to resume taking some photos but we’re still relying more on community submissions than we have in past years. In order to keep the submissions coming, we periodically request specific photos throughout the year (to avoid receiving an onslaught of images too late in the production timeline).

What advice would you give to another person who is just getting started?

Congrats on accepting your role with the yearbook! It can feel overwhelming to take on this endeavor but you’ll do just fine. Here are some tips to help you: 

1. Take things one step at a time––but don’t wait. If you work on the yearbook little by little, regularly, and continuously, it’ll be much easier to produce, as opposed to cramming and rushing everything all at once at the end. 
2. Ask for help from your community when you need it. Need more photo submissions? Be sure to ask for help from the room parents and PTO in spreading the word. Still trying to recruit students? Ask for help from the principal or certain teachers in drumming up interest. You’d be surprised who’s willing to help (and how) if you just ask.

Treering Yearbook Heroes is a monthly feature focusing on yearbook tips and tricks.

In March, Treering Yearbooks announced its 2022 #TreeringMemoriesMatter Design Contest for yearbook advisers, coordinators, and editors to share their unique perspectives from their campus community. It’s time to meet the winners and glean their best practices for yearbook spread design.

Last year, Elyse Martinez from Del Norte Heights Elementary School in El Paso, TX submitted a face mask fashion spread for the inaugural #TreeringMemoriesMatter Design Contest. The spread won second place. Fast forward a year, and her design earned the top prize among the elementary schools. 

Congratulations, Elyse! 

I believe that two years of national recognition tells the community that our yearbook is timely and a great representation of current events. It lets the community know that much love and intent goes into the creation of a book that they can cherish as they look back on the memories of their child.

I am very competitive and I'm also very proud of the work I put into the yearbook. I also love to win stuff! The option to win additional free yearbooks allows us to provide books as an incentive and a reward for students who otherwise might not have the opportunity to purchase the yearbook.

Tell me how your school community responded.

We are excited and proud! As I began sharing with students, they cheered—especially the class that was key in planning the Sept. 11 tribute. They were the ones who read special excerpts to commemorate the event. One wrote a poem she read out loud, and our Music teacher played a special musical selection. We invited our local fire department as well as the JROTC unit from our high school, Bel Air High School. It was an exceptional morning that didn’t leave a dry eye on the field.

What does your position as Campus Reporter entail?

My role is to document the activities on our campus that celebrate our students and then I post them on our social media accounts. Because I take copious amounts of photos, I have an ample supply to use in the yearbook. I have learned that it is important to create folders for each event and drop them in as soon as possible. That makes it so much easier to create the pages as I already have the pictures grouped by event.

Once you have the photos, how do you begin the design process?

I start with the Treering Yearbooks templates to lay out the photos. Then I add or adjust as necessary to fill it up with all the pictures I’ve taken. When I design my yearbook, I try to include as many events that happened on campus as possible. Because when families look back at their yearbook, I want them to have fond memories of their experiences.

What advice would you give to another yearbook coordinator who is just getting started?

If someone was just starting out on their yearbook, I would tell them, “You can never take enough pictures!” 

It is so easy to snap a photo with our digital cameras (especially our phones!) and you can easily cast aside those that don’t come out. You can never recapture a moment that has already passed.

Secondly, although seeing and capturing your students engaged in an activity is easy and fast, parents can not resist when you capture their child looking at the camera and smiling as they enjoy whatever it is they are doing. Those smiles—they are priceless!

Project manager. Social media marketer. Volunteer luncheon coordinator. Teacher liaison. Journalist. School historian. Memory maker. Yearbook coordinators wear all these hats and more! Below, we’ve taken one thing off your to-do list and compiled all the things on the definitive yearbook timeline so your planning and production resources are in one place.

When Last Year's Book is Complete...

Don't freak out. Keep scrolling if you were just handed the reins to the yearbook.

https://blog.treering.com/7-things-to-do-when-the-yearbook-is-done/

Fall

If there's one thing we hear from advisers around the globe, it's that they wish they started earlier! And while we can’t give you the gift of time, we can hook you up with some ideas to save you some.

Create a Plan

(Note to self: planning and controlling are two different things.)

It's impossible to think about yearbooks without considering yearbook themes. Whether you use a pre-designed one or create your own using Treering's design application, make sure it tells the story of your school this year.

Gather the school calendar, and PTA-sponsored events, previous yearbooks, and, with your team, start your ladder. This will be the overarching plan for the year(book). Your yearbook details should align with your ladder.

From there, add your team, create shared folders, and decide how to assign spreads. You’ll want to schedule follow-up meetings and track progress on this timeline.

Pre- and post-event check-ins ensure expectations are set and met. 

Tweet

Start Marketing

When we think of marketing, we think of yearbook sales. It’s so much more. Your marketing plan should include

• Crowdsourcing efforts
• Yearbook staff recruitment
• Yearbook sales

No one will know what you do (create the most epic yearbook ever), what you need (photos, photos, and more photos), and how they can be a part of it (upload photos, join the team, host a party) if you don’t tell them. 

Back to school is the ideal season to begin selling your yearbooks for two reasons: early discounts and the opportunity to earn free yearbooks. We’ve created a marketing plan template so you can stay organized.

If you are using your yearbook as a fundraiser, once again, work backward from your goal. For instance, is the PTG trying to earn money for more books in the library or playground equipment? Is your yearbook team trying to invest in new equipment? How much per book is needed to earn that amount of money?

https://blog.treering.com/5-things-to-do-to-sell-more-yearbooks-in-the-fall/

Gather Content

August through November offer myriad opportunities to capture content and begin building your book:

• Student orientation
• First day
• Halloween
• Yerdsgiving
• Classroom shots
• Homecoming
• Spirit week
• Fall sports

Seize the [Picture] Day

Portraits comprise 40-60% of the average yearbook. If you aren’t on a first-name basis with your school photographer, it’s time to change that.

Touch base with your photographer and double-check they will export the photos in PSPA format (this is industry standard, but not everyone uses it) and confirm how they will deliver them to you. Copy your picture day coordinator on all correspondence (and offer up this professional school photographer's advice).

Winter

When you hit winter on the timeline, there is a shift at school: everyone becomes vacation-focused, and the list of things to do multiplies. (Late to the party? We have you covered with our yearbook quick start guide.)

Stay the Course

By now you have a rhythm: Your team has their assignments and together you’re tracking progress. Fall event pages are drafted and in the yearbook. Portraits should arrive momentarily. You follow up every event with an ask for additional POVs. 

Begin Proofreading 

Treering Yearbooks allows you to download a PDF proof of your book throughout the design process. Here’s how we use them:

1. Hand our portrait pages to teachers to help verify names and classroom placement
2. Project pages and evaluate them as a team
3. Track coverage
4. Post sneak peeks on campus

We have a whole module in our free yearbook curriculum on editing.

Cover Year-End Festivities

Fall and winter are the seasons for Bodhi Day, Christmas, Diwali, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah, and Thanksgiving. Consider adding family celebrations to your coverage timeline as well as class parties.

https://blog.treering.com/including-a-diverse-set-of-holidays-and-traditions-into-the-yearbook/

Inspire Generosity

‘Tis the season to be selfless! Treering’s donation option makes it easy for families to gift yearbooks to the school. Advisers and coordinators then share the love by distributing yearbooks to those in need or gifting them to staff members.

Spring

It’s time to spring into action and finish the book! (Heads up: it’s also time to get those yearbook spreads and personalized pages ready for Treering Yearbooks’ spring contests.)

Finish Strong

If winter was the season everyone is ignoring you, in spring, everyone has questions. Can I have more time? How do I get my photos in? How do I buy a yearbook?

Some easy ways to help save your sanity are:

• Be proactive and share the personalized pages tutorial online (seasoned advisers hold their own training session).
• Use templates or the auto page builder to start your layouts. You can always modify them.
• Make sure all teachers and the front office staff have the ordering info. You may even want to share a QR code for them to place in newsletters.
• Add Year in Review and Trend pages

Let It Go... and Celebrate!

Before you hit print ready, ask yourself:

1. Do we need to order extra books? (Some schools like to keep a copy in the library.)
2. How do we want our books sorted?
3. Where should our books be sent? 
4. When will they arrive and do we need expedited shipping?

https://blog.treering.com/yearbook-distribution-ideas/

Summer

High five! You did it! 

https://blog.treering.com/summer-yearbooking-how-to-prep/

QR Code is a registered trademark of DENSO WAVE INCORPORATED.

There are two schools of yearbook coordinators: the first, would never click on this blog, and the second, is ready to prep for the following school year. We’re glad you’re ready to lay the foundation for your yearbook over the summer and hope these three steps relieve stress because you’ll enter the school year more prepared than ever, and help you tick off some boxes so you can fully enjoy your summer vacation.

Step 1: Build your Team

Yearbook finished, check! Distribution party a success, check! Use this momentum to recruit a new team. Before you hand out your yearbook staff application, debrief with your current team and state your goals for the upcoming year. 

Are you creating a memory book? Be sure to build a team of photographers to capture the emotion behind the events as well as some marketing mavens who will pump up crowdsourcing efforts.

Are you looking to go more journalistic and create a history book? You’ll need writers/reporters in addition to your layout designers and photographers.

Are you creating a spirit book? You’ll want people who are passionate about your school community.

If you lead a student class or club:

• Make sure your recruiting message aligns with your goals
• Highlight the transferable skills
• Solicit recommendations from the faculty as well as your current team
• Build your syllabus and bookmark these rubrics from our free yearbook curriculum

Summer is a great time to do some introductory training with your team. Some advisers do a two- or three-day minicamp and select the theme, colors, and fonts for the year. Others host team-building events to build trust before jumping into design.

If your team is comprised of adults:

• Make sure your recruiting message aligns with your goals
• Set specific expectations for involvement
• Follow up, follow up, follow up
• Offer opportunities for all parents and teachers to contribute

Step 2: Start a Ladder

A ladder is the lifeblood of yearbook organization because it serves two functions:

• It helps you create a schedule
• It helps you determine your page count

https://blog.treering.com/need-yearbook-ladder-planning-efforts/

From your ladder, you can reverse engineer your yearbook from the final deadline to all the photoshoots that need to be scheduled in between. Since this doc is an overview of the entire book, some yearbook staffs like to post it and use it to check off spreads when they are finished. 

Using this yearbook organization module will help you with all the back-end administrivia. 

Step 3: Relax and Wait for School to Start

We’re working parents, so we get it: it’s easier said than done. Yes, you’re going to want to solicit summer vacay photos for the yearbook, so grab you-time when you can. From an extra five minutes of privacy in the bathroom to hours with a great book, we wish you well. 

To echo the signatures in our yearbooks, have a great summer!

Congratulations! The yearbook is done… Now what? I remember the years before I found Treering Yearbooks, when my publisher called in the pages at the end of February. A whole quarter of yearbook students with “nothing” to do was a pedagogical nightmare. Even with a three-week turnaround, Treering advisers everywhere need inspiration, motivation, and a few learning outcomes to finish the year. After talking with several advisers, we compiled this list of things to do to make the end of the year even more meaningful.

1. Keep, Change, Stop

This is a conversation to have with your printed proof in hand. Thumb through as a team, project some spreads on the wall and complete a matrix. What aspects of your program are proverbial home runs and should be keepers? What needs to be changed? (Use this time to brainstorm solutions.) What needs to be stopped?

How it worked in San Diego, CA

After ten years at a K-12 private school, the yearbook staff said they wanted to stop having a purple yearbook. It was a sacred cow we were ready to take off the altar. We color-coded the book in warm reds for the upper school and cool blues for the lower school. When we did the reveal, some of the lifers were enraged until the editor explained, “Blue plus red equals purple.” Cue tears. 

It was another five years before we did a purple book again. Had we not had the Keep-Change-Stop conversation, the journalism program would continue to limit its creativity and every book would essentially be a spirit book.

2. Honor the Yearbook Heroes

Grab a stack of thank you cards from the dollar store and take time to recognize the people who helped you create the book, from the office team who gives you the roster at the start of the year to the mom who tirelessly uploads photos from the pick up line. If you are not acknowledging the yearbook heroes on your campus in your colophon, think of a public way to do so:

• School marquee
• Social media post
• Special luncheon
• Send a THNKS a latte

How it worked in Olathe, KS

Being unable to set foot on campus last year was certainly an obstacle, but with the help of our amazing PTO members, school staff, yearbook committee, and community of parents, we were able to still capture the year in a holistic way. We worked with parents to showcase our year in and outside of school.

Because it was a collaborative effort, and we really do have such an awesome community of parents who make this all possible, it was easy to make a video and celebrate our yearbook coordinator through Treering’s #YearbookHero Contest. 

3. Make Time for Fun

How many of us Type-A advisers focus on business and forget to play? When the yearbook is finished, it’s the best time to celebrate. Some ideas for stress-releasing fun include:

• Craft time
• Digital escape rooms
• Potlucks
• Game nights
• Sundae bars

How it worked in Clarksville, TN

All of us brought in a board game to play. Our adviser made us rotate for a week and try one another’s. I learned Exploding Kittens, Sequence, and Mancala. It helped us break down the stress of finishing the book and focus on celebrating as a team. After the week, we went back to business and got ready for our signing party.

4. Hold a Social Media Bootcamp

The period between going print-ready and distributing your yearbook is the ideal time to teach new skills, such as social media marketing. If your school has a social presence, adding yearbook-related content is one idea to keep what you and your committee are doing top of mind.

Tweet

Before you bring in a marketing professional or check out a professional course, set the goals and expectations with your team. Do you want to

• Recruit volunteers?
• Sell more yearbooks?
• Crowdsource content?

How it worked in Arlington Heights, IL

Going social was the best thing we did for our yearbook. When I saw the social media calendar, we adopted it, and it increased our followers, which increased our yearbook sales and crowdsourcing efforts. 

We also created a hashtag for our yearbook, so if any parents posted a photo—if they used the hashtag—we would consider it for publication. This helped us get a bunch of photos we wouldn’t normally have: boarding the bus, friend groups at events, and cultural events.

5. Brainstorm Evergreen Ideas

Evergreen content for yearbooks is a collection of interview questions, infographic topics, and story ideas that can be used throughout the year. (Here are 40+ to get you started. You’re welcome.)While we want to have a yearbook that reflects the current year and trends, having a timeless collection for reporters and designers serves two purposes:

1. Something to do: in that first-of-the-year lull, students can build out evergreen modules and work hard to incorporate less involved students.
2. Fill coverage holes: sometimes an event doesn’t happen (hello 2020). Sometimes a student doesn’t cover an event. Sometimes you just have holes. By having a collection from which to draw, you will always have usable content.

How it worked in Williamstown, KY

I remember the first time a student missed an assignment. As a second-year teacher and rookie adviser, I felt like a failure because I didn’t have a contingency plan. My editor actually came up with the idea to have a question of the day. She would text the question in the morning and everyone would ask three students. They would then input the responses into a Google Form. 

We kept all the questions related to our theme, Give + Take. They were simple like “Give us your top three songs” or “If you could take a class on anything, what would it be?” Since they were thematic, it was a perfect complement to our book. If we needed a student for coverage or had a blank spot on the spread, we had the material for an instant quote bar. Using Google Forms also allowed us to track and sort the answers by the respondent.

6. I Do, You Do, We Do

I Do, You Do, We Do is a teambuilding idea as well as a way to add in professional growth. It works like this:

1. I pick a skill to teach the class and demonstrate it
2. You learn and apply the skill
3. We do it together

How it worked in Miami, FL

We decided we wanted to use Doodle as our theme for next year and wanted to create coloring book-style pages in the book for dividers and such. None of us are Photoshop pros, so our adviser suggested we learn. Each of us on the editorial team for next year picked a video on YouTube to watch. Then we taught our classmates how to do it. Teaching my friends to do something I just learned made me proud and they listened well. 

7. Practice Interviewing

It’s easy to fire off a text that says, “Give me a quote for yearbook,” but yearbook staffs don’t do easy journalism. Spend some time refining your reporting using the yearbook storytelling module of Treering’s free curriculum.

How it worked in Lakeside, CA

Our district hired a branding company to re-do the website, marketing materials, and our social presence. They brought in a photographer to capture student life and take professional headshots of the staff. When the final products came out, they were incomplete. No one knows the Warriors like the Warriors, so I seized an opportunity: hire out my yearbook students.

We wanted to improve our writing, so we created a list of questions to ask teachers and re-wrote all the staff bios for the website.

Your Turn

With these seven actionable ideas, you can find a place of rest going into summer. If you want to get a head start on planning for the fall semester, check out six weeks of yearbook lessons, including rubrics and a yearbook class syllabus.

Treering Yearbook Heroes is a monthly feature focusing on yearbook tips and tricks.

Meet Abby, Treering’s Community Advocate Team (CAT) Director. Not only does she advocate for schools and parents who need support, but she also advocates for the team she leads by creating a positive, proactive environment.

Do you have a yearbook story for us?

In 7th grade, I won the athlete of the year superlative. The photographer set up her photoshoot after a workout and expected me to do a chin-up. I was a swimmer. The resulting image showed me with my tongue out, hair in disarray, and shirt pulling from my shorts. It told people, “I’m a great athlete, but a mess everywhere else.” I always wondered why they didn’t photograph me in my element, the pool.

And thus, you began fixing yearbook issues! You’re in the midst of our busiest season because April through May are when our spring deliveries go to print.

Yes, this is my favorite time. I started hyping up the team in January by letting them know we are approaching the final stretch. It’s now, in the 11th hour, when customers are putting the final touches on their masterpieces and inevitably things are going to go wrong.

Last summer, we increased our permanent staff to better serve customers. We also increase seasonal help during this time and extended the hours phone and email support are available.

What other new initiatives have you begun?

We are constantly evolving. In fall, we started Welcome Walk-Throughs for new yearbook editors so they are ready to cheerlead their own book. During these one-on-one sessions, an advocate goes over page count, shipping, dates and deadlines, yearbook promotion, and how to engage the school community, set up folders/photo storage, complete portrait autoflow, and go print ready. It’s a lot! We really want to build confidence.

Every day, we learn from customers, and many updates to the app or new themes have come from them! 

How does it feel to see your ideas in motion?

We are just scratching the surface! Last year, I wanted to do something fun for our customers and recognize our community by rewarding them for doing a great job and for all the hours they put in. The #TreeringMemoriesMatter came from that. I’m excited to see how it expanded to the #YearbookHero and #TreeringMemoryMaker contests.

There are always things we can do along the way to help people smile. Whether it’s these large-scale contests or telling yearbook editors what looks great in their books—it’s about kindness. Our customers put hours they don’t have into their craft.

When people think of “support,” they probably envision a cube farm with a bunch of headsets and scripted responses. How is Treering Yearbooks different?

The work culture at Treering Yearbooks is what attracted me to the company in 2012. Our focus has always been on customer service. When most help centers have a “turn and burn” philosophy, Treering doesn’t monitor call times. Our advocacy team is trained to anticipate future needs and educate editors. I tell them, “Answer the unasked questions.”

Every year, satisfaction surveys consistently mention how much yearbook editors and parents appreciate the focused time they receive on the phone from our agents. 

If you could tell a Treering yearbooks customer anything, what would it be?

The CAT team is here to help you every step of the way in your yearbook journey and we are here to help you when you are overwhelmed. There’s no limit to what we won’t do for them (in the yearbook).

Operative phrase: In the yearbook. Visit/favorite/bookmark help.treering.com for more.

May 2-6 is Teacher Appreciation Week and it’s time to plan your strategy! An attitude of gratitude can propel the faculty through the last weeks of school. While it’s generally not the yearbook team’s job to organize Teacher Appreciation festivities, we know there are parent contributors and class-act students who love to spread joy. 

Yearbook Donation Drive for Teachers

Treering’s donation option makes it easy for families to gift yearbooks to the school. Advisers and coordinators then share the love by distributing yearbooks to staff. Some schools even do an online auction for the principal’s yearbook. Since donated yearbooks won’t arrive during the week, make sure your yearbook team has a card or certificate to present to recipients.

Staff Tributes in the Yearbook

If your yearbook deadline is mid-to-late May, Teacher Appreciation should have coverage. Even if Teacher Appreciation Week comes after your final deadline, you can use the yearbook to showcase your on-campus heroes by:

• Leaving space for staff candids
• Interviewing the Teacher of the Year, department heads, and new members of the faculty
• Highlighting pregnant teachers with a “Future [Mascot]” module

Last-Minute Teacher Appreciation Ideas

We know you’re busy [finishing the yearbook], so here are some no-prep appreciation strategies you can do with your yearbook staff.

• Print and write a postcard (aka a social science lesson on what a postcard is)
• Hold a mini supply drive to replenish teachers’ stock⸺ it can be as simple as cracking open a Costco pack of Expo markers and sharing them among the faculty
• Compile a list of all the free food in your neighborhood so your teachers know where to grab dinner each night
• Create a hall collage with classmates by each bringing in a thank you drawing; if you start small Monday, it could create a movement by Friday
• Use an e-gifting platform such as THNKS to digitally send an  'I Appreciate You' A Latte or a You're Spec-Taco-ular Lunch. It takes seconds.
• Go social: record a video or upload a photo of you and your favorite teacher(s) using #thankateacher, #teacherappreciation, #teacherlove, #weloveourteachers, #thankyouteachers, #teachersrock, #treering
• Download photos and create a slideshow of staff members to display on a screen in the office, on your morning broadcast, or share it with the school community in the May newsletter.

What did you do? Tag us on Facebook and Instagram to share your successes.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Treering offers the opportunity for users to share their stories behind inclusive custom pages and layout designs.

Treering, a digital yearbook software company, recently hosted a contest for their dedicated users to showcase their custom design pages and tell their stories behind a yearbook spread. The contest lasted two weeks and offered enticing incentives including Amazon and Spa gift cards, and a spotlight on their online blog! The contest was split into two groups, one for their end-users - parents, and one for school chief editors. 

14 total winners were chosen across 8 different states throughout the country. Winners were chosen based on the quality of their submitted yearbook design and story, and spanned across elementary, middle, and high schools. One of the chief editor winners shared a heartfelt story behind their layout as her school combined with another school following the pandemic this last year. Her layout was inspired by blending two very different school cultures into one school family. 

“Two small public-school populations combined into one: a Mandarin school, and a parent co-op school, called Orion Alternative. Using the Treering cosmic theme with custom images, the contents are arranged in the shape of the Orion constellation, while floating Chinese lanterns soar into the night sky.”

Many of the winners also shared their stories behind their custom pages and how they were able to savor their memories, inside and outside of school. Treering’s custom pages are one of the incredible highlights behind the software. They offer inclusivity to every student, allowing an opportunity to highlight personal accomplishments and memories. 

One of the winners, a father, used his custom spread to showcase a series of first-day-of-school photos taken by the same tree each year, to show not only his son’s growth over the years, but also his memories and interests at each age! 

Treering is a company that specializes in the design, creation, and printing of quality yearbooks. The traditional yearbook only includes a few photos of each student. In today's smartphone world student's have thousands of photos of themselves and their friends. This makes the traditional yearbook a lot less relevant. Treering brings the yearbook into the internet generation with custom pages, online signatures, and more while operating at zero cost to schools, only printing books parents decide to purchase.

Treering Yearbooks is pleased to announce the winners of our 2022 #TreeringMemoriesMatter Design Contest. Yearbook editors from across the US submitted their favorite yearbook spreads from the 2021-2022 school year.

First Place Winners

Elementary School: Del Norte Heights Elementary School, El Paso, TX

The blended coverage of a teacher-organized remembrance ceremony of 9/11's 20th anniversary and a celebration of one of America's most popular children's books captured the "return to normalcy," Yearbook Coordinator, Elyse Hernandez said.

The Del Norte Team earned second place in our 2021 contest with their spread on face mask fashion.

"As we returned to our classrooms in person, students embraced the return to normalcy, and being able to create traditions and celebrate our students is one of the many facets that make Del Norte Heights an amazing learning center," Hernandez said. "That is why our Treering Memories really matter!"

Middle School: Edison Regional Gifted Center, Chicago, IL

This show-stopper spread is a strong example of inclusivity and trends (hello botanical design and pop culture). Notice how each student has individualized interview questions. We also love that the cutouts aren't true COBs, which adds to the magazine feel.

High School: Grandview High School, Grandview, WA

Student editor Jazmine Richey created this spread which incorporates both theme elements and the here-and-now of the campus: a state-tournament appearance, the return of fans in the stands, and a new building. We love the modular look.

"The [red] line represents not only the presence of the Red Line of Equity in our everyday lives but the beginning of the creation of traditions here at GHS," Lilly Kassinger, the student who nominated Richey's work, said.

And the QR code? It links to a highlight reel of the season.

Each of the first-place winners will share their tips and tricks in upcoming blogs.

Second Place Winners

Elementary School: Lois Lenski Elementary, Littleton, CO

Middle School: Lennox Middle School, Inglewood, CA

High School: Pennyroyal Area Christian Home Educators of Kentucky (PACHEK), Hopkinsville, KY

Third Place Winners

Elementary School: Orion Alternative and Mandarin Immersion, Redwood City, CA

Middle School: Mountain School, Soquel, CA

High School: Freedom High Magnet School, Albuquerque, NM

QR Code is a registered trademark of DENSO WAVE INCORPORATED.

2022 #TreeringMemoriesMatter Runners Up

Abington Friends School
Ardrey Kell Band Booster
Blue Ridge Academy
Bremerton High School
Cetronia Elementary School
Chateauguay Valley Regional
Chester W. Morrison Elementary
Christ Lutheran
Evergreen Valley High School
Gregory-Portland High School
Lakeside Christian School
Lyman High School
New Traditions
North Elementary School
Okaloosa Stem Academy
Orange County Classical Academy
Perry Lecompton Middle School
Premont I.S.D./Premont Collegiate High School/Premont Early College Academy
Presidio Middle School
Sky Ranch Middle
Southeast Academy High School
St. Cloud Christian school
St. Xavier Catholic School
The Learning Connection (TLC)
Thomas Rivera Elementary
Villagers
Virginia's Governor's School for the Arts

The judges, a panel of yearbook professionals, graphic designers, parents, and journalism educators, thank everyone who entered the 2022 #TreeringMemoriesMatter Design Contest.

You did all the work. You submitted it. And boom: boxes arrive, filled with memories and awaiting signatures. You could deliver a stack to each classroom, wipe your hands, and prep for next year. Or, you could create an epic yearbook distribution and signing party to further cement the yearbook’s role on your campus. Yearbook distribution doesn’t have to be a total mic drop moment (it can), but rather a unifying event to help close the year.

Make Unboxing a Moment

Unboxing the yearbook can help build excitement for yearbook distribution because it tells the campus community the yearbooks are here! A few ideas for social media posts are:

• Put a GoPro or tape your cellphone on the boxes as they get wheeled into the building
• Film your team cracking open the first box (make sure they smell the ink!)
• Photograph a box of yearbooks in various “seats” around campus: the principal’s chair, a student desk, a key locale in the caf
• If your yearbook company doesn’t label your books individually by buyer and organize them by class, do a time-lapse video of your team organizing the books for distribution

Start Distribution with the Yearbook Team

Being on yearbook staff has to have perks, and one is a fancy-pants dinner before yearbook distribution. (Please note fancy is a relative term: if an Oreo shake is your thing, you’re our kind of people.) 

Think of your typical sports banquet: the coach (adviser) stands and speaks a few remarks on the team then hands out the awards. Traditionally, the yearbook staff unwraps their yearbook and shares it with their family. It’s special because they have the first copies and it’s an individualized time for parents to see all the work their child accomplished. Do you have parents creating the yearbook? Celebrate these yearbook heroes!

Distribution Parties

The last month of school is full of events and celebrations, yearbook distribution should be one of the reasons your community comes together. Here are three ideas for yearbook distribution parties our advisers hold, and since we’re all lovers of a good theme, we put together some end-of-the-year playlists for you. 

The Extended Lunch

Work with your school’s faculty and administration to add 15-25 minutes to the end of lunchtime for yearbook signing. Create designated areas for each grade with class color-coded pens to distribute the yearbooks and then play music while students mingle. 

The Afterschool Special

When yearbook distribution and singing are a family event, you build even more community. Meet at a public park’s gazebo and pass out books and play. Moms hang, kids hang, and the teachers breathe easier because they didn’t have to plan it. 

The Bundle and Save

For anyone thinking, “I don’t need one more thing to do,” this is for you: add a yearbook signing party to an existing end-of-the-year event such as award night or an all-school carnival. All you need to do is make a cluster of tables (velvet ropes optional) and have an organized distribution center. 

Want to make it next level? Have your distribution area next to a bounce house. Students get their books at the bottom of the slide as they celebrate bouncing to the next grade.

How will you celebrate? Be sure to tag @treering on Facebook and @treeringcorp on TikTok and Instagram to show us.

Some of these ideas originally appeared in our yearbook traditions blog.

What is a colophon anyway? Publishers include this vital piece to record production notes and sometimes acknowledgments. Since your yearbook is a historical document, including a colophon adds professionalism to your publication. But it doesn’t have to be boring! Below are three examples of yearbook colophons that include theme details, shout-outs, and yearbook staffing information. 

Essential Components for Your Yearbook Colophon

1. Title of yearbook and theme information: include any behind the design information
2. Book details: the number of pages, cover type, and paper weight
3. Design specs: font names sizes and use cases
4. Photography credits: Identify your portrait photographer, staff photographers, and any volunteer super parents who contributed
5. Software tools: list which applications you used to build your book
6. Publisher information: name of the publisher and the names of the publishing staff who helped

Thematic Colophons

Both of these colophons leverage their themes (Stay Gold and Speak Life, respectively) with the headlines as well as the graphics. (The actual copy of their colophons is below for you to use.)

A Bold Colophon

We love this one because it features the yearbook team, gives the book details in an easy-to-read format, and both editors have space to say thank you.

Yearbook Colophon Template

To create a quick colophon, copy and paste the following in your yearbook. Make it your own by giving behind-the-design details.

[Yearbook name] is produced by [School Name] in [City, State] and published by Treering Yearbooks in San Mateo, CA. The [hard- and/or softcover] yearbooks are [matte or glossy] finish [with upgraded embossing or foil]. The book's [number] pages are printed in full color on 100lb. sustainably sourced paper—the Treering standard. We used the Treering app for the layouts; [if applicable, list software used to make photo illustrations]. The theme art is [theme name from Treering] and [name] designed the cover. Headlines are [font and size] with subheadings in [font and size]. Body copy is [font and size]. [Photographer] took the school portraits and [parents, coaches, non-yearbook students] contributed [team, event, and/or candid] photos.

Treering Yearbook Heroes is a monthly feature focusing on yearbook adviser (and in this case, student editor) tips and tricks.

This year we at Treering called on all our schools’ parents, teachers, and students to nominate yearbook heroes in a first-ever peoples’ contest: #YearbookHero. The yearbook callout contest was prompted by our empathy and true appreciation for our yearbook editors.

Klamath Union High School senior Bailyn Amos won first place in the high school division; her team nominated her because she led them in problem-solving how to produce a yearbook in the 2020-2021 school year. From collecting photos from students to gaining valuable skills that will stick with her for years to come, Bailyn shares her experience leading her staff in creating a beautiful yearbook Klamath Union High School students will treasure for years to come. 

What does it mean to you to be Klamath Union High School’s Yearbook Hero?

Being a Yearbook Hero means that I have the ability to give back to my school and express how the school year was and all the good times we had. 

How did you go about getting the photo submission for the yearbook? How did you motivate your peers to get involved, especially those that weren’t involved in the media design class?

I motivated my peers by making every minute spent working a fun experience. We turned work into a mini party and played lots of music and watched lots of movies! With some of my friends who weren't in media design classes, I spent a lot of time on calls with them working at home. Treering made it really easy to work on the yearbook anywhere and at any time.

What advice would you give to students for gathering photos from parents? In your opinion, what are some tips for talking to parents about yearbook needs as it could be viewed as intimidating for some students? 

The school sent out a lot of notices and emails to not only students, but the parents as well informing them on deadlines and such. Treering was a great tool to help gather as many quality photos for the yearbook as possible. We also leveraged social media to ensure we had plenty to choose from!

What kind of leadership skills do you feel you implemented during the past year when leading yearbook creation? 

Starting off, I felt like I didn't have much leadership skills other than being loud. But by the end, I picked up so many different skills. I learned how to better communicate what needs to be done and how it can be done. I also feel more comfortable being in a leadership position and am so much more confident in my work, which is something I struggled with in the past.

How has being involved with the yearbook inspired your career choices? 

Being involved with the yearbook inspired me to pursue a career in teaching because it showed me how much I enjoyed teaching how everything worked and how to build up skills. Overall it was a lot of fun and something I can see myself doing in the future.