Organization plays a critical role in the success of your yearbook. Organization keeps chaos at bay and reduces the chance of missing deadlines. Everyone has a personal organization system but for a joint project, one universal system is needed.

Deadlines
These tips make the final deadline less intimidating and more manageable:

• Identify your specific deadline dates by referring to your Publication Agreement or YB Track.
• Assign all spreads at the beginning of the year to allow everyone to see individual tasks and plan accordingly.
• Assign mini-deadlines for each spread, such as photos, copy and layout.
• Pair people up into teams—this acts as a check and balance and teaches time management and delegation.

Timeline
Create a detailed timeline showing every deadline for the entire year. Start at the end and work backwards so that you are able to see the start points for each phase of the yearbook. Allow plenty of time for proofing and editing. And pad each deadline by several days. Expect the unexpected to avoid crunch time.

Setting Up Your Yearbook Room
Designate a separate room or a corner of a room as the yearbook work area—the yearbook area needs to be a home away from home. Members of the yearbook staff will spend many hours here. It needs to be functional and friendly. Here’s a brief supplies list to get you started:

• File cabinets (locking is best)
• Tables and chairs
• Computers and laser printers
• Bulletin board(s)
• Calendar(s)
• Waste baskets and recycling bins
• Disk storage area
• Supplies such as pens, pencils, white-out, clips, scissors, rulers, sticker, sticky notes
• Phone line
• Microwave and munchies