"Putting Together a Newsletter on a Shoestring Budget and Involving the Community"

by Lucille Van Alstine, President (2006-2007)
Greater St. Louis English Teachers Association, Missouri

During the 2007 Affiliate Leadership Meeting in Chicago, Lucille Van Alstine from the Greater St. Louis English Teachers Association (GSLETA) showed how her affiliate produces its newsletter, The GSLETA Express, with limited funding. She began her discussion with the timeline her affiliate used to undertake the responsibilities of publication, from theme selection to mailing. She spoke of collaboration and stakeholders. Lucille explained the importance of recognizing institutions who help support the newsletter, such as businesses, the university, and local school districts.  (Although these constituents do not want advertising in the GSLETA newsletter, she makes it a point to share her appreciation for their contributions.) Last, she displayed a copy of the finished newsletter and pointed out techniques her production company used to make the copy look and feel professional, such as the type of paper, use of color, spacing, and the number of pages.

More about  . . .

An important, unspoken aspect of our newsletter is "values." We decided as a Board what was really important for our English educators to share and understand. In addition, people offered what they did well: one person did the layout, some people wrote articles, others offered to be proof readers.

To find a production company, we created a newsletter with a theme, audience, and purpose. Then we Googled "newsletter printing companies," checked their locations in proximity to us, and interviewed secretaries of several businesses by phone. We sent the companies an email copy of our newsletter and asked for estimates and critiques. At that point, we decided that being humble and honest about our abilities was the best course of action.  We received a lot of good advice, even from companies we did not choose as our printer. We decided on a company and asked for a draft.  I made a visit to the chosen company's office and talked to the manager, who was very nice. Finally, we ordered just enough copies for our affiliate.

The important factor in getting a newsletter published is time management. I am sure my team considers me a stress factor when deadlines approach. We stick to our guidelines and delete or table articles if they don't come in on time. (The GSLETA Express timeline)

The newsletter price was free with a membership last year. Since so many people have asked for copies, we are considering that the newsletter might have a minimal price for the 2007-2008 academic year. Please contact me at lucilleann(at)sbcglobal.net to subscribe or purchase an issue.