The Galena High School publications class, along with the aid of Athletic Director Brett Noble, took on the task of making a spring sports program for the community. The programs are given out at all home games during the spring season. The program includes rosters, pictures and schedules of each of the GHS teams and clubs that have a spring season.

“Rather than have a company produce the programs, the program itself could become another way for students to get involved and produce something that is not just about the students on the teams/activities in the pages, but is also an example of our students talents on its own,” said Noble. “So, it made sense to try to be self-sufficient, pride an opportunity for students to put their design skills to use, and ensure advertising dollars are going directly towards our extracurriculars. Mrs. Bookless and I discussed the project and we had to make sure that it was something that could be pulled off. We decided to do a test run with our first ever spring sports guide.”

With the athletic department currently raising funds for an upgrade to the weight room, this was a big boost in the funding. The program is also a great way for the community to have everything going on this spring in one handy dandy booklet.

The publications class took on the task, chugging full speed ahead for three long hard weeks of putting the program together.

“We did the spring sports guide to see how the process would play out. There were quite a few unknowns and we wanted to use this as an opportunity to learn the process. The students did an awesome job. The guide looks great, especially considering it was a completely new process. Students communicated with advertisers and either created ads or worked with the businesses to get ads submitted and placed in the program. Mrs. Bookless did a great job behind the scenes, helping students make corrections, working with the printer and ensuring everything went smoothly. We also had great support from local businesses. I think for a test run, the spring sports guide is awesome,” said Noble.

The class spent the majority of their time working tirelessly on the program. They made the entire program from scratch, from the final placing of pictures and captions all the way down to the format of each individual pages.
Noble left his thoughts on whether or not the GHS will continue to make the programs at the school, saying, “That is definitely the direction we are looking to go… we definitely had work to do and it was a challenge. However it was a great experience and I am proud of all the work the students and Mrs. Bookless put into it,” said Noble. “The students had the opportunity to apply the skills they have learned in publications classes to a real-world product that will be seen throughout the community. That is pretty rewarding.”

According to Noble, the process will only get easier. “Now that we know more about the process, we can keep improving it. I think future programs will get better and better. I want to thank Mrs. Bookless and the students for all their hard work, and all of the advertisers for supporting the Pirates!”