The Bolton Hill Bulletin is seeking new volunteers to be part of its production team, including a new production team leader to take over for Peter Van Buren. After three years leading the Bulletin, Peter will step down in January of 2018. Both Peter and current co-editor Jean Lee Cole intend to stay on as members of the new production team, but the work has grown substantially and additional hands are needed.
In addition to a team leader, other roles include an advertising manager to coordinate the sponsors, a calendar editor to manage event postings, and assistant editors/beat reporters to produce articles for the newsletter’s sections, which include MRIA Matters, Neighborhood News, Social Justice, and Health & Safety.
Volunteers can expect about 2-5 hours work per month. People with experience or interest in writing, WordPress, photography, sales, and neighborhood journalism, are all needed; a commitment to adhere to deadlines is essential. Peter and Jean will provide training and support for the specifics of each role.
Please email your interest to bhbeditormail@gmail.com, and join the MRIA’s Communication team.
Changes in Production
Producing MRIA’s monthly newsletter has always been a group effort. Over the years, team members have changed and the roles have evolved, particularly as the Bulletin moved online in January of 2016.
In January 2015 when Judith McFadden retired as editor and Peter assumed the role, the Bulletin was printed double-sided on a single sheet of legal paper. This format allowed for copy totaling around 1,500 words per issue.
When the Bulletin moved online, tasks changed, as the WordPress platform handled the layout, while the need to print and mail disappeared. This greatly reduced both production expenses and the time between finish and delivery, while dramatically increasing the amount of information that could be covered. Issues now arrive about a day after the issue is finished, and include 11 to 15 articles with a total word count of 6000–7000, a fourfold increase.
The online formal also accommodates color graphics, photos and videos, as well as an interactive calendar with details on local events and links to much more information around the web. None of these were possible with the print Bulletin.
Margaret DeArcangelis of MRIA’s Membership Committee still makes sure each issue goes out to the most current list of members, while Jean Lee Cole stepped up as co-editor in the summer of 2015. Jean shared Peter’s vision of moving the Bulletin online; together they made the new website a reality in just 4 months.
Jean and Peter now share the responsibility for producing the Bulletin throughout the year, handling all the roles from advertising to copywriting, and from calendar management to website maintenance. They could use some help. Come join the team!
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