yearbook Adviser Spotlight
At Picaboo Yearbooks, we understand that behind every remarkable yearbook is an exceptional adviser who dedicates their time, expertise, and unwavering passion to make each yearbook an extraordinary masterpiece. These advisers are the driving force behind the scenes, shaping the memories and preserving the legacy of schools across the nation.
This page is a special tribute to the outstanding advisers who have partnered with us in creating yearbooks that tell captivating stories, capture unforgettable moments, and celebrate the unique spirit of each school. We take great pride in acknowledging their tireless efforts and commitment, as well as the invaluable role they play in elevating the yearbook experience for students and schools alike.
As you delve into our Spotlight, you will have the opportunity to discover the incredible advisers we have had the privilege to work with. Through their profiles and the stories we share, you'll gain insight into their dedication, creativity, and the impact they've made on the yearbook projects they've undertaken.
Our mission at Picaboo Yearbooks is to provide the most personalized yearbook creation service, empowering schools to tell their story. This Spotlight is a celebration of the collaborative spirit that drives us to continue that promise to our advisers and help them create yearbooks that are more than just pages but enduring legacies.
Join us in honoring these exceptional advisers, whose partnership and dedication have made an incredible mark on the world of yearbooks. We invite you to explore their stories, appreciate their accomplishments, and celebrate their influence on the yearbook community.
This Adviser Spotlight is a testament to the extraordinary work that happens when talented advisers and passionate yearbook professionals come together to create something truly exceptional. Thank you for visiting and sharing in our appreciation for our remarkable advisers who inspire us every day. Each of these advisers has been nominated by a member of the Picaboo Yearbooks team to recognize the hard work and dedicating of our yearbook partners.
Chris Andrus
Utah Arts Academy
Nominated by: Ashley Rowton, National Sales Manager
I have worked as a yearbook adviser at Utah Arts Academy in St George, UT (among other roles, as every educator does) for 13 years now. I've loved working with Picaboo going on 11 years now. So you've all made the right choice if you're reading this. Since I'm human and it's good to laugh, I totally ripped my pants while crouching down to help a student in my very first year teaching. That happened in my yearbook class. My kids were very gracious and went to get me a sewing kit. My simplest points of advice for new/newer advisers among the many are:
1) Come up with a simple theme, hopefully connecting with something the school is doing that year, and hold to it.
2) Focus on your students working as a team over having roles that put them in places of authority above each other (you have that covered already by default).
3) Have them focus on getting photos of students who don't get much attention, increasing overall representation of your student body. The involved students will get photos in the book by default.
3b) Keep a sewing kit around and laugh about things.
I'm happy to connect anytime with advisers who have questions or want to bounce ideas. Good luck to everyone this school year!
Johnny Stafford
Hoover High School
Nominated by: Jaima Finn, Sales Representative 
My sage advice would be: A yearbook should be built around great photography. If you don’t know what good journalistic photography is, do a little homework. Don’t try to replicate Instagram, kids already have that and doing that doesn’t give them any reason to buy a book since they get that for free. Also, invest in the best camera gear that your budget allows. You’ll be shooting in some challenging low-light conditions, so having gear that can handle that easily makes a huge difference. I’m talking camera bodies, fast lenses, and good dedicated flashes. If you don’t know what that means, do a little research. (Or email me!) Next, find a theme and a cover concept that really captures the essence of the year. What is it that makes this year unique? It’s always a challenge but there’s tons of resources online. If you’re stuck, don’t sweat it. Picaboo has some great themes already done for you so don’t be afraid to use one of theirs. Finally, don’t sweat what comes next in the progression of your book. Take each sports season as it unfolds and don’t try to think of the whole book at once. I break my workflow down by seasons, accomplishing what I need to accomplish in the fall, which is Student Life, the People sections, and Fall Sports. Doing that means I’m halfway done with our book by Christmas. Then, I tackle Winter Sports, Clubs, Academics, and Spring Sports after Winter Break. Just let it come to you and try to not lose sleep over the whole process. You got this!!
Kim johnson
Notre Dame Academy
Nominated by: Kelly Iden, Senior Customer Account Manager
Notre Dame has been partnered with Picaboo Yearbooks for over 10 years and we are so proud of their yearbook and their program. Kim shared some advice to other yearbook advisers, "The best advice I have is to know the strengths of your team. Not every adviser is as fortunate as I am. My yearbook class is very popular, but I only accept 15 students, so I tend to get the best of the best in terms of diligence and artistic talent. Many team members have taken photography classes and others are great at graphic design. I have built a "line of succession" for our Senior Editor that has become really competitive! These kids do amazing work." Congratulations to Kim and all the amazing students on the Notre Dame yearbook team.
Nicole Kuntz
Clear Sky Elementary
Nominated by: Keli Stephens, Senior Sales Representative 
I have been working on the yearbook for Clear Sky Elementary since 2017, but became the adviser in the 2020-2021 school year. Don't be afraid to do something new. The first book I did was a theme that I created from scratch and it is still one of my favorites! I think the most important thing you can do is get photos submitted to you as the year progresses. In years past, all photos were collected about a month before the book was due and it was very stressful. For photos to be submitted for consideration of the yearbook, I give a deadline for submission and if those photos are sent after the deadline, those photos don't make it into the book. Sending emails each month to teachers, staff and parents has been so much more helpful and less stressful. One thing our school has been doing is letting the top grade of the school, in our case, the 6th graders, choose the theme of the book (I give them 4 to choose from) and from that theme, we have them do a yearbook cover contest. It is always so fun to see the amazing artwork come from these kids and the yearbook cover never disappoints. It adds such a great unique quality to our books. I hope this tradition will continue!
Jess Eakin
Hanover High School
Nominated by: Tori Wolsky, General Manager
Hanover High School has been partnered with Picaboo Yearbooks for over 8 years, they were actually our GM Tori’s rival school in high school (but those days are long over). Their Adviser, Jess shared more about their yearbook program, “Our yearbook isn't a class, so our club meets weekly for around an hour during lunch. So it's important to get kids coming back week after week and year after year. Once we switched over to Picaboo we started making money instead of being in the red every year, so we have been able to invest in the yearbook club. We have snacks every meeting, buy our editors yearbook sweatshirts, and recognize our senior editors at our annual end-of-school awards ceremony. We were able to buy two nice DSLR cameras for our students to use that get them sideline access at all our sporting events. We just purchased a drone and I am now a licensed drone pilot so we're looking forward to taking some cool aerial shots! Making money has also allowed us to provide free yearbooks to students who would otherwise not be able to afford one.
One thing that we have struggled with has been cover submissions. This year we asked every student in the club to pick one person they'd ask to design a cover and sent them a personalized email. We ended up with a record number of submissions. The ones that didn't win will be our endsheets. We always do artwork on our endsheets--it's such great real estate! And elements from other covers are going throughout our book.” We are so happy to have partnered with Hanover and helped them grow their yearbook program over the years.