Spring Break
Yearbooks should switch to by-demand pay system
Our Opinion
Issue date: 2/5/09 Section: Commentary
At a time when money is becoming increasingly tight on the UConn campus, some organizations are asking for fee increases to keep from going under themselves. Among these organizations is the Nutmeg Yearbook, which chronicles life at UConn and publishes it in a book that is mailed to graduating seniors each year for free.
The Nutmeg Yearbook's publication costs - in addition to its $600 to $700 yearly salaries for its less than 20 person staff - are paid for each year mostly by student fee money. Each student pays $3 per semester and is given a yearbook free of charge when they graduate. This system has caused yearly deficits for the yearbook, which is now set to run out of money in 2013. According to the yearbook's editor-in-chief, the proposed fee increase of $1 per semester would keep the yearbook afloat for another four or five years beyond 2013.
Students, however, are sick of hearing about fee increases at this point in time, and have already voted down previous attempts to give the yearbook a larger budget. Therefore, a more agreeable, fiscally responsible and long-term solution for the problem may be to open up the yearbook to the market and stop using student fee funding at all. Under such a system, students would order yearbooks for a set price sometime before Thanksgiving break, giving yearbook staff a budget to work with and enough time to place the year's order.
This system would be better for students - who would no longer have to pay for a yearbook if they don't want one - and better for the yearbook, which may obtain a larger operating budget by selling yearbooks to students of each class rather than giving them away just to the seniors. Based on a small number of interviews done, most students who do not participate in clubs or Greek organizations featured in the yearbook would prefer not to purchase it. However, Greek organizations and clubs are not just limited to seniors. Underclassmen who participate and had a particularly good year are more likely to purchase the yearbook.
The only way this system could possibly fail would be if students did not wish to have a yearbook. If that is really the case, the yearbook probably should not be getting student funds anyways. Therefore, nothing would be lost from switching to a "user pay" system for the Nutmeg Yearbook. The current system, however, browbeats students into supporting a publication that many of them couldn't care less about. For involved students, the yearbook is a great way to remember friends and good times, but for the uninvolved, it's a waste of money. In the end, that's really not fair.
The Nutmeg Yearbook's publication costs - in addition to its $600 to $700 yearly salaries for its less than 20 person staff - are paid for each year mostly by student fee money. Each student pays $3 per semester and is given a yearbook free of charge when they graduate. This system has caused yearly deficits for the yearbook, which is now set to run out of money in 2013. According to the yearbook's editor-in-chief, the proposed fee increase of $1 per semester would keep the yearbook afloat for another four or five years beyond 2013.
Students, however, are sick of hearing about fee increases at this point in time, and have already voted down previous attempts to give the yearbook a larger budget. Therefore, a more agreeable, fiscally responsible and long-term solution for the problem may be to open up the yearbook to the market and stop using student fee funding at all. Under such a system, students would order yearbooks for a set price sometime before Thanksgiving break, giving yearbook staff a budget to work with and enough time to place the year's order.
This system would be better for students - who would no longer have to pay for a yearbook if they don't want one - and better for the yearbook, which may obtain a larger operating budget by selling yearbooks to students of each class rather than giving them away just to the seniors. Based on a small number of interviews done, most students who do not participate in clubs or Greek organizations featured in the yearbook would prefer not to purchase it. However, Greek organizations and clubs are not just limited to seniors. Underclassmen who participate and had a particularly good year are more likely to purchase the yearbook.
The only way this system could possibly fail would be if students did not wish to have a yearbook. If that is really the case, the yearbook probably should not be getting student funds anyways. Therefore, nothing would be lost from switching to a "user pay" system for the Nutmeg Yearbook. The current system, however, browbeats students into supporting a publication that many of them couldn't care less about. For involved students, the yearbook is a great way to remember friends and good times, but for the uninvolved, it's a waste of money. In the end, that's really not fair.
Viewing Comments 1 - 6 of 9
Truth
posted 2/05/09 @ 11:34 AM EST
Wow, the DC takes a swipe at the Nutmeg - mentioning their salaries, perhaps its time for the DC to come clean about how much they all get paid. Here's a hint: the Editors make close to $17/hour. (Continued…)
carl winslow
posted 2/05/09 @ 12:56 PM EST
this idea makes little sense....as it stands now each person pays $24 throughout their college years for a yearbook --pretty responsible price.
If you make it optional. (Continued…)
me
posted 2/05/09 @ 1:19 PM EST
I was thinking the same thing the other day- I really don't care if I get a yearbook or not, and I don't like that the money is taken directly from our fee bill and put towards the yearbook. (Continued…)
Bob
posted 2/05/09 @ 6:02 PM EST
What a great idea! When will I expect to stop paying for the Daily Campus? Since they cost me more money, and provide less a service. I could go to facebook. (Continued…)
Freska
posted 2/05/09 @ 6:24 PM EST
I think this article is quite unfair. Yearbooks are a way to remember what has happened, and I can confidently say that over 90% of the campus wants their yearbooks. (Continued…)
Conservative
posted 2/05/09 @ 8:39 PM EST
A yearbook is a waste of money for me. I don't give a damn about the greeks or clubs, since the ones I belong to aren't even featured in the yearbook. (Continued…)
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