Printing and Publication Services

In a typical year The College of St. Scholastica publishes more than 600 different printed pieces, at a considerable investment of dollars and staff time. Some of these pieces are regular publications and others are special requests from various offices and academic divisions. Whatever their origins, we recommend that all publications meant for the outside public first go through College Communications for design, editorial, printer specification and production control purposes.

The College is able to maintain a standard of quality and appearance at the best possible cost by using a central office. Negotiations with printers are often complicated. Our experienced staff has well-established relationships with several printers - locally and statewide -helping to ensure the best results.

Good planning and sufficient time create quality publications. With foresight and early contact with us, a satisfying, quality publication will be produced.

College Communications only does projects for the various departments and academic divisions within the College. We do not do projects for organizations outside the College.

Our staff is responsible for overseeing all printing and publication needs for the College, including the following services:

Consultation in planning publications

Assistance with copy editing and writing

Assistance in obtaining photographs and artwork

Publication design

Production coordination

Printer liaison

Budgeting

All printing, off-campus art and photo services contracted by College Communications for a project, along with mailing costs, are the client's responsibility. Therefore, a project should not begin without budget approval from the client's department vice president.

Two ways to budget for publications are:

2. • Include a publications budget sheet in your department's annual budget package, with a description and estimated quantity of all publications requested.
4. • Secure budget funding for unanticipated publication needs through your department, the college budget director or other sources.

No project can begin without budget approval.

Planning and Production

Every publication involves two major steps: planning and production. Planning is the client's responsibility; production is ours. At each step, however, cooperation is important for a smooth process and a successfully printed (or electronic) piece.

Most projects take a minimum of two to three weeks from initiation to delivery of printed materials. The first step will be establishing a working schedule and an understanding of responsibilities - both yours and ours.

Planning

Please plan your publication well in advance. From the time your copy is submitted to our office to the time the completed project is returned from the printer, the typical turn-around time is two to three weeks. The actual time frame will depend on the complexity of the project's design, the printing procedure (specialty printing such as embossing will lengthen production time), and the volume of projects currently in production. In general, projects are completed on a "first come, first served" basis.

Keep in mind - before production can begin, you must determine the purpose of the publication, the intended audience, a distribution method and quantity needed. These factors are important in helping our office design and schedule an effective, economical and timely publication.

When the final manuscript is submitted to us, a design will be suggested and consultation given on paper stock and ink color. From that point College Communications will put the project into production. Keep in mind, the production phase will take two to three weeks or more depending on the size and complexity of the project.

Initiating Publications

Please fill out the following fields on the "Publications Request Form" (available outside of Tower Hall 1602A; in the faculty/staff lounges; on the R drive, ALL COLLEGE, College Publications Forms; and on the Web site www.css.edu):

Title/description of project

Department

Account number (department number and account number for billing)

Date

Issued by

Office and phone

Director's or Vice President's signature

Quantity

Submit the completed Publications Request Form to Linda Carlson. She will handle all requests and questions regarding your job.

Copy Preparation

While it is our job to ensure professional, attractive copy, it is the client's responsibility to submit clear easy-to-read copy. Submit copy for publication via e-mail to Linda Carlson (lcarlson@css.edu).

Following are guidelines for copy preparation:

2. • A project is not considered to be officially submitted and we cannot begin a project until we have received all materials including the signed publications request form.
4. • Along with copy, submit all specialty graphics such as photos and logos that we will need to complete the project.
6. • Do not create a "layout" of your document on your PC or in Microsoft Publisher. These layouts do not transfer to our Graphic Designer's Macintosh computer.
8. • Finalize copy as much as possible before submitting to College Communications. Numerous copy changes and additions after the publication has been designed can considerably extend turnaround time and can increase the possibility of error.
10. • Do not capitalize entire text; use upper and lower case text.
12. • If you are updating a previously printed piece, mark changes on the piece in red ink and attach it to the publications request form.
14. • Check to make sure all information is accurate and timely, particularly names and terms unique to your department or field. Our staff is not responsible for any incorrect information (regarding times, dates, names, titles, etc.) in the copy we receive. We proofread for general spelling, punctuation and grammar only. The responsibility for this type of error is the client's. If a job needs to be reprinted because of client error, reprint costs will be charged to the client. We strongly recommend that someone other than the client who can verify the information proofreads the copy before we receive it and again before it goes to print.
16. • A project must be approved by your department vice president (signature on publications request form) before submitting it to College Communications.

Production

The client will receive a proof of the finished project. It is important that you carefully read the entire proof and double-check for correct information and

spelling, making note of dates, times, phone numbers, etc. - as well as content, artwork, photos and function of layout. All client changes must be made clearly in red ink.

The client will return the corrected proof to College Communications with the attached "Proof Slip" - indicating by a check mark - that the job is:

OK as is - PRINT.

Corrections as noted; I do not want to see another proof. PRINT.

Corrections as noted; show me another proof.

College Communications cannot proceed with a project without a signed Proof Slip. An authorized signature (usually the client's department vice president) is required before any job is printed.

Please return the proof and signed Proof Slip, to Linda Carlson, Tower Hall 1602A.

If necessary, the proof will then undergo design and proofreading revisions. To indicate final project approval, the client will officially sign off on the Proof Slip with signature and date. The job will then be placed on a disk and sent to the printer.

Printing

College Communications will serve as liaison with the printer. After materials are delivered, the client will be in charge of their distribution and mailing.

Campus Copy Center

Many camera-ready projects can be submitted to the Campus Copy Center for duplication. When the copy is ready for printing, College Communications gives the client a clean copy of the publication project, which can be taken to the Campus Copy Center for duplication. After copies are made, we ask the client to provide one or two copies of the completed project for our files.