1.
Determine the content of your newsletter. The information should be relevant to Health
Science and HOSA.
2.
Choose a Newsletter Name – be creative (ie: If your company’s name is Joe’s Tree Nursery,
“The Treehouse” has potential and makes a newsletter sound fun to read).
3.
Front Page Should Pack a Punch – You wouldn’t buy a newspaper if it was just a bunch of plain words, no pictures, and no headlines. Don’t save the best for last by burying your best article in the back of your newsletter. Put it right on the front page. If you draw your readers in, they’re more likely to flip through the entire issue.
4.
All stories should be written as a third party observer. Take a look at newspaper and magazine articles for prime examples.
5.
Avoid Technical Jargon – don’t assume your readers know what abbreviations stand for.
6.
Gather information from other student’s interest.
7.
Vary your content. Include one or two feature articles, a student activities section, and an academic calendar for all major upcoming events. Also included pictures, graphics, or charts when applicable to make your newsletter more visually appealing.
8.
Proofread, Proofread, Proofread – Have someone else proofread each story so you can have a different perspective.
9.
Topics you might consider including in a HOSA newsletter: a.
HOSA Facts, Themes, Mottos, etc. b.
Leadership Conference Information c.
Information regarding School Officers (cannot be included in this newsletter), State
Officers, National Officers, etc. d.
Local Calendar – Upcoming Events – Save the Date e.
Fundraising Ideas/Challenge/Information f.
Service Projects g.
Current Events/Issues h.
Famous Quotes, Jokes, etc. i.
A personal experience j.
Health Care Career(s) Information k.
Medical Terminology/Abbreviations l.
Write-up regarding someone in the community (ie: Nurse, physician, chiropractor, veterinarian, CNA, dentist, pharmacist, a cancer survivor, etc.) m.
Medical Condition n.
Guest Speakers o.
An Organization, Association, Health Care Business in the area (SARCOA, Hospice,
Alzheimer’s Association, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, Life South, American Red Cross, etc.)

Category
20
The details in the articles are clear, effective, vivid, and relate/pertain to
HOSA 100% of the time, contains current
& local info
All articles
(100%) have headlines that capture the reader’s attention and accurately describe the content. All graphics have captions.
Newsletter not too busy. Font not too big or too little.
100% of the graphics are in focus, wellcropped, not stretched out of proportion and are clearly related to the articles they accompany.
Used interesting and a variety of techniques to attract reader’s attention (ie: color, graphics, fonts, colors blend together, etc.),
No or almost no spelling, lexical or grammar errors.
Techniques are interesting, but could use more creativity
(newsletter a little bland), coloring not interesting or does not blend together, fonts may not flow together or may not catch all reader’s attention
(male and female).
No more than a few spelling, lexical, or grammar errors.
15
The details in the articles are clear and pertinent 90-99% of the time, some of the information is not current
90-99% of the articles have headlines that accurately describe the content. All articles have a byline. All graphics have captions. Newsletter may appear a little crowded OR a little too much white space.
Font may be too large or too small.
90-99% of the graphics are in focus and are clearly related to the articles they accompany. Graphics are not stretched or squished.
10
The details in the articles are clear and pertinent 80-89% of the time; consist of only 1 page OR would be one page if font was the correct size, contains information that is not current
80-89% of the articles have headlines that accurately describe the content. All articles have a byline. Most graphics have captions. Newsletter crowded OR too much white space. Font is either too big or too little.
80-89% of the graphics are clearly related to the articles they accompany. Only a couple of the graphics where used;
Graphics blurry/stretched/squish ed
5
The details in more than 25% of articles are neither clear nor pertinent, information is not current and contains no local information
Articles are missing bylines OR many articles do not have adequate headlines OR many graphics do not have captions.
Newsletter very crowded, articles overwhelming.
Font too big (trying to fill up the space)
OR too little
(making it difficult to read).
More than 25% of the graphics are not clearly related to the articles OR no graphics were used.
Techniques lack interest, or color scheme does not match/blend together.
Newsletter not very eye catching.
Newsletter may look junky.
Several spelling, lexical, or grammar errors.
Lacks creativity, not interesting, looks like the student just stuck a bunch of stuff together. Printed in black & white, newsletter does not flow together, etc.
Lots of spelling, lexical, or grammar errors. Left template wording on Newsletter