Behind the Scenes at Teachers Matter Magazine

Wow! We have 50 issues of The Teachers Matter Magazine. I’m beyond excited and proud of what the TM Team has created. It started as a random thought which woke me at 5am late December, 2011. What if the learning and expertise from our Teachers Matter Conferences could continue to deliver? What if teachers could access my mentors and have more regular inspiration? I sat on the idea for three days and then spoke to my Spectrum Team. They were excited. I emailed potential contributors with my vision and ideas - every single one said, “Yes!” Then came the logistics of how to start a magazine. We knew nothing! We looked at dozens of magazines, searching for inspiration and ideas. We flew to Auckland to meet with Lindsey Dawson, the former founding editor of More, Next and Grace magazines and asked many, many questions. We received fascinating insights from her - and then my counter-intuitive decision was to do the exact opposite! For example, high profile magazines are funded with over 40% of the pages taken up with advertising, we have less than four percent. Perfect bound magazines look really classy on a bookshelf, however stapled mags are much easier to photocopy for article sharing, which was important to us, as we supported educators and their development. Paper quality, colour versus black and white, layout design - the list of todo’s seemed endless.

Phillippa Jacobs was our initial designer and she set the theme and tone of future editions. Our printers, Spectrum Print have faithfully printed all 50 issues, even when their buildings were badly damaged from the Christchurch earthquakes.

Issue one was a hit and the refining process started...and, 50 issues into this venture, we are still striving to improve to be even better for our readers. This success is due to our past and current teams, who are superstars in every way.

So, who is behind this amazing magazine?

KAREN TUI BOYES

CFO - CHIEF FUN OFFICER!

Karen is the mastermind behind the TMM, a vision of keeping the professional learning and personal development conversation going from the Teachers Matter Conferences, which are now online summits. Karen is relentlessly positive, fun loving and occasionally a bit of a mischief maker. Her sun seeking and rainbow chasing nature shows up in everything she does.

Aeroplanes are a personal passion (The bumpier the better!). Karen has been on 2,192 planes and has the signature from every captain on those flights! That’s dedication! Karen loves to learn, laughs easily and is committed to seeing others be their best selves.

JESS RYAN

MAGAZINE COORDINATOR

Jess graduated from Raphael House with Excellence and has been workingpart time at Spectrum Education since leaving school.

She is an environmental crusader and is passionate about making positive changes in the world. A movie watching fanatic, Jess loves writing, painting and sketching while blasting her favourite music. Jess has green thumbs and enjoys taking care of her many house plants and garden, as well as hanging out with friends as often as possible.

JESSICA YOUMANS

EDITOR EXTRAORDINAIRE

When Jessica is not editing the TMM, she is teaching Kindergartners in Indiana, USA. Jessica and her husband, Todd are avid sports fans and love cheering on their alma mater, the Indiana Hoosiers. With four amazing kids who take part in playing baseball, tennis, golf, cheerleading and art, Jessica is also an unpaid Uber driver!

Her house is home to two dogs, two cats, two fish and one rabbit. The kids love dressing up the dog in clothes and taking her for walks in the doll stroller. Jessica loves the beach and her favourite adventure so far was snorkeling in the beautiful ocean waters off the Florida Keys.

KATE ADAMSON

DESIGN DIVA

Kate is a 34-year old graphic and web designer. She lives in Yorkshire, in England with her boyfriend, Carl, and their cat and a five-year old tortoise.

An interest in all things spooky and paranormal has seen her visit many haunted locations across the UK and Ireland. Kate loves to watch documentaries, especially True Crime and Criminal Psychology.

Exercise is a big part of her daily life and she enjoys long walks in the countryside. Kate is passionate about animals and dreams of running an animal sanctuary one day.

STACEY MCEWAN

ADMIN SUPERSTAR (ASS FOR SHORT!!)

Stacey gets stuff done behind the scenes. She checks emails, processes orders, ensures subscriptions are up to date and keeps the office running. Married to Ian for 27 years, they have two terrific teens and a Mini Schnauzer named Oscar. Oscar believes he is the boss.

Stacey enjoys regular indoor cycling classes and walking. She reads fast paced thrillers, if there isn’t a dead body in the first chapter it’s too slow. She loves chatting with friends, eating delicious food and drinking wine and is often the “social organiser” for small gatherings.

DENNY MACARTHUR

LOGISTICS LEGEND

Denny has been behind the scenes of the magazine since conception. He is often seen in the Spectrum Office, playing his loud music, labelling and filling the envelopes with magazines and tootling off to NZ Post with a boot full of magazines to post.

Denny loves everything sci-fi, sport and is a history lover with a collection of over 1,000 DVD’s and bookcases overflowing! He has been married to the mag’s own Karen for 24 years. They have two active children who are ready to leave home, hint hint. Both children have been seen around the office, possibly bribed, to help out with magazine mailings.