Maine Youth Excellence in Art (MYEIA) Press Release Templates

Press Release Templates
for Participating Teachers and Students

By submitting press releases to your local media, you gain recognition for your artwork and school, but also can inspire others in the community to get interested in art as well. Below are some tips for sending a press release to the media and instructions for using the templates that will help you write a release.

How to submit your story to the local newspaper(s):

Find out which newspapers serve your hometown. There may be more than one. You probably have at least one large regional paper, like the Bangor Daily News, and one or more local weekly papers, like the Coastal Journal or the Community Advertiser. You can send the release to more than one paper. Don’t send multiple copies to the same paper unless they specifically tell you to send it to more than one person.
Find contact information for the newspaper online or in the paper. If you have trouble finding out what different newspapers are in your town, the librarian at your school or public library will be able to help you.
Call the paper and ask to whom you should send news about a local student’s artwork on display at Blaine House.
Save this contact information (usually name, title, e-mail address and phone).
Contact the editor or reporter and ask how they would like to receive your news release and if they would like a picture of the artwork. If so, ask what format they would like it in (JPEG, TIF files, what size, etc.).
Use the templates on this site to craft your release.
Once your release is ready, e-mail your release to the newspaper contact person. If you have pictures of the artwork, don’t forget to attach them.

Template-Specific Instructions:

There are two templates: one designed for use by students and one for use by art instructors and/or school administrators.

Choose the appropriate template (Student/School)
Download the MS Word document
Replace the highlighted sections with the indicated content/text
Remove highlighting from document
Spell check AND proofread your release
E-mail to your local newspaper, with images, if appropriate
Send a copy to the Maine Arts Commission, darrell.bulmer@maine.gov

Submit images to Maine Arts Commission for inclusion on website:

To submit an image, follow the image format requirements found on the guidelines for submitting images page.