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New Help for my Online School

December 30, 2014 / Mary May / Mary's story, Wood Carving Tips

For the past 2-1/2 years, there have basically been two people involved in making my online school happen.

maryfacepicround

Me (Mary May) – what I do:

  • Filming while I carve (cameras on a tri-pod, me rambling on as I carve)
  • Editing video
  • Adding new videos to the site weekly
  • Writing and sending monthly newsletters
  • Writing and sending weekly emails announcing new lessons added
  • Answering any questions regarding the content of the videos
  • Posting any Facebook, Twitter and Blog posts

bob-round-112

Bob Easton – what he does:

  • The ultra tech brains behind making all the web sites work
  • Setting up all web pages and keeping everything up to date
  • Answering and sorting out any technical questions from students
  • Fixing any technical issues that come up
  • Sorting me out when I don’t have a clue how to figure out something on the site (this happens often)
  • In other words, the online school would not be, without Bob
  • If you are interested in seeing all the aspects and details of how he set up my online school, he has started a great blog walking you through this journey.

And now we have a new addition to our happy little online family.

calebfaceround

Caleb May, my son:

Caleb started working with me several months back. He is a Marine Corps veteran and was not satisfied with his job as a federal security officer the past 8 years. He needed a chance to exercise his creative skills and computer knowledge with greater potential and the timing worked out perfectly for him to take on some of the roles that were becoming increasingly difficult for me to juggle. My work days had become quite long – often times starting at 7:00 am and going until midnight. With that kind of stress, it was only a matter of time before the quality and integrity of the lessons would begin to diminish.

So if you have watched recent video lessons, you have probably noticed various creative changes, as Caleb has introduced clever graphics and transitions, interesting historical information, and overall improved look and consistency of the lessons. He is also doing the complete editing of every lesson, transitioning between camera views, and trying to figure out what the %$#@ tool I’m using. Patience, my son…

He is also attempting to get me out of the “social misfit” category and help my Facebook presence become a little more “socially acceptable”. That’ll be a tough one.

Caleb will also be an occasional “guest blogger”, as he also has a gift for writing. He is currently working on a post for my blog which will explore the meaning behind that asymmetrical kidney or peanut shape in the center of the cartouche. I can’t take the suspense! He’s only just getting on his feet with his own blog, so if you like his writing style, please consider following him.

I look at all that will be happening this next year – writing a book on Carving the Acanthus Leaf, teaching at least once a month somewhere (sometimes twice a month), some great commissioned pieces coming up (a Charleston Rice bed – that will definitely have a video lesson with it), and continuing to add a video lesson every week to my online school. I think this is perfect timing to bring in some help so I don’t burn myself out.

I want to say a big “Thank You” to all of you who have followed my blog, are members of my online school, or have been students in classes I have taught. There wouldn’t be much of this without you.

My New Year’s resolution, with the help of Bob and Caleb (and my very patient husband, Stephen), I plan to stay sane and happy next year…

4 comments on “New Help for my Online School”

  1. williamfrancisbrown says:
    December 31, 2014 at 10:01 am

    Just subscribed to your blog, so I probably should not make comments just yet, but here goes anyway…..

    One thing that sort of lept out at me when I read this post was the idea that you needed to change your image for FaceBook and/or elsewhere.

    I’d not worry about that at all. In fact, “social misfit” is a very relative thing (I ought to know), and I very much think that whatever image one tries consciously to create almost never really is worth the effort. You have a great image and there is no reason why you would need to change that. You come across as just a decent and genuine person with an obvious love for what you do. I like the low key way you teach. Just being yourself without any need to act is enough. That’s an image that I know everyone appreciates.

    • MaryMay says:
      December 31, 2014 at 12:19 pm

      Hi William,
      Welcome!
      I appreciate your feedback. I won’t be changing the “image” of the school, but maybe just getting more efficient at keeping it all organized – better blogging, more posts, and not have the feeling that I need to rush through it. Mainly with Caleb now helping me with the time-consuming video editing, I will simply have a lot more time to focus on more quality video lessons – while still keeping the “personal” image of the site. Don’t worry – I always want the “personality” of my site to remain as it is. I never want to become distant from my students. Fear not. I’m not going anywhere 🙂

  2. Shannon Rogers says:
    January 7, 2015 at 3:05 pm

    This is exciting Mary. You have a good team around you and being able to focus on the content is a great thing. I imagine just having Caleb as a sounding board to make sure a point is clear is huge. Good luck this year as the school continues to grow.

    • MaryMay says:
      January 7, 2015 at 10:22 pm

      Thanks Shannon! It’s going to be a very active year. Looks like fun!

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