🎯 Using Priority to Organize Portraits

The Priority setting allows you to control the order in which portraits appear within layouts, giving you flexibility to highlight specific individuals or groups. By assigning priority values, you can override the default alphabetical arrangement and ensure portraits display in the intended sequence.

⚠️ NOTE: If Priority is enabled, every individual within the same class or grade must be assigned a value between 1–99. Missing or duplicate values may cause portraits to appear out of order.

🧩 What is Priority?

Priority overrides the default alphabetical layout, letting you highlight key individuals such as:

• 👩‍🏫 Teachers
• 🎓 Seniors
• 🌟 Standout students

Tip: Some PSPAs include priority in your data. If so, priorities import automatically, so no manual setup is needed.

⚡ How to Assign Priority

Open People Menu

• Top-right: People icon → Edit People
  
  
   
• Or left toolbar: People Module
  
  
   

Select a Person

• Double-click the person in the list to edit

Enter Priority Number

Lower numbers appear first

• Example:
• 👩‍🏫 Teacher = 1
• 🧑‍💼 Aide = 2

Save Changes ✅

📄 Example Layout

One Page, Two Classes:

Result: A clear, structured portrait flow on the page.

🪜 Ignoring Priority in Ladder Books

Primary Method (Recommended – Editor):

• Open the Editor and locate the left-hand toolbar
• Click Assign Portrait Rule (green button)
• Enter your rule details:
  • Name
  • Grade
  • Teacher or Homeroom
  • Planned Portraits per Page
• Check the Ignore Priority box
• Apply the rule as normal to populate your pages

Secondary Method (Manage Area):
 

• From the project, go to Manage → Manage Portrait Pages
• Select Assign Portrait Rules
• Enter your rule details:
  • Name
  • Grade
  • Teacher or Homeroom
  • Planned Portraits per Page
• Check the Ignore Priority box
• Apply the rule and allow the ladder to populate accordingly

📘 Ignoring Priority in Section Books

• From the Dashboard, click New Section → Portrait Section → Next
• Enter your section details:
  • Section Name
  • Grade
  • Teacher or Homeroom
  • Planned Number of Pages
• At the bottom of the setup, check the Ignore Priority box
• Complete the setup to generate the section with the rule applied
   

💡 Why Use “Ignore Priority”

• Allows portraits to populate alphabetically instead of by priority ranking
• Useful for staff pages where priority-based ordering is not needed
• Prevents certain individuals (e.g., prioritized students or groups) from appearing out of intended order
• Ensures consistent and predictable layout flow across pages
• Simplifies layout generation when priority values are inconsistent or unnecessary

💡 Pro Tips

• Use Ignore Priority to remove Priority settings for a specific Portrait Rule (helpful for staff or admin pages)
• Add a Priority column in your PSPA index before import to save time and avoid manual edits

Using Priority strategically helps create clean, intentional portrait layouts that highlight key individuals and maintain organized page flow throughout your yearbook.