We, the Grinnell College Student Publications and Radio Committee (SPARC), are publishing this editorial as a statement of solidarity to oppose the elimination of our print editions. We believe that the presence of our print publications on campus is not only valuable to the greater Grinnell community, but essential to our very ability to perform as organizations.
SPARC supervisor Ashley Adams recently informed publication leaders of the administration’s plans to approve a budget cut that would significantly cut our operating funding, which we use for all of our equipment, publicity and print editions. As a result, all publications are at risk of losing their print edition. These conversations were had unilaterally and without the consultation of any of the affected publications.
We believe that our print publications and the content we platform are part of a vibrant and connected student culture. We serve a wide variety of purposes — the serious, the creative, the comical, the profound — and all contribute to a community where students and faculty can engage with the work of their peers.
The six print publications that make up SPARC currently include The B&S, Gogue, Grinnell College Press, The Grinnell Review, Grinnell Underground Magazine (GUM), Sequence Magazine and The S&B. These budget changes will also affect the ability of Grinnell students to establish new student publications in the future.
Many of our publications rely largely on our print presence, as it is the primary way that the campus community engages with our content. Some of us have no current digital presence, and those of us who do still mostly utilize our print presence to reach the campus community. If we do make the decision to be online publications, it should be done because that’s where our readers are moving — this is simply not the case.
Between now and the beginning of the next academic year, we are reckoning with the prospect of transitioning our publications to an online-only format. Our current schedules, staff positions and the weekly hours we dedicate are all structured around the production of our print editions. Not only are those four months insufficient to properly consider what that transition means, but many of our publication heads are graduating fourth years who already need that time to properly prepare next year’s team.
In short, if you’ve ever chuckled at a B&S article, ‘oohed’ at a Gogue photo spread, teared up at a Grinnell Review or GUM poem — if you’ve ever puzzled at an S&B mini crossword, or marveled at a Grinnell Press book or Sequence clip — you may no longer be able to enjoy these publications in the same way going forward.
We are taking a stand against Student Affairs’ proposal, which was crafted without our input and without discussion. They have set a dangerous precedent for stripping autonomy from student publications and making changes above our heads. We deserve to be a part of the conversations that govern the future of our publications, including this one.
We encourage you to stand with your student publications. We encourage you to reach out to the Division of Student Affairs and Board of Trustees and voice that support. And we encourage you to pick up a student publication next time you see one around campus in the hopes that they will be here for you to pick up next year too.
We also encourage you to fill out this form to show your support for student publications.
Editor’s Note: As we noted in the editorial above, we have been kept largely out of the loop in this situation and information is slowly trickling in. Subsequently, this is a developing story and this editorial was written on and is accurate as of Thursday, April 18th.
Signed,
_The B&S
_GOGUE
_Grinnell College Press
_The Grinnell Review
_GUM
_The Sequence
_The S&B
