The staff of Foothills Magazine gathered around a large conference table in the media office, talking over last minute party preparations. Light chat about color schemes, VooDoo Doughnuts and possibly spiking the cider (they decided against it) brought feelings of relief and celebration. After a year of hard work editing and compiling creative works from DU’s own student body, the publication is finally ready for the DU community to see.

To celebrate the creative talent showcased in its yearly publication, the staff of Foothills Magazine will be holding a release party for the work on May 15th in Driscoll Underground. The event runs from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. and is free and open to the public.

At 7 p.m., there will be a reading by the magazine’s writers, then at 8 p.m., the open mic will begin. Students published in the journal as well as students from the community will be able to share their creative talents by reading poetry and short stories. Voodoo Doughnuts and beverages will be served.
The theme of the magazine is “Then and Now,” inspired by the sesquicentennial of the University. The design of the compilation is minimalist, with pieces grouped visually and by relevance to the concepts of past and present.

“What we tried to do was not take away from the works. Through minimalism, the work is highlighted and not necessarily the design. We wanted the design to facilitate the works,” said freshman history and art history major from Grand Junction, Colorado and design editor Katherine Gibson.

The editors of the magazine spent a year sorting through 200 to 300 submissions that were sent from students at DU, including poetry, visual art and short stories. After an extensive evaluation process, about 70 pieces were chosen to be compiled in the work.

Kayla Henley, freshman creative writing and Italian major from Carbondale, Colorado and poetry editor for Foothills, described the process by which poetry pieces were chosen. She explained that five editors read the pieces and ranked them numerically, and then the numbers were averaged and those with the highest ranking were accepted to the magazine.

“As a poetry writer, I’m biased. I definitely resonate with pieces that are closer to my own writing style, which is why we got so many opinions when it came to choosing the pieces,” said Henley. “But for me, it was also a very eye-opening experience, not so much as an editor but as a writer. Getting to see all these submissions inspired me. In some ways I felt as though I was more collaborating than editing the pieces because it was so personal.”

Brian Lupo, senior English and political science major from Anaheim, California and managing editor for Foothills, read submissions from the lens of a writer who had submitted works to publications before himself.

“I’ve always loved writing and art, and I’ve always been on the creating side of it before it gets submitted to these publications, so I thought this would be a good opportunity to get involved behind the curtain and see what goes on when you’re working on a publication,” said Lupo. “We try to look for pieces that are relatable on a human experience level that capture stories that you normally don’t get to hear.”

Now that the compilation is complete, the staff of Foothills is ready to get the magazine’s name out to the student population of DU.

“I hope that the magazine provides food for thought. I hope that students read these poems and look at these stories and art pieces, and think about the way it reflects back on the campus and all the experiences of the students. We want to allow marginalized stories of DU to get out in an artistic fashion,” said Lupo.

Freshman english major and design editor from Salida, Colo. Ashlyn Stewart expects the publication to open student’s eyes to what their classmates capabilities.

“I want this to be a showcase of DU’s creative community, because it is so often overshadowed by other concentrations. Recognizing what classmates can produce as creative individuals and a window into a program that people don’t see very often,” said Henley.
Henley emphasized the importance of the magazine as a way to draw attention and reconnect students to the humanities at DU.
“I hope that students can reconnect with the importance of humanities because in this age, everything’s about making money and being successful, especially at a college like DU. Programs like business and math and science are much more valuable going into job positions, but I think we’re forgetting the importance of connecting with the fundamentals of our beings,” said Henley. “Just as much as we need submissions, students need poetry and art in their lives.”

Those with questions about Foothills or questions about the magazine can email du.foothillsmagazine@gmail.com.
You can visit Foothill’s Tumblr page at http://du-foothills.tumblr.com as well as the Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/dufoothillsmagazine/info.