Students honored at launch party of second annual Here. literary magazine

Students from 13 Southeast Missouri schools were honored Tuesday night at a launch party for Here. literary magazine.

The magazine, produced by rustmedia, provides opportunities for high school students to have their writing and art published. Tuesday night's event, at the Arts Council of Southeast Missouri in Cape Girardeau, celebrated the launch of the magazine's second annual issue. Students had their art displayed and read excerpts from their written works.

Also recognized were student editorial board members for the magazine. They chose 25 pieces out of 72 submissions for this issue.

Mia Pohlman, founder of Here., spoke to the gathering of students and their friends and family about how programs such as the magazine are important. For students interested in the arts, especially in rural areas, it's a rare opportunity for them to gain an understanding about how to get their work published, how to get their work in a gallery and how to pursue the arts after graduation, she said.

She also talked about how publishing the magazine builds cross-generational communication.

"Older generations who subscribe to the newspaper will get a chance to see what younger generations and high school students are thinking about, what they have questions about, what they hope for, what they dream about, and, in turn, this gives them a real audience to share their work with," Pohlman said.

In an earlier interview, Pohlman said she designed the magazine program to be everything she would have wanted and needed in high school. She said pursuing the arts as a career can be daunting.

"I think that can sometimes feel like a far-away dream as a young person if you don't have models of people who are making that happen," Pohlman said.

In her position as a writer and editor for rustmedia, Pohlman said she has made many connections with local artists, and she realized she needed to find a way to share those connections with young people.

"These local artists are all very different people who've taken very different paths to get where they are today," Pohlman said. "For Here., they lead workshops and become mentors to the students and give them examples of different paths they can take."

The program also offers a "writers and artists in the schools" program where teachers can request local artists to teach workshops in their classrooms.

At the launch party, Arts Council director and Here. adviser Kelly Downes talked about how artist mentors and those who support these kinds of programs are crucial.

"I think in these days truth and beauty are hard to find," Downes said. "I think false information is rampant in the sphere. Giving young people the mentors and technology to [ponder] and respond to 21st-century problems, that's what programs like this are doing. We're empowering our children to tell the truth. We're empowering them to trust their visions."

Speaking to the students directly, Downes said she understood some of them may feel "stuck" living in a rural area. However, she said she came from Chicago and though she had access to all sorts of opportunities, one thing a small town offers is a chance for their voice to be heard and not be lost in the cacophony of the big city. She promised there are a host of people in the region ready to support the young people.

The message repeated several times from Pohlman and Downes was that young people have a voice, and it's vital that they use it.

"Through this program, I hope they take away that they are important and what they have to say is important, and we need them to say it," Pohlman said.

Wrapping up the event, Pohlman thanked Southeast Missouri State University's Departments of Mass Media and Art and Design, First Midwest Bank and Edward Jones financial adviser Cheryl Mothes for sponsoring the event.

The second issue of Here. will be inserted into the Aug. 18 issue of the Southeast Missourian and feature 10 art pieces and 15 pieces of writing. The students' work may also be found at www.herelit.com, and copies of the magazine will be made available at the participating high schools.