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Contrary to what the name suggests, “Bound” is a publication in which students are free to say what they want.
Senior Jordan Unverzagt is the founder and editor-in-chief of the publication. For her honors thesis in journalism, Unverzagt created a student organization and designed her own independent study course, dedicated to producing, promoting, and editing the publication, with the help of the communication and journalism department. After she graduates next month, she plans to work in the SUB and continue to supervise the magazine, which will be published once per semester.
Unverzagt said that Bound is meant to be a “forum for anything,” and that she has encouraged students to submit anything from essays to doodles they draw in class. She said some submissions she received include graffiti, restaurant reviews, music reviews and advice columns. She said she published almost every submission she received. Other publications on campus, such as Conceptions Southwest and Best Student Essays, are more selective.
“(We) didn’t edit much of the content except for things like grammatical errors,” Unverzagt said. “We didn’t want to be too much of a filter. We want people to talk about what they’re doing. I don’t think we turned down anything unless the submission was late.”
Bound’s release party is at 11 a.m. Wednesday in the SUB Atrium. The event is for the official release of the mini-mag and website UNMBound.com, which goes live on Wednesday. The event features food, a photo booth and performances by local music group Gatsby.
Unverzagt said the publication accepts all types of submissions from UNM students, and about 60 students contributed the inaugural issue. Unverzagt said its components include an online magazine, which hosts every submission Bound receives, and a fold-out printed mini-mag comprised of photographs and teasers of the online pieces.
Unverzagt said that following the release party, free print copies of the mini-mag will be distributed at high-traffic areas on campus such as the SUB, Zimmerman Library and Johnson Center.
Unverzagt said the publication is meant to give students a voice and build community at UNM.
“This is a great way to get people communicating,” she said. “Here, we all tend to stay in our own groups and it’s hard to figure out what is going on in another group or department. (Bound) is a way to get conversations started.”
The publication is divided into sections based on the schools to which contributors belong, including the College of Arts and Sciences, College of Fine Arts, Anderson School of Business and Management, and University College.
Unverzagt said submissions in the first issue include a piece on academic advice for fine-arts undergraduate students, an essay about the roots of the word “swagger,” photographs from a costume makeup class and a poem entitled “10 Things You Should Know About the Revolution.”
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The Bound team is made up of 11 students from various departments and schools, and faculty adviser Dirk Gibson said 100 percent of the credit for the publication should go to students.
“I am very impressed with the idea of student autonomy,” Gibson said. “(Teaching) is not just about teaching students to be smart, but how to fail and make their own choices. Student media is critically important in that. If anyone is going to give students a chance to be published, it should be us (at the school).”
Gibson and Unverzagt said they hope the product’s premiere on Wednesday garners attention from students.
“I think students will be pleasantly surprised by an eclectic gathering of student voice,” Gibson said.
For information on how to get involved with Bound, visit UNMBound.com after its release. After Wednesday afternoon, students can send submissions for next semester and apply to be editors for next semester as well. All of the information for submissions and editor positions will be on the website.
Bound Magazine release party
Wednesday
11 a.m.
SUB Atrium
UNMBound.com
