Folio: SLCC’s Literary & Art Magazine, Receives Recognition for the Fall 2023 Issue, Renaissance

Folio's Fall 2023 issue, Renaissance, was awarded the rank of Superior by the
NCTE's REALM program, marking the third time the publication has been recognized. 

For SLCC's Literary and Art Scene, Excellence is Becoming a Habit

In what has become an almost annual event, Folio: SLCC’s Literary and Art Magazine, has won yet another distinction from the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE) via that organization’s REALM program. The Renaissance issue, published in fall of 2023, received the rank of Superior from REALM’s judging committee.

REALM, or Recognizing Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines, celebrates student-produced, faculty-supported publications, meaning that faculty can advise and guide, but can’t put their own hands on the publication itself. For Daniel Baird, associate professor of English and Folio’s faculty advisor, learning that balance was the key to unlocking a national award that’s become almost automatic.

When he initially assumed full ownership of that role in 2022, Baird says he tried to “help polish the magazine.” It wasn’t until Baird surrendered complete editorial control to the students that the awards – two for Superior and one for Excellent – became regular fixtures in the magazine’s palmarès.

“I’ve kinda matured,” he explains of his evolution as faculty advisor. “I’m willing to let the students put what they want out there. At the end of the day, they choose everything.” These choices include what work to include, of course, but also choices like typefaces, page dimensions, layout orientation, etc. – any choices involving visual design or style. For Renaissance, that was done with the help of SLCC Student Design Editor Olga Gao.

Folio is currently accepting submissions for Fall 2025.

Gao came to SLCC from California, bringing with her a BA in design from the California College of the Arts and some professional experience designing packaging in the cycling industry. She’s continuing her education by studying graphic design at SLCC, and she got her name in Folio’s staff box the same way every other editor and staff member does: She walked through the door and got involved.

“I was just looking for a job on campus,” Gao explains, “and graphic design was my specialty.” She downplays her impact on the 2023 Renaissance issue, saying she mostly focused on replicating what had been done before, with only the cover being completely her work. But with a year of experience, she’s already making her own changes to the new issues. “After the 2023 issue was printed, I saw that the articles were really close to the edge of the page,” she says. “For 2024, I changed the margin to move it closer to the center.”

As for the award itself, Gao recognizes that there’s pressure to maintain the streak of accolades, but she’s confident that Folio will continue to excel. “We have really good art pieces from the students. I think we should be able to produce something good,” she says of the visual contributions that she’s responsible for selecting.

For the literary contributions, that responsibility falls to Literary Student Editor Abraham Smith, who takes over from 2023’s literary student editor, Miriam Nicholson. Smith refers to his role as “a wonderful opportunity to display, appreciate, and perhaps uplift the art of my peers.” While he is ultimately responsible for curating the slush pile, he’ll receive plenty of guidance from Baird.

“I teach them a couple of different ways to look at literature,” Baird explains of his hands-off approach to his advisory role, “so it’s not just them saying ‘I like it’ or ‘I don’t like it.’” These critical lenses include evaluating work as mimetic, pragmatic, expressive, meditative, or the classic exercise of formal criticism, each one of which gives the students a foundational platform to assess a text beyond just personal preference. He also brings in guest lecturers to help – including SLCC Professor Emeritus and current Utah Poet Laureate Lisa Bickmore.

Though the guest-lecturer spots may be exclusive, seats in ENGL 1830: Literary Magazine Studies, the class that produces Folio, are not. Like with Gao, the door is open to any students, says Baird. “If you’re interested at all in learning how to put together a literary or arts magazine, come to the class. Interest is the pre-requisite.”

The same is true for contributors. “This is the first publication for a lot of students,” Baird continues, calling it an opportunity to build confidence with a chance to be published in an award-winning magazine. Questioning if you’re qualified to be published? Baird has an answer:

“I say submit.”

The latest accolade from the NCTE joins a crowded trophy case, including Community College Humanities Association awards for two issues (Fall 2013 and Spring 2019) and 16 individual awards for fiction, nonfiction, poetry, drama, photography, and artwork dating back to 2017.

Folio: SLCC’s Literary & Art Magazine accepts submissions year-round from students, staff, and faculty. Visit Folio’s site to learn more or pick up a copy of Renaissance at the Publication Center (Taylorsville Redwood Campus, AAB 137).