SC010 Shimer College Irregular Publications

The Handbook for Literature was published in October 1959. This publication contains advice for students on how to critically read various types of literature. It was written by faculty of the University of Chicago, which Shimer was affiliated with at the time. It also contains contributions from some of these faculty member’s students.

The next items, the 1965 and 1967 editions of the Recondite, featured student photography of members of the Shimer community interacting around campus. Along with being a potential keepsake for Shimer students, the Recondite advertised Shimer by showcasing the camaraderie of the Shimer community and the beauty of its campus, which was then located on its original location in Mt. Carroll, Illinois.

Voyages, published in December 1974, was a literary magazine containing creative writing by Shimer students. Voyages includes both poetry and prose. The editors of Voyages were credited as Paul and Melanie, though no last names were given.

The Shimer College Summer Newsletters, from June and August 1977, kept students updated on what was happening around campus over the summer. They contained news about admissions, the upkeep of campus buildings, and budgeting for the upcoming academic year. Both newsletters were written by Chris Wu, a Shimer student who was staying on campus over the summer. These newsletters were published the year before Shimer would move to its Waukegan campus, a time when the school was experiencing significant financial distress due to rising debt and low enrollment, hence the newsletters’ concern with issues such as admissions and budgeting.

The untitled zine from 1985 was collage-style, with headlines and images cut from magazines and newspapers. Some phrases, however, were handwritten into the zine. Content-wise, the zine was largely satirical, with social criticism of issues such as capitalism, beauty standards, and religion. However, the zine also contained a schedule for final exams and end-of-semester conferences.

Visions in Education: Change and Continuity at Shimer College, published in Fall, 1988, consisted of three speeches given at the college. This included an October 1962 convocation address by dean of faculty David W. Weiser; an October 1987 commencement address by Barrie Cowan from the board of trustees; and a graduation address by Jim Tudor, who held a BA in the natural sciences from Shimer. Visions in Education was gifted to financial supporters of the college.

In a similar vein, the Fall 1990 publication In the Beginning is My End: Commencement Speeches at Shimer College, was a collection of various commencement speeches that had been given at the college. These speeches included the spring 1988 speech by board member Reverend Barbara Gazzabo; the fall 1989 speech by Shimer alumnus Dan Shiner; the fall 1989 speech by executive editor of Great Ideas Today John Van Doren; the Spring 1990 speech by 1990 Shimer graduate David Koukal; and the Spring 1990 speech by Shimer alumnus and poet Peter Cooley.

Strange Fish: Freud’s Mother, from September 2000, consisted of poetry, prose, and dialogues written by Shimer students. These varied greatly in tone from somber to humorous. As with many literary publications, Strange Fish was published to showcase the literary talent of Shimer students.

The October 2004 publication The Long Tides at Shimer College was a transcription of the inaugural address by William Rice, Shimer’s twelfth president. In the speech, Rice discussed Shimer’s historical ability to endure hardship, and he was hopeful that Shimer would continue to endure in the future.

Great Books Great Art, published in Winter 2007, advertised Shimer’s integration of historically significant art pieces into areas of study within its liberal arts curriculum. Many of these historically significant art pieces would continue to be used in Shimer’s humanities courses. Great Books Great Art was published with the goal to make this type of education expand to other schools beyond the college, with columns written by Shimer professors Stuart Patterson and Barbara Stone.

The Unofficial Review chronicled Thomas Lindsay’s 2009-2010 presidency of Shimer, from his inauguration to his firing by the board of trustees. The controversy surrounding Lindsay’s presidency began in September 2009, when he fired Shimer’s then-director of admissions, Elaine Vincent, without consulting with the Shimer faculty or the Board of Trustees, or providing a reason for Vincent’s firing. He also rewrote Shimer’s mission statement to include politically conservative language without seeking approval from the Assembly of students and faculty. Much protest on the part of the students and faculty followed. Ultimately, Lindsay was fired by the Board of Trustees, but this was only after the faculty, alumni association, and assembly voted “no confidence” in Lindsay. The Unofficial Review was published by Landis Masnor, Jonathan Timm, and Will Dennis, with two purposes in mind. The first was to provide information about the conflict to new members of the Shimer community or those outside of it. The second was to allow members of the Shimer community who did experience Lindsay’s presidency to reflect on what had happened. Funded via financial donations, The Unofficial Review was published in place of the Promulgates, the official student newspaper at the time. The articles included were written not by official representatives of the college, but by individuals within the Shimer community who witnessed the events of Lindsay’s presidency and chose to submit their work.

Pookerin’, undated, was a literary publication consisting of poetry and prose, some written by members of the Shimer community and others by established writers such as Shel Silverstein. Although providing no information regarding when or why it was published, it is mentioned that Melanie Allen was its editor. As Melanie Allen was a Shimer student who graduated in 1977, Pookerin’ was likely published in the mid-1970s.

The Phoenix, also undated, was published in Waukegan, which Shimer occupied between 1978 and 2006. The Phoenix includes poetry and prose by members of the Shimer community. Many of the pieces focus on the theme of the phoenix, which became a symbol of Shimer College, as Shimer was a school that had undergone many significant transformations since its founding. Notably, The Phoenix includes an early draft of the “Frances Shimer Song” by Eric Nicholson, which would continue to be performed at Shimer gatherings in the years to come.