“The Secession,” Whitman’s student-founded, say-anything magazine, received formal club recognition from ASWC at its Sunday, Feb. 7, senate meeting. The magazine was established in fall 2008 by seniors Iris Alden, Carly Spiering and Bryan Sonderman, who were granted money from the recently depleted Student Development Fund to cover printing expenses.

“If we wanted to continue publishing, the only way ASWC would let us do it is if we got club status,” explained Alden.

On Sunday, Feb. 21, ASWC senators voted unanimously in favor of granting  “The Secession” $1,200 to cover printing expenses for six upcoming issues scheduled to be released before the end of the spring semester. In April, ASWC will hold another vote to decide on the magazine’s funding allocation for fall 2010.

“We use [the money] only for the cost of printing,” Alden said.

“The Secession” was originally established with the intention of providing a free space for creativity where submission restrictions are more lenient than at other Whitman publications.

“We just wanted to have 16 pages that we could have total control over, with no limits and no style,” said Alden.  “We print a lot of stuff that wouldn’t make it into other publications.”

Not everyone on campus has agreed with Alden’s statement, however. When  “The Secession” was founded, it was criticized for not having a clearly-stated mission. In a letter to the editor published in the March 12, 2009 issue of The Pioneer, senior “Quarterlife” editor Anastasia Zamkinos pointed out that Whitman students have many opportunities to contribute all types of writing to the three existing student-run publications.

“Foremost of my criticisms . . . is that many of the pieces in ‘The Sec 1.1’ could have had a sound home in the other three publications that exist here,” Zamkinos wrote.

For the 2010 fiscal year, ASWC granted a total of $84,008 to campus media organizations, allocating $4,220 to “Quarterlife,”  $19,500 to “blue moon,” $24,000 to KWCW and $36,288 to The Pioneer.

When asked about ASWC’s recent vote in favor of funding the magazine’s  printing expenses for spring 2010, Zamkinos expressed gratitude that ASWC has continued to support campus media.

“I am glad to see ASWC continuing to support the creative endeavors of Whitman students and hope that the decision to fund [“The Secession”] signals a continuing of or maybe even an increase in ASWC’s liberality in financing the arts on campus across the board,” Zamkinos said in an e-mail.

Sophomore ASWC Finance Chair Matt Dittrich believes the magazine is worthy of formal club recognition.

“‘The Secession’ meets ASWC’s idea of the perfect line item,” Dittrich said. “‘The Secession’ is a conduit for campus creativity, and over the last year, the magazine has proven itself to be both popular and a positive addition to Whitman culture.”

This is especially exciting for members of “The Secession” considering the initial debate surrounding its inception and the fact that at first, the founders did not know if the magazine would survive.

“We thought we’d do a few issues and see what happens,” said Spiering of the magazine’s inaugural releases.

Spiering does not think receiving club recognition by ASWC will change the way people perceive “The Secession” in the short term.  But she does believe that ASWC club recognition will ensure longevity and stability for the magazine at Whitman.

“It helps establish a legacy,” agreed Alden.

The magazine’s founders believe the efforts they have made over the past year will benefit the long-term survival of the publication.

“We really paved the way,” Spiering said.

Still, some of the frequent “Secession” contributors are concerned about what the magazine will look like after Alden, Spiering and Sonderman graduate in the spring.

“I am worried about what’s happening next year. I can’t imagine  ‘The Secession’  without Iris, Carly and Bryan,” said junior Isabel Blue, who has contributed both writing and illustrations to the magazine.

The first “Secession” issue of the semester is titled “Howard’s End/Catcher in the Barley” and is loosely themed around J.D. Salinger’s recent death. However, the pieces included did not have to pertain to this theme.

“We don’t want to force people to do anything they don’t want to do,” said Spiering.

Alden agreed.

“We’re the publish-anything publication,” she said.