Gettysburg College President Bob Iuliano and Provost Jamila Bookwala announced on Tuesday that after 35 years and over 130 issues, the college would no longer publish the Gettysburg Review.
The quarterly literary magazine featuring short stories, visual art, poetry, essays, and reviews has received numerous awards and is recognized as one of the country’s premier literary journals.
The administration gave the staff until December to release its final issue before their positions were terminated. The sudden and unexpected decision has been criticized by college alumni and faculty as well as by readers from across the country.
“After thorough consideration, we have made the difficult decision to wind down the Gettysburg Review following its next issue,” said Iuliano and Bookwala in an email to college faculty. “This decision was not made lightly, and it comes with a heavy heart, as we understand the significance of this publication in the broader literary world. We must have a more intentional focus on the programs and activities that directly and significantly enhance student demand and the overall student experience,” they said.
Gettysburg Review Editor Mark Drew and Managing Editor Lauren Hohle said they learned about the decision at a meeting with Bookwala on Friday, Sep. 29, but were not asked to propose ways that they could save the Review.
“We, Lauren and I, personally are heartbroken and devastated. We’re angry too, and that is the sort of thing that fuels us to keep going,” said Drew. “Honestly, in that meeting, we got the very distinct impression that they [administration] would have been okay if we had just left that day.”
A statement from faculty within the college’s English Department said that “at no time during the last three years has the new leadership given The Review editors and its supportive English Department an opportunity to discuss how The Review might impact the College’s new strategic vision for the future.”
“We worry especially that the lack of conversation over The Review sets a troubling precedent for how the administration might handle cuts to other departments, programs, or staff. Dismantling The Gettysburg Review undermines one of the college’s essential and distinguishing strengths, and it is contrary to the mission, values, and vision of the College.”
The English Department’s statement also acknowledged the large commitment recently made to the college by a former English major: “What a difference a week makes; last Tuesday the leadership proudly announced the $10 million donation of Daria Lo Presti Wallach, an English major from the class of ’76. This week, it announces that it is removing the jewel in the crown of that department and, for many, of the college.”
The English Department noted that many students had participated in the Review as interns. “The Review’s internship program is already a course, providing our students much-needed professional experience,” the department’s statement said. “The College should be highlighting and promoting Gettysburg College’s unique strengths in creative writing and literary publishing.”
“We have a good sense of what the Gettysburg Review does and its mission and the like, and again, go back to the principles about the orientation of the Review. It’s fundamentally external. We’re trying to devote our time and our attention in ways that maximize the student experience,” Iuliano said.
Although the Review has had offers for purchase and fundraising campaigns, Iuliano said he did not feel enough money could be raised to make the publication financially independent. “We have not seen a number of folks coming forward to ultimately create the sort of endowment that would allow the Gettysburg Review to turn with a greater degree of financial independence. It would take more than four million dollars, probably closer to five, to endow the Gettysburg Review. I have not heard any suggestion that that is possible given the 35 years that it has been in existence,” he said.
In a message posted to the homepage of the Gettysburg Review’s website, Drew urged supporters of the publication to contact the administration and included contact information for Iuliano (riuliano@gettysburg.edu, 717-337-6010) and Bookwala (jbookwal@gettysburg.edu, 717-337-6820).
Editor’s Note: The author of this article served as an intern for the Gettysburg Review last spring semester.
Parts of this article have been included in articles published by The Gettysburgian: The College Administration Announces the Termination of the Gettysburg Review, The English Department Responds to the Gettysburg Review’s Termination and The College Administration Addresses Budgetary Constraints.
Laken Franchetti is a senior at Gettysburg College pursuing a B.A. in English with a writing concentration and history. She serves as Editor in Chief for The Gettysburgian and the online magazine Her Campus and has been a contributing editor for the literary magazine The Mercury.
Well, that bites.
It’s ill conceived and poorly executed.