Overlooked in Appalachia, a student-run magazine, is gearing up to begin this semester’s series, titled “Science in Our Backyard.”
Overlooked in Appalachia is a student-led regional magazine that was put together in fall of 2019. The students who run Overlooked work closely with ETSU professor Mimi Perreault, who created the magazine and has been invested since the beginning.
For many students, working with this magazine doubles as credit for classes and internships. According to Perreault, the magazine gets a lot of help from students who take the Journalism Capstone in the fall, and the Magazine Editing and Production class in the spring.
According to Sarah Connolly, editor-in-chief for the magazine, Overlooked “gives journalism students an opportunity to get their work out there” with a publication that covers more than just ETSU’s corner of the world.
“It’s great because you can have some longevity with it,” she said. “It’s great for resumes, and it’s great for your first exposure to journalism in a real-life setting. To see your work published as well is a huge reward.”
Overlooked covers issues across the whole Appalachian region. This means some stories come from the small business down the street and others come from towns across state lines. While each semester’s edition includes stories that all revolve around one particular issue, Connolly said that the magazine’s wide scope allows for a lot of freedom for writers when it comes to choosing their topics.
This semester, the Overlooked writers will be covering “Science in our Backyard.”
“We’re just going to be looking at areas in which the Appalachian region kind of falls short and areas in which it comes up really well in terms of promoting sustainability and scientific developments,” said Connolly.
According to Connolly, the magazine tries to have a sustainability-related topic every spring. In the past, Overlooked has covered topics such as the Opioid Epidemic, Sustainability, the Covid-19 Pandemic, Climate Change, Media and Arts, and Diversity in Appalachia.
Last semester, publications were available in the Spanish language thanks to the translating efforts of Elizabeth Swanson. Spanish versions of articles will be available again for this semester as well.
Overlooked in Appalachia provides opportunities for Media and Communication students who are interested in writing, editing, producing magazine content and managing social media. Perreault also said that students who are not directly involved with the magazine are welcome to submit stories if they are interested.
The Overlooked team will be raising money during the upcoming ETSU Day of Giving which will go towards advancing the publication.
Past and future articles of Overlooked in Appalachia can be found online at overlookedinappalachia.org.
Students who are interested in more information or in getting involved with the magazine can email the team at overlookedinappalachia@etsu.edu. They can also be found on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube and TikTok.
Stay tuned to this publication and its various social media arms for great information on things that are going on in our region–things that we may have overlooked.
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