The Arrow, a new student magazine at Hunter College, is a product of the dedicated teamwork of Nora Wesson, a talented journalism student at Hunter, and Professor David Alm. With Wesson’s hard work and commitment, the website for the magazine was created in just three months. The publications may be just launched but it stands out from the other publications at the college. The Arrow, however, has a fascinating origin story that may surprise you.
It all started in December of 2022, the last month of the fall semester. Professor David Alm teaches MEDP 294, or Magazine Writing, and part of the curriculum is to have some of the student’s work submitted to their website called “The Bridge”. Alm had planned a day in class to upload submissions to the website. It was also an exciting day for students since they will be experienced getting published on a website. However, that day in class did not go as planned because The Bridge no longer existed.
“The URL was not working anymore, and I was denied access,” says Alm. Fortunately, he could get back into the website, but the website was just outdated to keep up.. The Bridge’s website has been up and running since 2011. Alm says that he was given the website when he started teaching Magazine Writing. “The Bridge” was at the end of its road. That is when Nora Wesson decided to step in and take action.
Wesson suggested creating a new website. “I have experience designing websites and was like, ‘Hey, what if I just made a new one? What if I just made a whole new magazine?’” says Wesson. Alm agreed with Wesson’s suggestion. During class, she went on WIX.com and showed everyone the layout and options for the new website. The next step was figuring out a name for the new website. Alm started jotting down ideas on the whiteboard while listening to his students calling out names and other ideas. Wesson and her classmates wanted to pick something cool but still, represent and pay homage to Hunter College. They also wanted to keep it one word, just like the other student publications at Hunter, including “The Athenian” and “The Envoy”. One of Wesson’s ideas was “The Quiver,” but one student gave the idea for “The Arrow”. The name was one word, cool, and is a play-on word for “Hunter”. When it came to voting, it was a unanimous decision. They didn’t realize this coincidental decision would pay homage to the past.
Days before the website was scheduled to go live, Alm found some interesting information. Decades ago, a student newspaper was called “The Hunter Arrow”. This former publication spanned decades and had offices in the Upper East Side and the Lehman campus. Alm was able to find and contact a former editor of The Hunter Arrow. A.D. Coleman was the editor of the newspaper from 1963-1964. Coleman wrote a piece on The Arrow regarding his time at the newspaper and his thoughts on the new student magazine.
What makes The Arrow stand out from the other publications is its accessibility to everyone. Most of the publications at Hunter College are solely for journalism classes. The Arrow is open to everyone. In addition, Arrow focuses not just on the news but on everything else. “Think of it like The Atlantic or The New Yorker,” says Alm. The Arrow’s accessibility and diverse focus sets it apart from other publications at Hunter College, making it a unique and valuable resource for everyone.
The successful launch of the new student magazine at Hunter College is a testament to the hard work and collaboration between journalism students, highlighting the importance of teamwork and dedication in achieving one’s goals. The website launched on March 13th and has over 16 student workers. The website is open to anyone considering submitting their work on The Arrow. In addition, the website will soon be holding a photojournalism contest. Its founder Wesson will be graduating from the college this semester. While her time as a student at Hunter College may be coming to a close, she will leave a lasting impression at Hunter College with The Arrow as her legacy.
