Just like the fog blanketing the valley, we have been lying low during the cold and the holidays. But, now it’s time for the fog to break and for the sun to shine through. We’ve got big news.
As of today, the Illinois Valley News is owned and published by Kalmiopsis Publishing, a new organization in the process of becoming a 501(c)(3) nonprofit. KP is a project of Kalmiopsis Community Arts High School (KCA), our local nonprofit public charter school here in Cave
Junction.
KP’s name, lovingly borrowed from the vast and unique Kalmiopsis Wilderness on our doorstep, reflects our connection to KCA, but also our recognition of how much the richly diverse natural world here defines us and our valley.
Just as our area is blessed with geological and botanical abundance, there is also a wealth of stories in this valley, some waiting to be told, some waiting to happen.
Our top priority is for the paper to continue serving the community. We are putting out a paper packed with local news. And we are in search of local columnists who would like to share their writing or photography with us, whether it’s on the topics of history, the outdoors, culture, science, or business. As always, “local” is the key word here.
But there’s something special about our project that makes it particularly exciting and unusual for a newspaper of any size, anywhere. It’s why we have chosen to partner so closely with KCA: Youth involvement in the entire paper production process will be a key part of our mission here.
We have former Illinois Valley News Publisher Dan Mancuso to thank for coming up with this wonderful idea and for helping it come to fruition. We envision a close relationship with high-school students (from KCA and, hopefully, other local schools), not only by publishing stories written by journalism students, but also by giving students education and workforce development opportunities in the paper itself, in all aspects of the business.
“I hope this becomes a way to keep small community newspapers alive. Grants are available for education that will provide additional funding, offsetting lost revenue due to changing advertising methods,” Mancuso said.
“This concept has the ability to keep community in community newspapers while still having an editorial process that you don’t get with social media. The positives are that involving new students prevents burnout, and retained earnings go to the school, a booster club so to speak,” Mancuso added.
Will the paper return to actual, physical print? That is a question that we’ve been getting a lot. We’ve all missed having a paper that we could hold in our hands every week. But, printing costs are significant. So, our plan is to return to print monthly as soon as possible, while still publishing a weekly digital e-edition. The print edition will feature a whole month’s worth of news. It will be a paper worth picking up: fat with local content.
As we return to print, we hope to make the Illinois Valley News available at more locations across the valley than ever before. During this transition we will be indefinitely suspending print subscriptions and delivery. Will these options for receiving your paper again become feasible? Possibly. Until then, get to town sometime if you want that month’s paper in your hands.
One great bonus of all this nonprofit business: All donations to the nonprofit paper will be tax-deductible! During this crucial time of transition, your donations will help us return to print with speed and stability.
Please subscribe online at www.theivnews.com.
From the staff of Kalmiopsis Publishing and Kalmiopsis Community Arts High School, thank you to everyone who is helping make this dream turn into a reality!