3/11/2021

On February 25, 2021, the Chrysalis Literary and Arts Magazine staff virtually revealed the autumn/winter 2020 edition via a Zoom meeting to which all of campus was invited. Submissions to the magazine were canvassed from across campus with winners in four categories: poetry, prose, photography, and art.

Abigail McGovern ’23, a sophomore from Round Hill, VA won first place for her poem, “Falling Leaves,” and in prose for “A Song in the Dark.” First place for photography was awarded to Chloe Fisher ’22, a junior from Franklin County, VA for “Single,” which was also chosen as the cover photo for the magazine. First place award for art went to senior Elina Baltins ’21 for “Love Hurts.”

Judges included three Ferrum College alumni: Kala Brubaker ’17, Ryan Osborn ’11, and Shameer Shah ’06. Brubaker, a middle school English teacher who studied in Kyrgyzstan and earned her masters degree in education from William & Mary College in 2018, evaluated the prose category. Osborn, a ceramic artist whose sculptures have received national attention, evaluated art. Shah, a professional landscape photographer, video creator, and conservationist who currently lives in London , evaluated photography. The final judge was Professor Emerita of English Marcia Horn, who taught at Ferrum for 23 years, and evaluated poetry submissions.

“We got so many great submissions and the staff got so ambitious that I had to cut over ten pages from the magazine during winter break to stay within budget,” said Chrysalis advisor and Professor of English Katherine Grimes. 

This year, the Chrysalis staff was able to meet in person to layout the magazine, a contrast to last spring when the staff was forced to hammer it out through Zoom meetings because of the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s virtual reveal was the first ever in the magazine’s history. “We really missed the refreshments,” said Grimes.

McGovern, who served as editor-in-chief of Chrysalis this year, said the process to layout and publish Chrysalis is a lengthy one. “We do it in several steps. Overall, it takes us about a month to layout the whole thing, before we send the magazine to the printer,” she said. “Chrysalis is really a team process. It’s a honor to work with so many other dedicated, talented people. We all learn so much from each other, and I can say with confidence that I am always growing as both a leader and an artist.”

Read the autumn/winter edition of Chrysalis here.

Heather Ellis, a senior and English major from Moneta, VA, began her last semester as a Ferrum College student with certain goals in mind. As editor of Chrysalis, the College’s literary and arts magazine featuring students’ writing and photography, she would lead the team toward their April release date. She would dutifully attend her last semester of classes. She would enjoy the last few months with friends and professors she had grown to love during her years at Ferrum. And in May, she would cross the graduation stage at Hart International Plaza on campus, posing for photos and hugging dear friends who had become more like family.

Then the coronavirus (COVID-19) was classified as a pandemic, cases spiked in the United States, and Virginia Governor Ralph Northam issued strict guidelines for schools and gatherings with the hope of slowing the spread of the virus. On March 18, 2020, Ferrum College moved to a distance learning plan. Barely a week later, the College administration made the decision to continue distance learning through the end of the spring semester to keep students, faculty, staff, and community members safe.

Much to Ellis’s dismay, her senior semester plans changed drastically. The transition to online courses proved to be a bit difficult: “We are a part of a college community that is used to in-person classes that involve discussions, lectures, and as much one-on-one time as people need to make sure they understand content,” wrote Ellis in an email. “Distance learning is a whole new playing field because you don’t have the option to have one-on-one face time with your professors, nor do you have the help of your fellow students who sometimes ask questions that everyone in the room is thinking.”

Graduation looks different now, as well. The ceremony will be held virtually on May 9, with the intention to hold an in-person ceremony when gatherings are safe again. 

“For many of us, that was our last hurrah, the last chance to be surrounded by our professors and fellow students to celebrate the tears, the sweat, and the hard work we’ve poured into getting the degrees we’ve each earned,” Ellis wrote.

But Ellis is choosing to see the positive side of the COVID-19 quarantine through the versatility of the Chrysalis team. Over the last couple of weeks, the team has been forced to complete the layout of the magazine through Zoom meetings and is on target for their original release date in April, which Ellis counts as a big success. 

“Because of amazing, innovative technologies like Zoom, we’ve had online, face-to-face meetings every day which has allowed us to not only complete the magazine in record time, but it has also allowed us to have sessions with each member of our class to get individual input,” she wrote. 

The reveal of the spring edition of Chrysalis was scheduled for April 28, 2020, the day before Reading Day which kicks off Exam Week. Because campus is on a distance learning plan for the rest of the semester, the reveal had to be canceled; however, the Chrysalis team will mail copies to interested individuals. 

If you would like a copy of the spring edition of Chrysalis to be mailed to you, please email Professor of English and Chrysalis advisor Katherine Grimes at kgrimes@ferrum.edu.

Electronic copies of current and previous Chrysalis editions can be found here.

The cover design of fall 2019’s “Chrysalis” is by Ferrum College senior Anthony Wilson, Jr. ’20.

On Tuesday, December 10, 2019, Ferrum College Chrysalis Literary and Arts Magazine staff revealed the fall 2019 edition of the magazine in the Blue Ridge Mountain Room on campus.  Submissions to the magazine were canvassed from across campus with winners in four categories: visual art, prose, photography, and poetry.

Senior Heather Ellis from Hardy, VA, received first place in poetry for “Signed, A Silent Onlooker” and in prose for “A Never-Ending Cycle.” First place for photography was awarded to senior Amber Scott of Stuart, VA for “Blue Skies.” First place award for visual arts went to junior Ashlynn Willoughby of Wilmington, NC for “Growth.” The Chrysalis cover photo is by senior Anthony Wilson, Jr., from Woodbridge, VA.

Judges included Ferrum College alumnus Mike Dunavant ’93, who evaluated the photography category; Ferrum College alumna Amanda Cholko ’14, who reviewed the poetry category; local artist Jane Lillian Vance, who evaluated the visual art category; and journalist and author Janine Latus, who evaluated the prose category.

The Chrysalis staff is comprised of Ferrum College students: editor-in-chief Heather Ellis; photography and visual art committee members sophomore Chloe Fisher (chair) and freshman Kristina Cossa; poetry committee members senior Kathryn Bonner, junior Abigail McGovern, and junior Jacques Moore-Roberts; and prose committee members senior AnnGardner Eubank (chair) and sophomore Shela Muriel. Chrysalis advisor is Ferrum College Professor of English Katherine Grimes.

Read this semester’s edition of Chrysalis Literary and Arts Magazine here.

Fall 2018 Chrysalis contributors. Marissa Ruiz of Wake Forest, NC, holds her artwork, “Fall’s Lake.”

On December 4, Ferrum College Chrysalis Literary and Arts Magazine staff revealed the Fall 2018 edition of the magazine in the Blue Ridge Mountain Room on campus.  Submissions to the magazine were canvassed from across campus with winners in four categories: visual art, prose, photography, and poetry.

Freshman M’bambi Mbungu, from the Democratic Republic of Congo, received first place in visual art for “Nothing Beats a Mother’s Love.” First place for prose was awarded to senior Taylor Kent, of Hilton Head Island, SC, for “On the Train.” First place award for photography was given to junior Autumn Potkay, of Mayodan, NC, for “Puddle Leaf.”  Junior AnnGardner Eubank from Corolla, NC, received the first place award for poetry for “Father and Son.”

Judges included: Ferrum College alumnus Joe Stanley ’93, artist and owner of Upcycled Gifts in Roanoke, VA, who evaluated the visual art category; Ferrum College alumna Emily DeLoach ’96, currently a Montessori teacher in the Hampton Roads area who reviewed the prose category; Cynthia Herrick, a National Geographic travel and wildlife photographer, who judged the photography category; and Sandra Ballard, professor of English at Appalachian State University and editor of Appalachian Journal, who evaluated the poetry category.

This semester’s Chrysalis edition was “a rebuilding one” as both prior student editors graduated last spring, per Ferrum College’s Professor of English and Chrysalis advisor Dr. Katherine Grimes. Grimes edited this semester’s edition.

“[Ferrum College Provost] Dr. Aimé Sposato said of the Reveal, ‘It was inspiring to hear students read their work,’” Grimes reflected. “As I pondered her comment, I thought about how much many students are willing to expose themselves in writing creatively. They write about their families, their experiences, their joys and pain, even their heartaches. A Chrysalis reveal is like almost nothing else on campus, for in plays and concerts, students speak and sing the words of others, and in athletic contests, little about individual players is revealed. But students’ reading from their own works shows a sort of willing vulnerability. To get up and speak before an audience is brave; to let other people judge one’s work is brave, too. But to open oneself to others by reading one’s personal writing takes a special courage.”

Read this semester’s edition of Chrysalis Literary and Arts Magazine here: https://issuu.com/ferrumcollege/docs/fall_2018_chrysalis?e=2565008/66334638.