USI's redesigned magazine, illume, offers new content and visual storytelling

After three years of planning and production and 272 design hours, more than 100 photos and illustrations and 14,014 words have been produced by one editor, seven writers, three designers, four photographers and two illustrators. The result of all the work - illume, the redesigned official magazine of the University of Southern Indiana. illume is so much more than a name change; it includes new design and layout, expanded pages and a broader picture of the University and issues affecting the University community.

I spoke with Connie Stambush, editor and senior writer, about the name change, redesign, challenges she faced and what readers can expect from illume.

Why the name change from USI Magazine to illume?

The magazine has had three names since its inception in 1973: 8600 University Boulevard, USI Magazine and now illume. We felt that in redesigning the magazine's content and look, it was the perfect opportunity to rename it. The name is a literary play on the University's torch of knowledge symbol and theme, and strengthens the USI brand.

What are some of the major differences between USI Magazine and illume?

USI Magazine, aside from the features, had a newsier, more informative tone and content. illume contains infographics, photo stories, personal essays, student perspectives, and submitted creative works, as well as features, fun facts and more photos. We went with a different sized, squared format to show more visuals, and we went from 32 pages sent out three times a year to 48 pages sent out twice a year to coincide with the semesters.

What was your vision for the redesign?

To better tell the "story" of what a USI education is all about, and to do it using a variety of forms that engage, inform and entertain readers. Most of the readers are alumni and we want them to read items that give them a sense of pride in the institution from which they earned their degree.

Tell me a little about the planning process.

Planning the redesign of the magazine began three years ago, shortly after I became the editor in 2013, but I believe it was something many people wanted to see happen for some time.

We started by looking at a CASE survey that provided an overview of what readers from college and universities across the United States were most interested in reading in their institutions' publications. We then conducted our own survey of our readers.

We held countless meetings to make decisions about fonts, paper, and size as well as the name and content. While the initial redesign process began three years ago with a lot of information gathering, making decisions on all the changes began about nine months ago. That's when we got busy.

What were your greatest challenges during this process?

Time. A project of this magnitude often is done out of house by a team of professionals dedicated to the project. In our case, we didn't have the luxury of devoting all of our days and creative energy to the redesign. Everyone working on the redesign did so alongside the work they perform every day.

What about the resulting product are you most proud of?

I really like its "wholeness." It achieves a nice balance of something for everyone. It's designed and presented in a way that's engaging and inviting with lots of big beautiful photography and interesting stories.

There are several new sections of the magazine, such as personal stories, and student point of views. Why did you want to include so many new voices?

Higher education is filled with diverse voices and perspectives, and any publication representing constituents of higher education should be equally filled with such diversity, as that is the best way to learn from others who think differently.  

What can readers expect from illume?

They can expect stories and information that will inspire, intrigue, engage, inform, entertain, educate and enlighten.

They can also expect a dynamic and visually attractive layout. Amy Ubelhor, assistant director of creative, in Creative and Print Services, describes her vision during the design process and the contributions of her team:

"I wanted the magazine to be a visual smorgasbord! A bit of something for everyone! The vision was for it to be - in this world we live in of immediacy and 140 characters or less - clean, contemporary and, most importantly, engaging. Engaging in that the reader might stop and be intrigued enough to wonder what that visual was about, then to read that article, or at least go back to it after reading others. Each section needed to have its own distinct look and personality and yet those sections all had to flow together in such a way that there was a cohesiveness to the entire magazine. The graphic design team worked really hard over the last year to achieve this and we are truly pleased with the results and hope the readers feel the same way."