Kickstarter

StudentsXpress is a place Chicago school children can express themselves and read about other children's lives and experiences. It promotes literacy and creativity. Seeing their work and their name in print creates positive self-esteem in the students and encourages them to write, draw, and express themselves in a positive manner.

StudentsXpress has taken many forms, starting years ago as a graduate school thesis project called Peaceful Times. It was a black-and-white 'zine created to publish the work of inner-city students. After speaking to the students about solving conflicts without using violence, they then wrote and drew about what they experienced and what they learned. It served as a way to give them a creative outlet—a way to express themselves peacefully. By then seeing their work in print, children gain confidence and pride, helping to keep them on the right path. After creating Inner Drive and working on Cabrini Connections, Nettel2theMetal was a school publication I created and worked on at Nettelhorst Elementary in Lakeview, a neighborhood on the north side of Chicago. 

In an effort to reach students in all Chicago neighborhoods, StudentsXpress was created. There are now ten schools participating, five on the north and five on the south side of the city, many in underserved sections of Chicago. With school funding being at an all-time low, it is imperative that StudentsXpress be free for all the schools and students involved. By reaching as many schools as possible, StudentsXpress not only makes a positive impact on each individual neighborhood, but it serves as a way to bring all of the communities in Chicago together for a common goal: supporting all of our children.

Though there is an online version of the magazine, a printed version is so important. To have their work published shows children how important it is, and how important they are. The printed version serves as a keepsake they can read with their parents at the dinner table, before bed, or on the bus.

StudentsXpress serves as a way children can see they are all similar, yet each one is unique. It is a positive publication in homes and communities across the city.

The ultimate goal of StudentsXpress is to reach all Chicago Public Schools. Adding more schools means more pages in the magazine to highlight as many students as possible, along with more copies of the magazine so each student can receive one. All money generated goes directly to the printing and production of StudentsXpress.

StudentsXpress is my true passion, and I thank you for taking the time to read about it.