For students who like to write, finding people who share that interest can be difficult. A new creative writing club at William Jewell College is trying to change that.

Three first-year students, Laura Zimmerman, Tommy Burk, and Slade Birk, started the Creative Writing Club this semester. What started as an idea in class quickly turned into an actual organization. The club meets every Wednesday at 2:15 p.m. in Jewell Hall 303. Meetings alternate between writing and sharing. Members are given a one-word prompt every other week and use it as a starting point for their own work. The prompts are intentionally open-ended, allowing everyone to take them in a different direction.

The club is not limited to one type of writing. Members can bring short stories, poetry or other creative work. The group also plans to try different poetry activities and use some meetings simply to talk about their writing.

On sharing days, members read their work to the group and receive feedback. Sometimes that means pointing out a grammar issue, but it could also mean pointing out what is working and what could make a piece stronger.

The club’s leaders said having a reason to write is part of what makes the group useful. “It’s hard to maintain it if you don’t have a deadline,” Laura said. “It’s helpful to share it.”

For the students involved, however, the club is about more than getting better at writing. They also see it as a way to meet people who are interested in the same things.

“I think it’s hard to find communities for art, and especially writing, because it’s not really seen as an art form in a lot of spaces,” Tommy Burk said. “I feel like giving you space for that is nice.”

The club is also working with The Hilltop Monitor to give members an opportunity to publish their work. The newspaper plans to create a new section on its website for creative writing, with the club potentially submitting one piece each month.

For now, the club is still figuring out what it will become. With only five members, there is plenty of room for new writers to join and help shape it. “It’s just super low pressure.”

And for anyone who has been meaning to write but never quite gets around to it, that might be reason enough to show up.

This year, William Jewell College celebrates its 175th anniversary as an institution of higher learning, but that is not the only milestone achievement that ought to be recognized. 2024 marks the 130th anniversary of The Hilltop Monitor, the college’s official student newspaper. Since 1894, students have been consistently passing the torch and upholding this tradition, making ours among the oldest and longest running student publications in the country. 

The Hilltop Monitor as we know it today originated under a different name: The William Jewell Student. Before 1894, there had been a scattering of attempts to get a regular student publication off the ground. According to the memories from the earliest editions of the William Jewell Tatler, the first student publication was called The Jewell. It began in 1874-75 and lasted only around five years or so, publishing irregularly. The idea of a student paper lay dormant for the next few generations of Jewell students. It was reawakened in the summer of 1881 according to an article in the Kansas Weekly Herald, but it wasn’t until the 1894-95 school year when it was revived definitively as The William Jewell Student. 

Initially, the paper was co-managed by Jewell’s reigning literary societies: Excelsior and Philomathic. These were honors organizations that taught language and communication skills, and they were instrumental to building a campus community in Jewell’s earliest years. The Student’s staff was traditionally composed of four Philomathians and four Excelsiors, a tradition that continued until around 1917-1918 when the literary societies began to fall out of style in favor of the successful debating society and increasing participation in athletics. 

In the beginning, it was a monthly paper on literature, science, and occasionally some general news about the college. For much of its life as The Student, the campus paper reported on all the major and minor happenings relevant to the student body. It published faculty profiles and course updates alongside local advertisements and the personal statuses of classmates. A subscription cost 50¢ per year according to “Cardinal is Her Color,” Jewell’s most recent comprehensive history written for Jewell’s 150th anniversary. The 1912 Tatler reports that, in the 1911-1912 school year, the paper started publishing weekly in addition to the usual monthly literary edition featuring works of creative writing submitted by students. 

After it left the hands of the literary societies, there was a period when The Student fell under the purview of the student government who were then responsible for appointing new editors for both The Student and the Tatler. Upon the introduction of journalism classes to the English curriculum starting in the 20s, maintenance of the paper transferred again to be the charge of journalism students and volunteers under a faculty advisor. 

The Student charged on under the guidance of Dr. Georgia B. Bowman, a staple of the English and Communications departments from 1947 to her retirement in 1980 (although she maintained a presence on the Hill as a welcome professor emeritus for several years following). The role of faculty advisor was then taken on by Professor Lois Anne Harris who began teaching the courses on journalism when she joined the Jewell community in 1979. 

Professor Harris oversaw the 1985-1986 editorial staff’s decision to change the name of the newspaper. In a recent interview by The Monitor, the chief editor at the time, Paul Paulter ‘87, recalled that it was a group decision spurred by repeated confusion when talking about the paper: “You know, you answer the phone, you [say], ‘The Student,’ and they’re like, ‘Oh, I’m looking for the student newspaper.’ ‘Yeah, that’s it.’ ‘Well, what’s the name of it?’ ‘It’s The Student.’” After collaborating with the editors, Professor Harris, the journalism classes, and members of faculty, a new name was decided on. It was even run by the Student Senate for approval among student leaders. During the brainstorming sessions, Paulter remembers “that there were names like, you know, The Monitor or The Post or the whatever by themselves, but there was a thought that we wanted to have it [be] something uniquely Jewell-like. So, we worked in the Hilltop part. I remember that being a portion that we wanted to work in; something that seemed that was in the Jewell parlance.” And just like that, The William Jewell Student was rechristened as The Hilltop Monitor we know today. 

As is to be expected with any shift in tradition, there was indeed some pushback for a few months after the new name was made official. For 92 years, the paper had been known under the same title, and it ruffled some feathers among current and former cardinals to see it renamed. The 1987 Tatler described The Hilltop Monitor’s first year as beginning “in a heat of controversy,” which Paulter says the staff at the time had not anticipated. “There was a period of time,” Paulter said, “where there were a lot of letters to the editor” from students and “old alumni who had written in and expressed some displeasure.” Laughing, Paulter admitted his greatest regret is that he was a bit flippant in his responses to the letters. Like so many chief editors before (and after) him, the paper was a significant part of his Jewell career. “To be honest,” he said, “I look back with a lot of pride for the newspapers we put out for those couple of years. We did a good job and put forth some good papers.”

Having been continually in print for 130 years now, The Monitor owes its longevity to the fact that it is exceptionally flexible, always adapting to the changing needs of its students. In the first issue of the 1912-1913 school year, a letter from the editors reads, “The Student is an enterprise in which the whole school is bound up. It will depend upon the whole school for success, and its success will largely depend on how the school responds to this dependence. […]

“The Student, if it is the paper it ought to be, is an assembling of a number of ideas. The more and varied these ideas, the better the paper. The staff, of course, intends to put the best brains it has into the publication, but the staff doesn’t think for a minute that alone, it can produce a periodical that will do justice to William Jewell College.

“Any newspaper, particularly a college newspaper, must progress, must change in order to be vital, to be interesting and of value, and to perform properly its function.”

While so much else has changed—the name, the staff, the frequency of publication, the subject matter, the method of delivery—this message continues to be true. Let us hope that for as long as Jewell stands atop her hill, The Hilltop Monitor will persist alongside her, informing the Jewell community and granting students the opportunity for their voices to be heard.

On-Campus Events

FIJI Halloween on Oct. 28 starting 8:30 p.m.

FIJI is hosting an event with a concert and their annual Halloween party, proceeds from tickets will go to philanthropy. Come by in your costume to the FIJI house to enjoy the night.

GIFT Halloween Movie Night on Oct. 30 at 7:30 p.m.

GIFT is hosting their annual Halloween movie night in YGCU 221/222. They will be putting on an Interactive Rocky Horror Picture Show experience. There will be snacks and a raffle with sweet and spicy prizes. Come dressed in your costume for the chance to win a costume prize! The movie will begin at 8 p.m. Interactive viewings of the Rocky Horror Picture Show have a unique culture of challenging gender norms, which is especially important in light of anti-drag legislature that has swept the US in recent times. Student Life will also be hosting a Happy Hour during the event with alcoholic beverages for A-approved students, along with nonalcoholic options. 

KA Fall Fest on November 4 at 7 p.m.

KA is hosting their 4th annual Fall Fest with bonfires, pumpkin painting, barbecue and live music! Tickets are $6 and the event is at the KA house.

Kansas City Events

Haunted Houses in West Bottoms

Kansas City is called “The Haunted House Capital of the World” for good reason! The West Bottoms has some of the best haunted houses for those of you that enjoy the adrenaline rush and an immersive experience. If you’re interested in visiting several of the haunted houses, there are discounts available for multi-house tickets.

The Edge of Hell is a nationally acclaimed haunted house, featuring five stories of haunts, heaven-to-hell-themed frights and the world’s largest living snake. If you’re brave enough to enter The Edge of Hell, tickets are $35. Open select dates Sept. 22 through Nov. 11. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. every weeknight and 6:30 p.m. every Saturday. Closing times vary. 

The Beast is one of the most frightening haunted houses in Kansas City and is also nationally ranked. This attraction has four flours of terrors awaiting those who enter, from the Louisiana Bayou swamp, Jack the Ripper’s foggy London, a medieval castle and a forest full of werewolves. Tickets are $35 and Doors open at 7:30 p.m. every weeknight and 6:30 p.m. every Saturday.

If you’re a horror movie enthusiast, you might like to take a trip to Macabre Cinema during the spooky season. This haunted house features spooky attractions from famous classic and modern horror movies through a 1930s movie theater with four floors. The haunted house also has actual movie sets from famous horror movies. Doors open at 8 p.m. every weeknight and 7 p.m. every Saturday. 

Outdoor Scary Experiences 

If you’re looking for an outdoor haunted house, Exiled in Bonner Springs, KS is the place for you. This secluded haunted forest tour leaves visitors in the middle of the forest and must navigate their way to safety while avoiding creeps, freaks and more. This experience does require you to be willing to get down and dirty in the outdoors, so beware if this is not for you! Tickets for the Trail of Horrors tour are $49, the first tour is at 7 p.m. and the last one is at 10:30 p.m.

Worlds of Fun’s annual Halloween Haunt transforms the amusement park into the ultimate Halloween attraction. There are over 400 monsters in the fog-filled park, many different scary attractions, mazes and of course the rush of the typical rides. If you enjoy shows, there are a variety of live performances to get you in the Halloween spirit. Tickets start from $39.99 and the hours are 6 p.m. to midnight. 

Less-Scary Options 

If you’re more of a history buff or interested in less-sensationalized spooky events, check out Wornall Majors House Museums. During October, they are offering paranormal investigations and tours of the Alexander Majors house, one of the most haunted locations in KC, led by professional investigators. If you’re interested in history, but not ghost stories, you can check out their tour, the “Anatomy of a Haunted House,” which will explore the origins of the Victorian-style haunted house and life in the Victorian era. Check out their tours here.

Powell Gardens is hosting an immersive, multi-media 1-mile trail walk through the woods called, Dark Forest, in October. It takes you through the mysterious and mythical woods that have unexplainable paranormal forces and supernatural beings. There are no scary actors, but there are eerie performances, fog, strobe lights and more. In addition to spooky fall displays, they also have Halloween-inspired drinks and shopping. Dark Forest is on Oct. 13-15, 20-22 and 26-29 from 6 p.m. – 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $35.

If you’re a fan of cocktails, check out the variety of pop-up Halloween-themed bars in KC. In North KC, Apparition- Spook Easy at the Vignettes Bar has spine-curdling spirits and a spooky ambiance. The Ghosts of Baseball Past is a haunted cocktail experience at the Legends Stadium featuring a spooky version of baseball history. If you’re a fan of the Rocky Horror Picture Show, check out the Rocky Horror Pop-Up Bar at the Time-Warp Club.

Whatever you decide to do, whether it’s braving a haunted house or checking out a Halloween-inspired speakeasy, have a Happy Halloween! Make sure to check out some of the events on campus to support philanthropy and student organizations, too.