Dear Readers,
Welcome to the eighth issue of Illinois Central Review!
This issue achieved multiple milestones that had not yet
been realized in previous issues. For one, it’s our largest issue to date for both
contributors and number of pieces. This issue contains a total of 49 pieces by
27 different contributors. There are 13 artworks, 21 poems, 4 short stories,
and 10 personal essays.
Among those pieces are some of the winners of Illinois Central
College’s Student Writing Awards for 2024-2025. The following winners appear in
this issue:
Creative Writing Category:
First Place: My First Valentine’s with You (I Like Your Shoes)
by Sophia Larimore
Second Place: When I Sing, I Don’t Stutter by Logan Lewis
Poetry Category:
First Place: The Sonnet of Disrepair by Daniel Ware
Second Place: Skin Shells by Sophia Larimore
Finally, this issue includes work contributed by students in
our Prison Education Program who are enrolled in ICC classes while incarcerated
at Pekin FCI.
An extra special note of thanks to Professor Elizabeth Godinez for coordinating and collecting submissions from the PEP students and encouraging them to submit their work!
Illinois Central Review is currently accepting
submissions for its next issue, which will be published in January 2026. The
deadline to submit is December 1, and you can do so here: Volume V/Issue 1 Submission Form.
Remember, submissions are open to all students taking
classes at ICC, including those in the Dual Enrollment and Strong Start
programs through Early College.
Finally, I invite you to visit the Illinois
Central Review Facebook page for updates and weekly
features of this issue's contributions, starting Monday, August 25.
I hope you enjoy this issue. Thank you for taking a
look!
In writing,
Melissa Grunow
English Professor
Department of Humanities