Letter fro01 the Editor

Welcometothe firstissueofDistrictin Bloom! Iinviteyoutodig intoCOVID-19's impactonthestudent body, mentalhealth, the Savannahcharmsomanyofus missed, aracialinjusticerevolutionand YOU! Bythetimeourcontentreachesyour hands and screens, we'llalready be playing catchup. Regardless, I hope this issue gives you the chance to reminisce about our perseverance during a jarring year.

We're a group of angsty college kids with a surprisingly mature taste for art and design, pushing for creativity during times of isolation, divide and chaos. You can expect this first issue to imperfectly embody that same quirkiness, sophistication and innovation. We bridged that physical, (closer than six feet) gap we ached for with hand written notes, illustrations, zoom interview, and a butt-ton of artwork from you - you creative, all-nighter on a Tuesday, mattress on the floor and ramen out of the pot kinda, people, you. It's such a trip to see what this school is capable of making without its typical resources.

My staff knows all too well that I can't text back within 24 hours to save my life, so keeping up with everyone virtually challenged me to say the least. I have Zoom, Zoom, malfunctioning Zoom, more Zoom and good ol' Slack to thank. Oh, and lots of spreadsheets where I aimed to infiltrate every column A-Z with riddles and deadlines. Here's to a good managing editor that cleaned that unorganized mess up for me more than once. Everyone saw their fair share of dysfunction,but it wassorewarding toclose my laptop afterevery"meeting"having developed the magazine a little more each time. And now you're finally holding the tangible product in your hands, just like we are. We weren't even convinced we could initiate such a grand project during a normal quarter, let alone the first digital quarter SCAD's ever had. Something about conquering that whole "against every odd" obstacle makes me want to eat a chocolate donut or ten and shake this collection of papers out a car window like I'm in an indie, young adult film.

We're still creating. We're still here. We still care, and your voice still matters. District exists to give you a platform to speak up for the benefit of those around you. Yes, we're a student news website/paper/magazine (??), but we're not here to simply add to the chatter. We are a diverse campus with a melting pot of original, wise and driven people - and we believe in reading, hearing, watching, what lights our souls on fire (and I hope we've all realized that yes, that passion doesn't simmer for a pandemicpassion isn't as polite as it is radical. .steadfast, fearless) needs to be shared.

So what are we really doing here? District in Bloom is an opportunity to expand on engaging stories using artistic yet journalistic efforts that convey the diversity, creativity and innovation at SCAD. We hope these stories fill your well and leave you encouraged by the power of your own story.

Editor-in-Chief