The Athenaeum Press is a student-driven publishing lab at Coastal Carolina University. We work with students, community members and faculty to craft multimedia projects that showcase the beautiful diversity of the Carolinas.
Student experience is at the heart of the Press process. Students gain professional-level project experience, and the projects benefit from their innovative ideas.
Our region of South Carolina has a rich cultural heritage that influences today. We engage with our local communities to help tell stories that matter to our region, and help redefine our many Souths.
We assemble amazing teams to push the boundaries of storytelling. We match form to content, resulting in hand-crafted, one-of-a-kind digital and physical projects.
The Athenaeum Press at Coastal Carolina University focuses on regional stories, but we define region loosely. We've explored topics as far back as the 17th century, and as current as yesterday. Below are just a few of the topics our project teams have explored.
Every story is unique, so every project is different. Below are just a few of the mediums that our students have produced.
"Nothing is better than holding real hard copy of the book with your photographs and writings, especially when you spend months on putting it together."
The Athenaeum Press was established in the humanities college of Coastal Carolina University in 2012. Since then, we have created between two and three projects every year with small working groups of undergraduate and graduate students, community members, and faculty. We also house the Pre-Professional Design Studio, who produces both creative and academic journals. Our teams come from across the university: from the social and environmental sciences to the production fields of design, photography and writing.
Alongside working with students to develop innovative stories, the Press has developed a collaborative process with community groups. Whether we are constructing stories about Gullah Geechee communities or transgender individuals, the Press is committed to iterative design principles and sharing its profits and credit with the originating communities.
Some of our projects have received the generous support of federal and regional grants. We are grateful for this support. If you are interested in supporting or volunteering for the Press or any of its projects, Contact Us.