Bellerive’s fall 2024 issue, “Urban Panacea,” was one of the issues that recently tied for first place in the National Collegiate Honors Council’s 2026 Publications Contest. (Photo by Derik Holtmann)
Anna Tisdale felt a little starstruck when she got the news.
Bellerive, the annual publication produced by Tisdale and her fellow students in the Pierre Laclede Honors College at the University of Missouri–St. Louis, had tied for first place in the National Collegiate Honors Council’s 2026 Publications Contest. While the publication – which features original artwork, photography, poetry, short stories, academic essays and music from UMSL faculty, staff, students and alumni – had previously placed second in the national contest, this marked the first time it earned top honors.
Bellerive’s fall 2024 issue, “Urban Panacea,” and fall 2025 issue, “Points of Departure,” were both recognized in the Magazine category of the contest’s Faculty/Administrator/Student Published Division, alongside Middle Tennessee State University.
Members of Bellerive’s fall 2024 staff. (Photo courtesy of Audri Adams)
Tisdale, a senior English major at UMSL, served as layout committee chair for “Urban Panacea” as well as layout member for “Points of Departure.” She is currently taking the Bellerive course, which is offered through the Honors College, for a third time. She was thrilled to see Bellerive win first place in the national contest – particularly since the publication is produced entirely in black and white.
“It’s very hard to win as a black-and-white issue, just because you’re going up against other pieces that are using color, and you’re fairly limited with black and white,” Tisdale said. “But as the award says, we did pretty well within it. It was really nice to see that we did get tied for first place, as I’ve never won an award for some type of publication I’ve been a part of. That was just amazing to feel myself and then also see everyone else happy that got the award as well.”
Lillian Weatherly, also a senior English major at UMSL, is currently working on the layout team for Bellerive and served as lead editor for the “Points of Departure” issue. She was excited to see that issue in particular be recognized, as she feels the theme is relatable.
“It’s really about transitioning from one point to another and that process, whether that’s physically or mentally,” Weatherly said. “I think that ‘Points of Departure’ is so beautiful because it’s something we all go through. We all start in one place one day, and then end up in another place the next. It’s not only relatable to everyone, but it also has such meaningful stories within it that relate to that feeling of transitive motion and moving through life.”
Originally founded by Associate Dean Emeritus Nancy Gleason, Bellerive has become a decades-long tradition in the Honors College and a key part of its writing-intensive curriculum. Tisdale and Weatherly agree that part of what makes the publication so special is that it brings together Honors students from varied backgrounds and incorporates a wide range of submissions from members of the UMSL community. Tisdale said having different perspectives on staff broadens the work beyond just grammar and editing and helps shape which submissions ultimately make it into the book.
“You have to work alongside other members, people you’ve never met before,” she said. “With Bellerive, it’s a classroom of people that aren’t just English majors either. While everyone is in the Honors program, it’s people from every single background. We have people from marketing. We have people from accounting. We have a lot of scientific people in there. You’re getting everyone’s voice and opinion. You’re not just getting the grammar side of things. Being able to have people from every single major put their voice into it who don’t necessarily have the educational background in writing is amazing because they’re more focused on the content rather than the editing side of it. It results in different submissions actually getting into the book.”
Audri Adams, director of student services and advising in the Honors College and faculty advisor for the publication, took the Bellerive course multiple times as a student herself before becoming its faculty advisor in 2021. In recent years, she said, the Bellerive staff has made it a point to incorporate more submissions from different people through a blind submission process. She feels this recognition is a testament to that work.
“As we’re narrowing down the final submissions for what makes it in the issue, our classroom discussions center around creating a representative issue that showcases different disciplines and experience levels,” she said. “It’s important to see our publication receive recognition knowing that it encapsulates the diverse talents present across our campus.”
Members of Bellerive’s fall 2025 staff. (Photo courtesy of Audri Adams)
Having had a long history with the publication herself, Adams was also excited to see Bellerive recognized on a national scale, which only further demonstrates its longevity and tradition within the Honors College.
“Bellerive has been close to my heart since I was an Honors student, so it is incredibly rewarding to see how it has continued to grow over the years,” Adams said. “The dedication that Nancy Gleason and Geri Friedline put into building and sustaining this tradition is remarkable. I feel like I’ve mostly been carrying forward the foundation they created, so it is incredibly special to see their efforts continue to transcend new UMSL generations.”
Tisdale and Weatherly both emphasized that Bellerive is open to anyone and encouraged those who are interested to submit to the next issue. The publication accepts submissions between January 1 and October 1.
“Anybody can submit to Bellerive,” Weatherly said. “I think of that quote from Ratatouille – ‘Anybody can cook.’ Anybody can submit to Bellerive. It can be like the silliest poem you’ve ever written, but you’re putting it out there, and I think that’s so cool.”
The following Bellerive staffers were recognized for the awards: Irina Biedenstein, Jocelynn Bishop, Lilly Brewer, Evan Griffin, Abigail Hughes, Raquel Jones, Madeline Parr, G Schmiedeke, Adam Thai, Anna Tisdale, Lilly Weatherly, Kaitlyn Williams, Ryan Winzen, Remy Xa (Fall 2025, Issue 26); Aliena Abernathy, Hasset Asfaw, Maddie Bewig, Irina Biedenstein, Clay Butler, Bree Carlton, Addison Drace, Mae Keeley, Noah Malott, Kavion Norman, Madeline Parr, Reese Rich, Jordin Stern, Anna Tisdale, Eleanor Woods, Remy Xa, Noor Yousaf (Fall 2024, Issue 25).
