September 16, 2024
When I joined the UNC Office of Research Communications in 2015, my former coworker had a framed message on her desk that read: “Print’s not dead.” She received the piece from an assistant editor who left the office when the print edition of Endeavors was eliminated in 2012 due to state budget cuts.
In the early 1980s, then graduate school Dean G. Phillip Manire created Endeavors because of the “rapidly growing need to inform ourselves and the public as to the extent and significance of the research effort of our faculty and students.” The first issue was released in late 1984, and an office was built around print publication production. By the mid-1990s, a small staff that included an editor, assistant editor, writers, and designers were producing three issues a year and managing a new website to further disseminate their articles.
When print production halted in 2012, the office was reformed and renamed under a new director, becoming the UNC Office of Research Communications. A web producer, videographer, and graphic designer were brought on-board to improve our online presence and distribute stories in an e-newsletter. The magazine lived in a digital-only format until 2019, when our designer Corina Prassos and I justified the creation of an annual print edition. Since then, we’ve grown our distribution from just 2,000 copies to nearly 40,000.
Thanks to a partnership with the Carolina Alumni Review, the print magazine now goes to lifetime members of the General Alumni Association, members of our university’s governing boards, representatives of our state legislature and congressional delegation, and program managers with our largest federal sponsors like the National Institutes of Health and the National Science Foundation.
Today, as we celebrate the magazine’s 40th anniversary, we believe it’s time for another change: retire the Endeavors name for UNC Research Stories.
UNC Research is a growing community of investigators who are continuously innovating, discovering, and uncovering. We tell their stories. To keep up with the progress and change they have made across four decades and dozens of disciplines, we are updating our name to reflect the thriving research enterprise of today.
The variety and quality of content will remain the same, and the name will more accurately reflect where our content comes from, tying it directly to the brand that has always been responsible for Endeavors. When you see UNC Research Stories, there is no doubt that it is a product of Carolina — and that it is so much more than a print magazine.
UNC Research Stories is a storytelling engine for curious people who want to learn why researchers entered their fields and how their projects impact North Carolina and beyond. Our long-form articles, photo stories, and short documentary-style videos engage current and new readers to grow support for the university and its research. We publish new content each month online, share it through an e-newsletter, and produce an annual print edition featuring the best stories of the academic year.
While changes are afoot, one thing is clearer than ever: Print’s not dead. And neither is research storytelling. UNC Research Stories will continue to produce the engaging content readers have come to know and love. We’re very much alive — and thriving. Stay tuned for the next 40 as we continue to grow and evolve.
Warmly,
Alyssa LaFaro, editor