What does it mean to be well? For our 7th issue this spring, we dove into the 8 dimensions of wellness. Our biggest focus was to center on one theme for an overall cohesive look. We saw this trend and as we try to do with every issue of Uprising Magazine, our entire team made strides of improvements to bring together this issue surrounding wellness.

We examined the 8 dimensions of wellness: emotional, social, spiritual, intellectual, environmental, physical, occupational, and financial. As we broke each of these concepts down, we tried to find a way to connect University of Northern Iowa student interests and relevant issues into each dimension. Uprising members saw a need for students to self-assess their wellness as they finish off the year with stressors as finals, jobs, and their next chapter with graduation. We even had the opportunity to discuss their own personal wellness through programming with Shawna Haislet, the Health Promotion Coordinator at Student Wellness Services. We thought what better way to understand wellness and campus resources than trying out programs and seeking campus resources already available.

We are both so incredibly proud of our members this issue. We worked harder than ever to step out of our comfort zone and encourage Uprising Magazine to adopt a new look our readers haven’t seen before. We hope the issues we address start conversations all over campus and in return, inspire our students and faculty to also step out of their comfort zone.

We are so excited for you to turn the pages of this issue and dive into the creative minds of the Uprising team. We’d like to thank our supporters: Student Wellness Services, the Office of Diversity, Inclusion & Social Justice, the Office of Financial Aid and Scholarships, the Textiles & Apparel Association, Campus Compact, and the Northern Iowa Student Government. As always, thank you to our readers for their commitment and continued support.