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The fate of The Meliorist, the independent student publication at the University of Lethbridge, is in limbo, with the chain of command that held it together currently   scattered.

The forty-ninth September issue entitled The Meliorist Might Be Toast is an accurate foreshadowing of what is coming if events don’t go according to plan this month.

Editor in Chief, Lauren Crazybull, has made a personal decision to step down, passing on the reigns to contributing writer and chemistry major, Drew Dennis.

Dennis has proven to be the most likely and willing candidate as the new Editor in Chief–volunteering his extra time and energy to recovering the fumbled publication.

“I looked around at where we are at, and realized how much I really like this publication and decided I’m going to kind of step up,” said Dennis.

He explained that years of disorganization and miscommunication, coupled with an outdated constitution have left staff locked out of the publication’s bank account and behind in taxes, with no further means to print for the month of October.

Currently, funding for the magazine is taken from each student by default at five dollars per semester; therefore every student is a deemed part of the association.

“The Meliorist is a society; it has a constitution and therefore demands that there must be a board of directors. But somehow for the last two years, the society has kept on operating without one, amazingly unnoticed.”

The bank took notice this year, leaving the Meliorist in hot water.

The plan implemented to save the publication is a fragile one, heavily dependent on the student’s participation in the upcoming October student body election.

According to the bylaws, within the constitution, a collective group of university students must meet and vote, requiring at least fifteen percent of the student population to be in attendance.

“We are going through a referendum, essentially we have to create a board and rewrite the constitution, with clarity and without cumbersome language so we can have more freedom to write,” continued Dennis.

The delicacy lays in voter turnout. The last few years, the University only had a turnout of 15 to 17%. They will work around the clock to create awareness.

Partnered up with the student union, volunteers have placed their faith in high hopes that students will rise to the occasion; however still quite worried that though students may want the publication to stay, there is a possibility that not enough students will actually vote.

Elections will commence in the second week of October.

The first edition of the Meliorist was published in 1967. It has acted as a voice for students since then, and its publications include a wide variety of topics including anything from quantum physics, hot music albums picks and general student opinion. Each edition has its own unique stories written by students for students.

“The fact the student can have a voice is very cool. Many of the students don’t read it or think it’s an artsy magazine, but I see it as a way for us to really connect on campus and to share a voice.”

“Hopefully this only just a little blip, it goes unmentioned, and October is the only month we go unpublished,” concluded Dennis, with high hopes for the future.

The student body and the Meliorist encourage students to become active in the upcoming elections in order to show their support.