Flare Magazine, founded by Sage Hill seniors Darcy Chung and Linda Hachim, was awarded First Place and Outstanding First Issue in the early review for the 2019 American Scholastic Press Association Annual Magazine Competition.
Flare is a fashion, beauty and lifestyle magazine that was founded in the summer of 2018. Chung is Editor-in-Chief, and Hachim is Head Photographer.
There are also about 80 other student members in the Flare Magazine club on campus. These students provide writing, modeling and styling for the magazine, which also has a strong online presence on
Instagram and on their website,
shsflaremag.com.
“Our goal is to have girls discover their own personal style and their own unique voice,” according to the Flare website. “Many people in this day and age still do not recognize the opinions and insight that teenage girls bring to the table, and we are here to prove them wrong.”
Last year, Flare released one issue for the school year, but the goal this year is to release two: one Fall/Winter issue and one Spring/Summer issue.
“Our online and social media presence is mainly how we keep our readers updated on a weekly basis,” Chung said.
The club had 250 copies of the award-winning issue printed at Aliso Creek Printing (which is run by former Sage Hill parents), and the magazines were available for free to students. Copies are currently available to read in the library and the front lobby.
“When we found out about the award, we were absolutely over the moon,” Chung said. “It was so exciting to be honored by this national association. All our hard work led us to this recognition, and we were so thankful for the opportunity to share something we were just really proud of.”
This award was really a group effort, Chung said.
“We want to thank all of the student contributors for their effort and dedication and our faculty advisor, Ms. Olins, for her help and support,” she said.
Chung and Hachim will both be graduating in the spring, so the future of Flare is a little up in the air.
“After graduation, we hope to either pass on our publication to a group of Sage students currently in the club or take it with us to college,” Chung said. “We haven’t decided our next step yet, and it really depends on our current younger members’ interests.”