Mercy University’s “Red Hyacinth” Wins Top National Honor for Second Consecutive Year

Mercy University’s student literary magazine “Red Hyacinth: A Journal of Writing and Art” has received the highest distinction in the 2025 Recognizing Excellence in Art and Literary Magazines (REALM) contest, marking the second consecutive year the publication has earned a “First Class” rating. The student-produced publication, which features original writing and artwork, was selected from hundreds of entries submitted by schools across the United States and abroad.

“’First Class’ is the highest distinction awarded,” said Kristen Keckler, associate professor of English, chair of Literature and Language and faculty advisor for the magazine. “This is the third consecutive year I have entered ‘Red Hyacinth’ into the REALM contest. In 2023, we were ranked as ‘Excellent.’ For our 2024 issue, we moved up two notches to ‘First Class,’ a ranking we maintained with the most recent 2025 issue.” 

The REALM program, organized by the National Council of Teachers of English (NCTE), recognizes excellent literary magazines produced by students with faculty guidance. The program aims to encourage schools to develop publications that celebrate the art and craft of writing.  Schools from all 50 states, the District of Columbia, US territories, Canada and American schools abroad are eligible to participate.

In 2025, 456 student magazines were nominated by schools in 44 states, Washington, D.C. and six countries. Magazines from middle school, high school and institutions of higher education were considered. Of those entries, only 135 magazines were awarded the contest’s highest ‘First Class’ distinction.

“This recognition reflects the hard work of our student editors as well as the quality of creative work produced by students across the university,” added Keckler.

For more information about the REALM Program, please visit: https://ncte.org/awards/program-to-recognize-in-student-literary-magazines/.