Vain Dream. to 1Mainstreamn:
The Growth of Red Deer College Press
Paul G. Boultbeet

The BeginningI
According to one account, Red Deer College Press began as a ' "fun"
project for a group of faculty "flakes" who wanted to publish one
slender book of poetry each year.'2 The 'head flake,' to use that term,
was Dr. Gary Botting, a creative, rebellious, faculty member in the
Department of English. Born in England in 1943, Botting emigrated
to Canada in 1954 and joined the staff of Red Deer College in 1972.
Botting was the father of Red Deer College Press and, quite naturally, its first editor. Hle remained in this position until the 1979-80
academic year. A poet and playwright as well as English instructor,
Botting was no stranger to publishing. He had never worked with or
for a mainstream publisher but had for a number of years, in both
Edmonton and Red Deer, published his own work under his own
imprint Harden House.
Officially, Red Deer College Press was incorporated under The
Companies Act of the Province of Alberta as a limited company on
30 September 1975. However, the first title with a Red Deer College
Press imprint that I have been able to find (Experimentsin Organic
Chemistryby Blackburn and Soper) bears a publication date of 197 I.
It is the third edition. The first two editions had been published by
Fletcher's Printing in Red Deer and Canadian Union College in
nearby College Heights. An article from the Red Deer Advocate
states that the Press was formed as a non-profit organization in
1972.3 In fact, Red Deer College Press records show that between
197I and 1975, the 'unofficial' Red Deer College Press published
seven books of poetry, two works of non-fiction, and a short-lived
literary journal called New Thursday.There is also an undated book
t Paul G. Boultbee is the Reference/Collection Management Librarian at Red
Deer College. He was a member of the Board of Directors of Red Deer College
Press from 1985 to 1988. An earlier draft of his paper was read at the Annual
General Meeting of the Bibliographical Society of Canada in Calgary, Alberta, on
7 June 1994-

52

Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada 33/ I

of poetry, Frames by Joan Hanson, which was probably published
during the same period. The discrepancies in dates and publication
history cannot be adequately explained. Early Press records are
incomplete, and many of the individuals first involved in the Press
are unable to reconstruct the early days.
By the time Botting stepped down as editor, Red Deer College
Press had published its first titles: not only the eleven mentioned
above but also a further eleven. Of these twenty-two titles, fourteen
were volumes of poetry. This was certainly more than the original
intent of publishing 'one slender book of poetry each year,'4 but
these first titles are indeed slender and, in many cases, reflect the
distinctive tastes of the Press' first editor. Botting considered the
poetry that the Press was publishing to be avant-garde in nature and
saw Red Deer College Press acting as 'an outlet for Alberta poets,
who receive little attention from iniost publishing outlets.'s
However, the emphasis on poetry did have its detractors. Kathy
Marriott, the Red Deer College Board of Governors' representative
on the Press Board of Directors in the late 1970s,
is quoted in
the Red Deer Advocate: 'I have indicated my lack of interest in the
modern poetry arm of the press.'6 These sentiments were echoed in
the same Red DeerAdvocate article in the succinct but to-the-point
statement of Dr. Bob Cooper, the Chairperson of the College's Board
of Governors: 'I'm not too impressed with a lot of modern poetry.''
Marriott also felt that 'the emphasis on modern poetry was
"because of the influence of the English department," ' a statemnent
which may or may not have been directed at Botting.
The press struggled throughout its early years, but it did receive
some help from beyond the College. The Alberta Department of
Culture granted the Press $I,ooo in 1976. The following year, the
Canada Council gave the Press a block grant of $3,500 and also
granted the Press $1,337
for the publication of Kookoosint by
Marion Smith. Still, despite grants like these the Press' financial
statement for 1976-77 shows a deficit of $7,ooo. Nonetheless, Gary
Botting'-s dream of a small literary press had been realized and
whether or not the members of the College's Board of Governors
liked it, the Press continued to survive.
Re-Organization
However, the problems alluded to above, some based on personality
conflicts, some on artistic conflicts, and a number on economic and
accountability issues, necessitated a re-organization of the Press. By

53

Boultbee: Vain Dream to Mainstream

August 1979, the College Board of Governors requested 's full
financial accounting and personal appearance by press founder Gary
Botting.'9 According to Karen Weaver, the 1979-80 College Board of
Governors' representative to the Press, 'no one at the college
appears willing to assist Mr. Botting in running the publishing
company which [is] beset by managerial and marketing difficulties.'Io Botting did appear before the College Board of Governors at
the September 1979 meeting. Despite the apparent managerial and
marketing difficulties, the College decided to continue its support
of the Press but a re-organization was still needed.
As a result, the administration of the College and the Board of
Directors of Red Deer College Press came to an agreement concerning the following points: the Press would show a net profit for the
fiscal year ending 30 June 1980; the line of credit provided by Red
Deer College would be reduced from $Io,ooo to $5,000 by 30 June
I980, with a further reduction to $2,500 by 30 June 198I, and with
no subsidy whatsoever by 30 June 1982; the Press would provide a
schedule of its aging inventory and a schedule of the use of the Press'
publishing services for 1979-80; and the Press would show a positive image of the College and operate within the College's Mission
Statement. Finally, the Press' organizational chart would also be
revised.
By 30 January 1980 the Press' Board of Directors had established a
number of recommendations to be used as guidelines for this
re-organization. These recommendations became the real basis for
Red Deer College Press. The first section established the Press'
policy: the Press would continue to offer publication opportunities
to central Albertans and other members of the community and
would publish children's literature, poetry, educational materials
aimed at the college market, and other works of broad general
interest - a rather open-ended mandate. Final approval for publications would rest with the Board of Directors with the aim that
each publication should be self-supporting. The editorial guidelines, policies, and procedures would be reviewed annually.
A set of procedures accompanied this policy. Manuscripts would
be screened first by the editor and secondly by the editorial board.
Selected manuscripts would then be presented to the Board of
Directors by the editor with a description of each work's merits,
budget estimates, and a description of the target market. External
referees would be used when appropriate.
In conjunction with this re-organization, the Press' Board of Directors decided to write off as a loss the entire inventory opftitles

54

Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada 33/I

published before 1976, except Claire Shuler McKinnon's Nisku
(1975), the primary reason being that annual sales - one or two
copies of each title - did not warrant active status. Also, copies of
Hanok (1977), by Leanne M. Jones, were removed from the inventory since nearly all copies were soiled and not saleable.
To some of the more flamboyant supporters of Red Deer College
Press these changes smacked of bureaucracy. Botting resigned as
editor and was replaced by Dennis Johnson, an instructor in the
Communications Department. The recommendation from the
president of the Press to name Johnson as editor was contained in a
report that also recommended that the Press should not support the
publication of children's literature. Time has shown that naming
Johnson editor was an excellent decision. Time has also shown that
disregarding the recommendation to cease publishing children's
literature was also wise.
Up to 3I March 198I, all of the Press' efforts were concentrated
on internal re-organization and improved promotional activities. It
was at this stage that a publishing program - the first real effort at
such a strategy - was proposed for 198 I-82. The proposed program
called for two poetry chapbooks of 250 copies each, one to be
published in the summer of 198I and the second in the fall of 198I,
and a book of poetry of Soo copies to be published in the winter of
198.

The year-end report for 1980-8
I outlined all of the decisions,
guidelines, and proposals that had been made and noted that the
Press' initial re-organized marketing and promnotional efforts had
unfortunately been thwarted by that most Canadian of institutions
- the postal strike that began on 29 June 198 I and lasted for 42 days,
until to August. However, the year-end report also notes that the
Press received the maximum available grant from Alberta Culture
- $1,2oo or 25% of the Press' estimated production costs -· in
support of the first two proposed titles. This was seen as a vote of
confidence in the Press and its attempts at re-organization."I
The 19g8 I-82z publishing program did not quite meet its obj ectives.
Only one title was published, but even this first step following
re-organization was significant. Eastboundfrom Alberta (198I), a
book of poetry by Richard Woollatt, was the first title of the Press'
new era. It recovered its costs within six months.
This auspicious start led to a $2,ooo grant from Alberta Culture
for 1982-83 and the release of the Press' second title, another book
of poetry, In the Eye of the Bee (1983) by Marion Smith. It also
created some problems. The return to active publishing led to an

55 Boultbee: Vain Dream to Mainstream
increase in workload for the editor who still had atfull load of classes
to prepare and teach. As a result, he began to fall slightly behind in
the publication schedule. Any more titles that came along would,
of course, create greater time demands. Therefore, release time was
needed for the editor and the president of the Press, both of whom
were, and continue to be, members of the College faculty. Requests
for release time to meet the needs of the Press continue to this day;
currently, the editor has a 50% course reduction.
With a small number of successful books being published, marketing and promotion were becoming more necessary and such efforts
at the local level proved rewarding. The Press also began to get Red
Deer College students involved in the Press' operations by using
expertise from marketing and computer systems technology
classes. Active student involvement lasted until about 1986.
In keeping with its original intent to reduce the line of credit
provided by Red Deer College, the 1982-83 annual report indicates
that the Press requested that its line of credit be reduced to $6,ooo.
This did not meet the original target but it was a move in the right
direction.
The Press' third title following re-organization was Risks by
Anne Szumigalski, published in the fall of 1983. Funding for this
title included a $4oo grant from the Saskatchewan Arts Board.
Szumigalski who also published Doctrine of Signatures (Fifth
House) in 198 3, a book that earned her a nomination for a Governor
General's Award in poetry, was the first of several nationally recognized authors to be published by Red Deer College Press.
The 1979-80 re-organization of the Press' activities proved to be
the impetus needed to move the Press from being a ' "fun" project
for a group of faculty "flakes" ' to a legitimate undertaking. This
was no surprise to the new editor, Dennis Johnson. Like Gary
Botting, Johnson also dreamed of a literary press, but he dreamed of
taking the Press beyond central Alberta and this was just the
beginning. It also meant that there would be problems ahead.
Johnson's larger plans did not quite fit into those of the College's
Board of Governors.

Re-OrganizationRedux
During the 1985-86 academic year the Press faced two major
obstacles. The Board of Directors needed to make a significant
commitment to publish the Press' first commercial children's

56

Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada 33/I

book, Kathleen Cook Waldron's A Winter's Yarn. And a joint
Administration-Press Committee was, once again, reviewing the
structure of the Press and assessing the need for re-organization.
In its 1980 policy, the Board of Directors had indicated that
Red Deer College Press would, as part of its mandate, undertake
to publish children's literature. A Winter's Yarn would be the
first publication in this area, and, naturally, the Board wanted it
done right. However, this involved a major financial commitment
and was not something to be rushed. The commitment was made
in January 1985, but the book was not launched until the fall of
1986.
This major commitment plus the fact that the Press was planning
on releasing three poetry titles in the fall of 1985 led the Board of
Directors to request, yet again, a workload release for both the editor
and the president, and an increase in the line of credit provided by
the College from $6,000 to $I5,000. The former was promised
verbally, and the latter was also granted.
In the midst of the children's literature decision and the latest
Press re-organization, the Press launched three major poetry titles
in the fall of 19g8 5: Instar by Anne Szumigalski, The Alternate Guide
by Monty Reid, and Seventy-One Poems for People by George
Bowering. The Alternate Guide won the Stephan G. Stephansson
Award for poetry, and Instar, which received a Writers Choice
Award, was nominated for a Governor General's Award. In the
minds of many people, Red Deer College Press had arrived. Botting's
dream was making its first real foray into mainstream publishing.
Despite all this success, the Press still had to contend with the
joint Administration-Press review. Initial negotiations produced a
MIission Statement for the Press:
Red Deer College Press operates as a nonprofit, institutionally
affiliated publisher of books of significant literary and artistic merit
and interest. The Press publishes books by, about, or of interest to,
Canadians. The Press specializes in poetry, adult and juvenile short
fiction, children's pictorial literature, children's drama, and history/biography.

I

As well, a Memorandum of Agreement with the College was drawn
up that outlined the obligations of the College and the Press in their
interactions with each other. These obligations included a resource
commitment on the part of the College, a workload release for the
managing editor but nothing for the Press' president, the provision

57

Boultbee: Vain Dream to Mainstream

of support services and facilities in kind, and a credit line of
$I5,000.I3 Subsequent drafts of the Agreement refined a number of
these issues and cemented the relationship between the College and
the Press.
The work of the Press did not, of course, take a backseat to these
negotiations. A Winter's Yarn was released in the fall of 1986, and
the Press' first series, Writing West Series, made its debut in November 1987 with the simultaneous release of three new works of
poetry: Songs frorn the StarMotel by Ian Adam, Soul Searching by
Dennis Cooley, and Music at the Heart of Thinking by Fred Wah.
At the time of release, Phil Hall wrote in Books in Canada:'The
books are well-made; the covers appealing; the type is spacious and
inviting. All of which amounts to one of the most handsome
series designs I've seen in a long time.'I4 A second series, Northern
Lights Books for Children, also began in 1987 while a third series,
Northern Lights Young Novels, was launched in 1991.
Editor's reports from this time show that Red Deer College Press
was receiving approximately 3oo unsolicited manuscripts per year
and spending about 25 % of its total budget on advertising. The Press
was becoming, as Ruth Richardson, Executive Director of the
Alberta Publishers' Association called it in 1987,'one of the best
literary presses in the whole country.'Is The editor, Dennis Johnson,
described his philosophy: 'produce good-looking books by the best
authors you can find, then market them like crazy.'I6 This approach
seemed to work. In April 1989, Red Deer College Press was named
Publisher of the Year by the Alberta Publishers Association, and by
the fall the Press had its first bestsellers - A Winter's Yarn (6,Ioo
copies) and Judy Schultz's The Best of Seasons (5,ooo+ copies). The
Press also began to make serious forays overseas by making its first
appearance at the International Children's Book Fair in Bologna in
the spring of 1989.
By the end of the I989-90 academic year, Red Deer College Press
had thirty titles in print and was receiving over I,ooo unsolicited
manuscripts per year. Red Deer College Press was now, officially,
fifteen years old and had gone through two re-organizations. In each
case, the re-organization had been requested by the College's Board
of Governors, primarily to address the issues of accountability
and direction. To the individuals involved with the Press, each
re-organization initially seemed to be an intrusion, an imposition
of unwanted bureaucracy and interference. But each re-organization,
in effect, challenged the Press and its members and propelled the
Press forward.

58

Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada 33/I

Re-Alignment
By the end of 1990, Red Deer College Press did not need another
re-organization so much as it needed a re-alignment of staffing. A
review and proposal conducted by the Chairperson of the Department of Humanities and Social Sciences to provide a rationale for
the Press' request for greater support outlined four recommendations or observations. First of all, he noted that the Press had
achieved a high level of respect and prestige, and in order to
maintain this standard, 'the existing management and staff of the
Press will need to be able to devote more time to the operation of
the Press.'I7 Secondly, he pointed out that it was possible and
desirable for the Press to play a role in several programs being offered
by the College. The Press could assist the English Department in
developing a practicum/workshop component using national, international, and local writers in a workshop series. Press facilities and
personnel could also be employed, at minimal cost, to operate
practicums and studio courses in book design and illustration for
the Fine Arts Department. The Press could also play a role by
helping to develop media, communications, and public relations
components for College diploma and B.A. programs. However, he
did indicate that these possibilities could only be initiated when
'the position of the Press within the College is solidified, especially
the position of the managing editor and secretary.'r s
The Chairperson's third observation centred on the Press' economic value to the College and the fact that this economic resource
had been developed 'at minimal cost to the College, through the
highly efficient operation of the Press by the current managing
editor and support provided throughout the College.'I9 He indicated
that to maintain and develop this aspect, 'the current managing
editor and secretary will need to be able to devote their full time
to the operation of the Press.'20 Finally, he commented on the
cultural value of Red Deer College Press and the need for the Press'
exIstence:
Without this Press, the arts and in particular the literary arts in
Canada, Alberta and Central Alberta would suffer a great loss. The
Press is at a stage of development such that a cut-back in production
may be necessary to accommodate the strained workloads of both
staff, at a time when quality literaryworks are available but quality
publishing houses to produce them are in short supply.2I

59

Boultbee: Vain Dream to Mainstream

Ultimately, this proposal for re-alignment asked that the managing
editor receive a loo% release from course instruction, that the
secretary receive a 100% workload release, that the monies to
cover these buyouts come from the Red Deer College Foundation/
Development Fund, and that the Press initiate a business plan to
become self-sufficient no later than January 1997.
The Chairperson's report and proposal were accompanied by a list
of book awards and nominations received by Red Deer College
Press, including the Alberta Publisher of the Year Award (1989), two
Canadian Children's Book Centre 'Our Choice' Awards (The Most
Beautiful Kite in the World, 1989, and A World of Stories, I990),
the McNalley-Robinson Manitoba Book of the Year Award (The
Prowler, 1989), the Writers Choice Award (Instar, I985),
and a
Governor General's Award nomination (Instar, 1985).
Hard on the heels of this report came College discussions surrounding the 1991-92 College budget. Based on the Chairperson's
report, Red Deer College Press requested that the College Board of
Governors release the managing editor from all instructional responsibilities and obligations for the foreseeable future. But the Board of
Governors had an entirely different response - a reduction of
$5,000 to the Press' $30,ooo grant and a request that the Press
'prepare a plan which would demonstrate whether and/or how the
Press would move toward operating on a cost recovery basis within
a few years (i.e., become financially self-sufficient).'2 The public
response consisted of editorial statements such as: 'To insult an
award-winning organization, and to risk its tremendous current
progress by undercutting its support for such a pittance of the
money available in this year's budget seems an extremely shortsighted and inward-minded attitude' 3;and 'A small college can't
do everything well. It can excel in select areas. The areas with a
proven track record of excellence should be given every possible
assistance to survive and develop. . .. In the arts, it would be book
publishing.'24
By the time the College's 1991-92 budget had been finalized, the
monetary support granted to the Press had not been cut by $5,000
- it had been cut by $I0,000. The Board of Directors of the Press
rose to the occasion and put together a business plan that would see
the College grant reduced by $5,000 a year for three years in
conjunction with a 100% increase in the line of credit provided by
the College: an increase from $30,ooo to $60,ooo. Additional inventory storage space was also requested. The year was not all gloom
and doom. The Book Publishers Association of Alberta awarded Red

60

Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada 33/ I

Deer College Press its 199I Book Promotion Award, and These
Lawns by Monty Reid received the I991 Writers Guild of Alberta
award for best poetry. Awards now seemed to come thick and fast.
Reid's The Last GreatDinosaurs and Kristjana Gunnars's Zero Hour
were both nominated in November I991 for Governor General's
Awards. In February 1992, the Press was once again honoured as
Publisher of the Year by the Book Publishers Association of Alberta.
At the same ceremony, Judy Schultz's The Best of Seasons Meniu
Cookbook received the Alberta Book Design Award. 1991-92 was
topped off when the managing editor, Dennis Johnson, was awarded
the Red Deer Mayor's Special Award in May 1992. The Award is
'intended to symbolize the highest possible recognition from the
City of Red Deer ... [to] an individunal whose service or achievement
has been of singular significance and whose accomplishments are
not adequately described withiri the framework of the criteria for
the Athletics, Fine and Performing Arts or Citizenship Awards.'2s
Throughout this time the Press had continued to grow financially
and artistically. By March 1992, its annual budget was $407,ooo. In
June I992, the Press sold the computer rights to the dinosaur
illustrations in its acclaimed series of dinosaur books to Rockwood
Infomatics of Ottawa to develop a dinosaur database. The end result
is an interactive learning tool for students. This kind of innovation
has also been attempted with poems of the late bp Nichol, eight of
which appear on a Macintosh disk entitled FirstScreening.
The spring of 1994 saw a return to familiar but not always
comfortable times for Red Deer College Press. In its initial budget
deliberations, Red Deer College suggested eliminating the current
$6 I,ooo worth of support given to the Press. In fact, actual College
support amounts to $32,000, and this has been reduced to $2,ooo.
The Press' line-of-credit has been cut to $80,ooo from $Ioo,ooo. All
of this has led the Press' president, Dr. Torben Andersen, to indicate
that the Press 'has to put out a more commercial book line to survive.
This requires printing more cook books and wine expert guides, and
less Canadian poetry and literature.'2 In the midst of all of this, the
Press received a $37,359 Department of Communications' Book
Publishing Industry Development Program grant, and was once
again nominated for the Alberta Publisher of the Year Award.
Will Red Deer College Press survive? Of course it will. Not despite
re-organization and re-alignment but because of them. This Press
has already shown itself to be a survivor, and this is in no small
measure due to the efforts of the individuals involved in its growth
and development. It is difficult to say if there wouPld even be a Red

6I

Boultbee: Vain Dream to Mainstream

Deer College Press without the persistence of Gary Botting.
Whether he really did see the Press as acting as an outlet for Alberta
poets or whether he saw it as a vanity press does not really matter.
The fact that it exists is due to his stubbornness. However, the
national reputation that the Press enjoys is due to the efforts of
Dennis Johnson. Like Botting, Johnson is also stubborn, and his
stubbornness has led to books of artistic and literary merit - books
that have captured the attention and respect of the mainstream
publishing world. The fact that the Press and the College have,
despite their differences, been able to work together is due to the
efforts of Torben Andersen who has been president and treasurer of
Red Deer College Press since 1985. Andersen is an instructor of
Economics in the College's Division of Arts. He has been able to
provide the bridge between the College and the Press and has done
so effectively. Or as Dennis Johnson has put it: '[Torben's] financial
planning skills (in addition to his considerable negotiation skills)
are critical (even fundamental) to the Press - now and in the future.
Succeeding in getting him to join the Press in his capacity as
President was the best thing I ever did.'2
One of the College's major concerns for all the operations it
controls has been to justify the existence of any department vis-àvis the College's mission to teach. The Press' relationship in this
regard has always coloured its dealings with the College's Board of
Governors. If and when the Press can more closely link its efforts
to the mission of Red Deer College, its survival may well be
more assured. The key might well lie in the re-alignment of 1990
when the Chairperson of the Department of Humanities and Social
Sciences suggested that the Press needed to play a role in several
programs offered by the College. If the Press, with the assistance of
the College, can see its way clear to moving in this direction
without sacrificing its own mission, survival may be less of a
concern than it currently is. The Press has changed over the years.
It is now a mainstream business, recognized across Canada as a
viable, reputable enterprise that struggles to produce the finest in
creative and documentary literature:
From its modest beginnings as a vehicle for student writing, the
Press has grown into one of Canada's most successful small presses
[and] [w]hile its publishing program has broadened from poetry into
fiction, children's books, natural history, and even cookbooks . .
the Press remains committed to 'culturally significant Canadian
books'.2

62

Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada 33/I

RÉsUMÉ

La Red Deer College Press fut établie au ddbut des annies I970.
Comme plusieurspetites maisonzs d'édition, ses premières années
d'existence furent une lutte continuelle, et bien qu'aidée par
1'administrationdu Collège, elle devait toujours justifierson ex2stence. En z980, ses activitisfurentréorganiséespourpermettreune
plus grandeindépendance. Un nouvel éditeur, Dennis J'olnson, fut
nommé pour remplacer 1'éditeur fondateur, Gary Botting, et un
nouveau programmede publicationfut instauré. Ces cl2angements
cribrent une idition plus ambitieuse qui commença à publier des
livres qui gagnbrent des prix et attirèrent des auteurs primés. En
dipit de ces succès, Red Deer College Press continue à lutter pour
publier des oeuvres littdraires canadiennes et doit encore justifier
son existence.

63

Boultbee: VainDream toMainstream

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*~:I:

I.

This

is

a group

of

early

Red

Deer

College

Press

imprints

publiçhed in the Ig70s under the editorship of Gary Botting.
The books pictured are:
Gary Botting. FIeckled Blue. I979.
Lome Daniel. The HuntingHand. I973·
Irene Greenwood. First Lust. I973·
Leanne M. ~ones and Audrey Young Oppel. Hanok. I977·
Einhard Kluge. The Green Butterfly. I973·
Claire Shuler McKinnon. Nisku. I975·
Marion Smith. Koo-Koo-Sint. I976.
Marion Smith. Prairie Child. I974·
Bill Snyder. Waitress! There's an Eye in My Soup. I975·

64

Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada 33/I

2.ii~iiiiiiiiiiiiiiii
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ed
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Story,

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65

Boultbee: Vain Dream to Mainstream

NOTES
I This paper is not meant to be just a look at the growth and development of
Red Deer College Press but may also be seen as an example of many of the
small literary presses which were established across Canada in the 1970s.
Most of the information upon which the paper is based comes from the Press'
archives, currently located in the Press' offices at Red Deer College - a
collection of minutes, president's reports, editor's reports, and internal College
documents. There are no published materials available beyond articles in the
Red Deer Advocate. As a result, the Red Deer Advocate articles have been
used to supplement the Press' records in order to shed more light on the Press'
history.
2 Laurie Grant, 'Red Deer College Press,' [Selkirk College publication]. 1988.
3 'RDC PreSS BCCOming a Company,' Red Deer Advocate, 25 October 1975, P-3·
4 Ibid.
5 Red Deer College Press. Financial report. 20 April 1977·
6 Catherine Ford, 'Children's Books to [Be] New Emphasis at Roc Press,' Red Deer
Advocate, 22 April 1977, P-z·
7 Ibid.
8 Ibid.
9 Brian Burton, 'Troubled RDcPress Told to Get Out of "Cloud Land," ' Red Deer
Advocate, 20 September 1979, p. 17.
10 Ibid.
II Red Deer College Press. Summary report for 1980-198 1.n.d.
I2 John Tobias, Acting Dean, Division of Arts and Education to Torben Andersen,
President, RDC Press. Reorganization of RDcPress. 19 February I986.
I3 Ibid.
14 Phil Hall, 'The Words of Life,' Books in Canada I7 no. 8 (November 1988): 3I-z15 Bob Weber, 'Higher than a Kite,' Red Deer Advocate, I2 December 1987, p. CI.
I6 Ibid.
17 Jim Gough. A Review and Proposal for a Re-Alignment of Staffing Priorities at
Red Deer College Press: A Draft Report and Proposal. [zo December I990], 4.
18 Ibid., 5.
19 Ibid.
20 Ibid.
21IIbid., 5-622 Ken Heywood, Chairman, Board of Governors to Torben Andersen, President,
Red Deer College Press and Bob Anderson, Chairman of the Board, Redi Deer
College Press. Red Deer College Press - Request for Increased Financial Support. I8 April 199 L
23 'An Unreasonable Budget Saving' [editorial], Sunday Express, 21 April 1991,
p. 6.
24 'RDC Press Pressure' [editorial], Red Deer Advocate, 22 April 1991, p. A425 Red Deer. Mayor's Award Criteria.
26 Lana Michelin, 'Publisher's Grant Doubles,' Red DeerAdvocate, 3 March 1994,
p. BI.

66

Papers of the Bibliographical Society of Canada 33/ I

27

Dennis

Johnson.

28

Lorne

Daniel,

Alumni

Newsletter

Personal

'Reaching

communication.
out

(spring

with
1992):

I June
Committed

7.

1994Quality,'

Red

Deer

College