After nearly 20 years of lying dormant, the UW political science journal The Orator is making a comeback.

Spring quarter, the peer-reviewed publication will see the fresh ink of a printing press, and student work is currently being sought.

Through Feb. 14, undergraduates can submit their work for publication and have a chance at a cash prize.

The journal for undergraduate research will be put out by Pi Sigma Alpha (PSA), the UW chapter of the National Honor Society for Political Science.

According to the UW's PSA Web site, "The goal of The Orator is to empower students to analyze ideas within the political spectrum and to critically reflect on their own arguments while raising universal political awareness."

"This is a great opportunity for exposure," said Dylan Gruver, PSA's senator to the ASUW, who was involved in reviving the journal.

The Orator will welcome submissions from students in any major, serving as a forum for the discussion of topics that address a political argument or idea.

Once submitted, the entries will undergo a process of peer review, passing before the eyes of a committee of PSA members as well as several prominent UW professors before being printed.

The Orator was originally started in 1984 by Michael McCann, now a UW professor of political science, and Anthony Johnson, a professor at UC Berkeley.

Gruver, along with fellow PSA officers Arian Mossanenzadeh, and Nicko Fusso, began the process of restarting The Orator last spring after requesting a grant from the honor society's national chapter.

"A lot of people just join [PSA] and pay their dues," said Mossanenzadeh, who hopes the restarting the journal will be a good way to get students more involved in the honor society. "Hopefully this will give students a greater incentive to join and be a part of [PSA]."

With the grant awarded just last month, the deadline for submissions has been set for Feb. 14, and officers and members of PSA are very enthusiastic about the journal's prospects.

"It has the potential to go big," said Gruver, who, along with Mossanenzadeh, ideally hopes to see the journal and its contents used as references in future classes at the UW.

The journal itself will consist of about five or six entries of no more than 10 pages each, and will be available purchase in Smith 215.

While only a few submissions will make their way into the actual journal, The Orator will have its own Web site where students will be able to access all items originally submitted.

The committee of PSA peer reviewers will select what they consider to be the top three entries, and will award authors cash prizes of $75, $50 and $25.

Reach reporter Brittany Rogers at news@thedaily.washington.edu.