As a 34-year-old, newly divorced mom of two, I felt quite intimidated to take on the role of editor-in-chief. I worried if I had time or energy to take on a big role in the paper. There was the fear that I wouldn’t be able to do a good job.
Some may see the newspaper on racks around campus, they might read the paper, they might see them in classrooms, but unless you work on the paper you have no idea how much heart and soul gets poured into making that paper.
There’s work, interviews, phone calls, photography and writing. Sometimes people get back to you for interviews and sometimes they don’t. There are deadlines, critiques and press nights to design the paper. It’s a lot of work, but it’s also a lot of fun.
I felt extremely honored to be given the task of redesigning the newspaper to create a more modern brand. I wanted to create front pages that made students and faculty want to pick up the newspaper and read the pages.
When I started my journey as editor-in-chief, I thought journalism was the place I wanted to be in my future career. However, with each page I designed and through designing The Siren, I realized my calling is design. I discovered my dream while working on the Foghorn News.
The editors I had to work with this year were absolutely amazing. Our staff wasn’t huge this semester, but the editors made up for the lack of contributors. They put in many hours, taking on many stories and did it without complaining. Well, at least not to my face. They have supported me, backed me up and even stepped up when I was going through some personal issues. The paper could not have been as good as it has been without them. Thank you editors for being amazing individuals and dependable.
Thank you to Scott Beckett and Robert Muilenburg, who sometimes made me want to scream. They sometimes made me want to cry, but mostly they encouraged me. I have learned so much about writing, editing, photography and journalism from my advisers. There were arguments and laughter over stories and photos, but in the end they always made it known that the paper was the students’ newspaper.
As I end my journey as editor-in-chief, it’s not a goodbye. I plan on working with the paper and The Siren as a designer. I want to pursue my passion and pass on the editor-in-chief position to an amazing editor. I know whoever he or she is will do a great job at keeping the Foghorn the paper it is today or making it even better.
In the end, my fears were just irrational thoughts. I pushed past them and with a strong team was able to create newspapers that I am proud to say I helped create. I hope you all continue to read and support our student-run newspaper! Because it’s not just the staff’s paper, but it’s yours too!
