On my high school graduation day, if somebody had told me I’d be editor-in-chief of my university’s student newspaper I probably would have laughed. Not because I didn’t have the capabilities or desire, I just never saw myself in a leadership role. Here I am, two weeks from donning a cap and gown for the second time, writing as the editor of this paper for the last time to say farewell and thank you to a talented staff that I’ve come to rely on heavily over the past year.
To say I didn’t want this position is an understatement—watching the previous editors under so much stress really deterred me. Looking back on everything, I realize now that I’m a completely different person from a year ago when I agreed to take this position, let alone since my freshman year.
Stormy Knight
Editor-In-Chief
On my high school graduation day, if somebody had told me I’d be editor-in-chief of my university’s student newspaper I probably would have laughed. Not because I didn’t have the capabilities or desire, I just never saw myself in a leadership role. Here I am, two weeks from donning a cap and gown for the second time, writing as the editor of this paper for the last time to say farewell and thank you to a talented staff that I’ve come to rely on heavily over the past year.
To say I didn’t want this position is an understatement—watching the previous editors under so much stress really deterred me. Looking back on everything, I realize now that I’m a completely different person from a year ago when I agreed to take this position, let alone since my freshman year.
But my point in writing this is not to announce how much I’ve developed during the last nine semesters—it’s to say thank you to every person listed in the staff box on this page—past, present, and future. Without the support and dedication you’ve all demonstrated to me, The Setonian would not exist. This newspaper surely is not a one, or even two-man operation. A healthy newspaper staff represents the essence of teamwork. If one person falls short of their duties, the whole paper suffers.
My goal over the last year was to establish a functioning staff to ensure future candidates for the editor-in-chief position will want to take it on. I remember accepting this position, with visions of premature grey hair.
The fact is, the issue you’re reading was complied without me, from organizational meeting to printer. Of course I couldn’t be entirely removed from the process, but my goal was to remove myself enough so I knew that The Setonian will continue on successfully after I graduate.
Of course a portion of this staff was formed before I became editor, but over the past year the staff has turned into a well-oiled machine. Every section has a dedicated editor. The editorial board demonstrates care and concern toward informing you, and I ask that you all communicate with the staff members of this newspaper in order to ensure you’re recieving the information you want and need.
Yes we work on this paper because the majority of us are new media journalism majors and we “have to,” but you’d never get that vibe in a meeting or during production (unless the Macs are causing headaches or an article is past deadline). The staff delights in conjuring up ideas for the content of this paper, and there’s never a dull moment during production week.
So to the editors, thank you. I’m confident that this paper will continue to impress the Seton Hill community in your hands. The editors would have no job, though, if not for the writers. Going into this semester I genuinely thought this paper would need to decrease in pages due to a drastic drop in staff members. So to everybody who took on multiple assignments, snapped photos to run alongside your articles, copy-edited until the words ran together, clicked mouse buttons an infinite amount of times, and dealt with the mass amounts of e-mails from me, thank you from the bottom of my heart.
It’s difficult being one person responsible for nearly 30 people, but you all made it an easy process. So for all those times you thought you deserved a thank-you and I overlooked it, this is for you. I did try to send my gratitude, but never got to as often as I’d have liked to. There was only so much time I had to spend e-mailing appreciation, and I regret that I couldn’t spend more time with you all.
I apologize for those typos that weren’t caught, or if your name was incorrect in the staff boxOn my high school graduation day, if somebody had told me I’d be editor-in-chief of my university’s student newspaper I probably would have laughed. Not because I didn’t have the capabilities or desire, I just never saw myself in a leadership role. Here I am, two weeks from donning a cap and gown for the second time, writing as the editor of this paper for the last time to say farewell and thank you to a talented staff that I’ve come to rely on heavily over the past year.
To the readers, look forward to a fresh array of topics and aesthetics in The Setonian next semester. Though there will always be parking to write about, and eggings to read about in the police blotter, the next issue will surely see some changes under a new editor, or your photos were attributed to someone else. To the next editor, don’t beat yourself up over issues like these. It’s better to catch them of course, but nobody is perfect and this is a student newspaper. Enrich your experience by learning from these mistakes.