Dear newspaper staff,
I’m sure this is true for everyone who
has to write one of these things, but I don’t know how to start. It’s hard to suddenly stop and look for meaning in something that you’ve been doing so habitually for four years. Or at least it’s hard to put that meaning to words. It’s like having to ex- plain why you love somebody. You know that you do, but it’s really hard to come up with a complete answer, something that includes that one time they picked you up at midnight and looked for a frozen yo- gurt place that was still open with you, or the way their voice sounds when they are excited.
But I guess the first thing I should say is that for four years, being in this club has been a meaningful constant among a lot of maddening little variables. I guess the latter is all high school really is. I’m lucky that I got to commit myself to something I really loved at Schreiber, and that the thing that I loved taught me so much. I’m not going to count the number of hours that I’ve spent in the pub room, but it’s a lot, and I wouldn’t trade those hours for anything.
There were a lot of new faces on staff this year, but I think that became an as- set. I heard interesting, thought-provok- ing ideas at each sections meeting, and I’m happy to conclude that The Schreiber Times does have a purpose.
Ms. Zarkh and Mr. Medico, thank you for putting up with us, and making sure that we didn’t burn the place down. But more importantly, thank you for your honesty, and for helping us make the newspaper better. I know that being at school on a Saturday afternoon is never ideal, but I think you’ve made sure that The Times staff recognizes the value of student journalism and good writing. I definitely do, at least. We also all think that you’re both really cool.
To my Managing and Copy Editors, thank you for somehow always knowing which Rachel I’m referring to. I’m so glad to have had you for every late night and early morning, and that you both put up with my early onset senioritis. Thanks for
getting things done.
I’m a little sentimental about the News
section, since I started there. I’m so happy that this year’s News section continued to put the “news” in newspaper. Thank you for your commitment to informed and in- depth coverage.
To the Opinions section, I was a little worried about you. But you got things done with two people, and you didn’t avoid controversy. You became comfort- able covering issues that the student body deserved to know about. And you did it with plenty of rational, truthful thought.
To the Features section, you definite- ly held your own in a section that has a reputation for being “fluffy.” I hope you learned from this experience, and that you’ll do even better things next year.
Now for the A&E section. Your nu- anced reviews were worth the late nights. It’s close, though. But I think that you made your section a lot better this year, and that you wrote well about things peo- ple want to read about, so I’m really proud of you guys.
Sports: I admittedly didn’t know that much about high school athletics going
into this year (read: I didn’t know any- thing about high school athletics), but I was really impressed by your coverage of local and national sports news. I’m sure that you guys will keep up the great work.
Graphics: you are probably the most social section of the newspaper, even if that means you socialize by yourselves at Smashburger. But the newspaper ended up looking really good this year, and I’m glad you were a part of it.
As for the photos section (Hi, Josh), it took a little work to get photos to every section on time, but you delivered with high quality, thoughtfully composed pho- tos.
Eli: I love your sweater.
As for the new people on staff that I don’t really know, you seem like really ca- pable individuals. (That’s why you have the positions that you do.) And I hope that you get as much out of this club as I did. Read the manual, ask a lot of ques- tions, and talk to people. It’s not as scary as it seems, and it will hopefully prepare you for even bigger challenges ahead.
Love, Ana