Dear The Stute,
Even before orientation, The Stute has always been a constant in my college experience. Starting at Stute Weekend, where I met some of my closest friends, to being a writer to becoming managing editor and then finally becoming Editor-in-Chief, my journey at The Stute is coming to an end. Now, after a year and a half, it is time for a change and new leadership.
Writing my last column is surreal. Yes, I found writing an editorial every week to be frustrating and often struggled to find something to write about. But now that this is my last one, I look back and I feel like I just got the hang of this whole editorial thing and now I have to stop. I will definitely miss having such a unique platform to write about things that matter to me and having an opportunity to have an impact on people.
The Stute has changed so much since I was a freshman. We used to cover mostly club events, with perhaps an occasional faculty/staff interview, or cover some sort of larger scale event. Now we have cut back a lot on club pic and blurbs, which used to be our bread and butter. Instead, we cover SGA news, changes in departments, and whatever else is happening at Stevens. Sure, this has angered a lot of people from the SGA, faculty/staff, and various clubs.
At times, people’s outright hatred towards the newspaper was upsetting. After all, we never write articles with malicious intent, more because we feel it is important for people to know the information. And yes, sometimes we don’t go about articles the proper way and miscommunication happens, and some people don’t trust The Stute and refuse to talk to us.
Yes, all of that is really frustrating and upsetting. That being said, we also get positive feedback from the Stevens community to keep writing the articles that we are writing, to hold people accountable. You can never make everyone happy, and I also don’t think you should try to. But, I hope that in the future, The Stute and the entire Stevens community can build a relationship of respect, even if it’s not love and adoration (which is totally fine with us). We want to use our platform to “write Stevens history” and to bring up issues that we feel are important, to bring around change and make Stevens better.
So, to the future e-board, remember that criticism will be coming from left and right, but just keep getting better and don’t shy away from your mistakes or criticism and do whatever you think is best. To the always present critics, instead of spreading hatred and rumors about The Stute (you know who you are), instead reach out to the organization and voice your concerns, share you criticism.
Stepping down as editor is definitely bittersweet for me. I don’t envy whoever comes next; it’s a thankless job, and the better you do the more thankless it’s gonna become. But don’t lose your love for the organization and all the crazy, wonderful people in it. (That being said, these crazy, wonderful people will drive you insane, but it’s just a part of their charm.) I keep joking that I’ve had this power for so long, now what am I gonna do? So I’ve got a couple of days to become dictator, and turn my democratic ways around. It will be a little bit of a challenge to step back and let the new e-board take charge. The Stute has been my baby for so long, and I will miss it dearly. But that being said, I am also excited to see what life is like outside of The Stute.
I will look back fondly on those stressful, late Thursday night layouts (also known as the reason why Maryia lost most of her sanity). I won’t be looking back fondly on the bloopers channel that would stress me out every Friday. I have really enjoyed my time on The Stute and all of the opportunities that it has brought me. I am so proud to be a part of this organization and publication. But most of all, I’m gonna miss the time spent with my wonderful staff and e-board. Y’all are wonderful and I mean that, even though I would occasionally yell at you. I’m not planning on being a stranger, and I hope you aren’t either. I’m really excited to see all the amazing things you will do in the future.
With all my love,
Maryia
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