Entering my freshman year at Stevens in 2019, it’s been an interesting journey. From coming in as a shy sports writer to a flurry of editing roles to being the confident writer I am today, The Stute has given me a platform to redefine myself not only as a writer, but as a person. I don’t want this to be my Stute autobiography, but I want this to inspire you to be confident in yourself.
Entering Stevens in 2019, I was writing about sports for a website where I wrote about a plethora of sports events. However, as I entered Stevens, where sports are not popular to be written about, my dad mentioned that I should be a part of the school newspaper and write about sports for them. Within a week, I met with the athletic director and would go on to write two articles per week for my first semester of Stute writing. Additionally, as I became more consistent and a better writer, I became the sports editor. It was an extremely special time where I felt so loved by the Stute leadership, and I was doing something great.
With the help of the leadership of the time, I became Digital Manager and integrated myself more within the organization. As this was during COVID, The Stute became completely digital, and new articles were to be advertised each day, which added to daily stress. This became continually difficult, and the Editor-in-Chief of the time vacated their role due to illness.
However, as a result, I was voted to be Managing Editor, secondary to the new Editor-in-Chief of the time. The Stute was my home and I was teaching and training new members on a daily basis. It was home, and I was creating new articles each week for Stute members to take while keeping everything balanced.
Three months later, The Stute performed elections again for Managing Editor. I was supported by the Editor-In-Chief of the time, and I hoped to be voted for a second term. Instead, I lost. That stung. I felt lost within an organization that I thought did not want me to help run them. However, a loss or a defeat doesn’t own you, even if it is the only thing you think about.
I became treasurer of a different club (Stevens Christian Fellowship) after losing the election and stayed on as News Editor. I did my best where I could and worked to help those who needed it. I completed my senior year as an opinion writer. The Stute was and has been a very strong organization, and those that continued it after I entered a minor role have done a great job.
My time with The Stute has taught me a lot about what it means to write and bring your thoughts to life through writing. I have had teachers and students who have seen my writing and called me out in class just to say I did a good job capturing certain meanings. I would have loved to dedicate more of my time and appreciation to lead this organization, but sometimes just writing is good enough.
You are stronger than that defeat in your life. That defeat doesn’t own you. You must let go of it because it just wasn’t meant for you. Build your own path even though the unexpected gets in the way. And I did.
