After working at The Sandspur for four years, meeting new people, interviewing multiple campus members, and celebrating the paper’s 125th anniversary last year, I am so grateful for all of the opportunities and memories that The Sandspur has brought me.
From our staff, both past and present, I witnessed a level of passion and commitment that I had never seen before. However, our goal is never to get recognition for ourselves. We hope to bring important information to our peers, bring awareness to important issues, and celebrate unique individuals, clubs, and moments on campus.
At times, journalism takes a lot of bravery and stepping outside of our comfort zones, but I have learned its importance and the role it plays in holding officials accountable and acting on behalf of its readership.
Since its start in 1894, The Sandspur has allowed students to take part in preserving and rewriting the history of Rollins College. I can now say that my name will go down in the history books (or at least the bounded editions in the college’s archives). I am so proud to be a part of the Sandspurians group that extends 126 years.
To next year’s staff, I am 100 percent confident in all the leaps and bounds you will make toward covering Rollins’ history and striving for a better future.
This year, we were able to do it all with the support and careful leadership of our Editor-in-Chief Alex, and I am so thankful that we were always each other’s greatest supporters in this process.
Here are some final thank-you’s:
Thank you to Heather for bringing a fighting spirit and comedy to the newsroom each week. Hannah— for always being a comforting presence during the long editing days. Zoe— for being a phone call away and never afraid to tackle what we put in front of you. Trinideé— you were the absolute MVP of the 2019-2020 news year.
Henri— you single-handedly brought our sports section to life and recruited other gems to help you along the way. Clara and Donna— as our new staff writers, you handled your articles with enthusiasm. To all of the other writers who contributed throughout the year— thank you.
Thank you to Francisco, Caitlyn, Noah, Kelsey, Pat, and Alyssa, who helped design the print issue and created graphics each week, and thank you to our copy editors, Nancy, Bianca, and Gabby.
Taylor, our delivery assistant, Sophia, our social media assistant, and Allison, our photo editor— you all helped bring the paper to life and shared it with the rest of campus, so thank you.
I also want to thank Dana, Leslie, and Greg for their commitment to our team and our journalistic development. Leslie, I will never forget our trip to New York, and I am so grateful for your guidance.
Most importantly, thank you to our readers. Without you, we would have no reason to do all of this.
Sincerely,
Maura
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