Rosa Venditti, Editor-in-Chief
My involvement and experience with the News has been multifaceted to say the least. From contributing an article every-other-week to answering the “don’t you work for the school newspaper” question at every party, my relationship with the News and the community it serves has evolved over time.
While this year as editor-in-chief has brought many personal joys and many more personal struggles, my experience here is irrelevant in comparison to The University News’ value to the UD community.
We pride ourselves on our student-led, student-run newspaper. Without direct management from administration, the News serves as the independent platform for students to embrace their community holistically. From breaking news on developments like dorm renovations, to philosophical and theological debates and reflections, to celebration of art and sports, the news publishes articles written by students, for students.
While serving the whole community, the news is a community in itself. Between writers, copy editors, layout editors and photographers, the team is composed of over three dozen students.
Over time, the news provided me with a sense of identity and purpose which heightened my experience as a UD student. This experience is not isolated to myself.
The News staff writes not just for the sake of the community, but for their own sake. In times where I doubted my ability or faltered in my motivation, I thought of our freshmen writers and the way their eyes lit up when they explained how their work at the News enlivened them, gave them a sense of importance and involvement, allowed them to develop skills, and ultimately brought them joy.
I have been utterly humbled to serve these students. My position tends to be a thankless one, but as long as I’ve adequately served the staff and the UD community in some capacity, the thanks is not needed. The result is thanks enough.
Rosa will be graduating with a B.A. in politics. Following graduation, she will work as a senior risk management analyst.
Kate Frediani, News Editor
On Wednesdays, my favorite place to sit on campus in the afternoon is the Cap Bar. Not only do I love the flurry of activity as people come through to get their coffee, talk to a tutor or procrastinate homework with their friends, but I love to keep my eye on the newsstand and watch my peers grab their fresh copies of The University News.
I love seeing copies of the paper strewn across the tables in the Haggar foyer or Braniff. One time, I found a copy in the stacks of the library while I was looking for a book for an essay and it made me smile.
I love when people tell me that they picked up the paper to do the sudoku but ended up reading the whole thing. I chuckle when I hear people debating over the commentary pieces in the Cap Bar or discussing the newly published news pieces.
In those moments, I know that the work we put in each week is worth it.
UD, you trusted me to ensure that the news that has been published this year was true and that the journalism was ethical and well-rounded, and I am honored. This position has pushed me to grow in many ways and I am thankful for the team that I had the privilege to work with.
As I sit and write this letter, I’ve deleted many, many paragraphs because I am not sure that I am ready to say goodbye to the incredible members of our team who are leaving in just about a week.
To the editors who are graduating, it has been a joy to work with you for the past nine months. You all have taught me how to be a better editor, journalist and person. I am thankful for all of your hard work and dedication to the paper, it has been an inspiration to me. I will miss you all dearly.
To Rudy, I am incredibly grateful to have been able to work with you these past three years. When I first sat down in practicum my freshman year, I had no idea how to be a journalist. Thank you for giving me the opportunity to learn and grow as a copy editor, journalist and news editor. We are going to miss you a lot next year.
Kate will be next year’s Editor-in-Chief, while completing her B.A. in Spanish.
Libby Regnerus, Commentary Editor
Like most of the best things in my life, I stumbled into work at The University News. I have always inclined toward writing as a solace, the surest way to say what I mean. There’s something about the turn of a phrase while I type or put pen to paper that elicits my truest feelings in a way that the pressure of speaking stifles.
When I first turned to the newspaper, I sought this sort of outlet — a place to express my fiery opinions and carefully work out my thoughts. Although our classes too make space for intellectual emoting, one cannot critique contemporary culture while discussing the merits of Odysseus.
Yet, what started in what was perhaps frustration opened doors for creativity and connectedness. In many ways, the news maintains a great responsibility to tell the stories of our community. Picking up articles in a variety of sections brought me into contact with issues, professors and peers that I did not expect and stretched my versatility.
Later on as an editor, I have enjoyed the inner workings of publication and sculpting of articles. Although I don’t intend to enter journalism, the task of editing has been particularly fulfilling to me.
One’s work as an editor often goes unseen, for the final product is not attributed to you. But helping writers to perfect their craft and challenging them to produce high quality work week after week has been a joy. A writer’s success and brilliance, even though not properly your own, is what makes the job worth doing.
Speaking the Truth gracefully and compellingly is the ultimate goal of our liberal education. I am supremely grateful for the newspaper for opening the space for me to practice this skill, and I am hopeful that future generations of undergraduates will continue to boldly write and civilly discourse in her pages.
Libby is graduating with a B.A. in Philosophy. After graduation, she will pursue a PhD in philosophy at Baylor University.
Elsa Feltl, Arts & Culture Editor
“As far as on-campus jobs go, there are far worse ones than working for the newspaper.”
An upperclassman said this to me when I first got involved with the newspaper. I actually can’t remember who, and I’m sure they meant it politely, but it makes me laugh a little now.
I have worked for the newspaper since I was a lowly freshman contributing writer. It seemed like a fun way to get involved and capitalize on my affinity for writing. I had no clue just how much went on behind the scenes of practicum meetings and article writing, and I had absolutely no idea just how much this job and community of writers would come to mean to me.
As the editor of the Arts & Culture section, I have been fortunate to cover so many aspects of, well, our culture. From media reviews, coverage of the theater department, the Art Village, and the library, articles from the Rome campus and, my personal favorite, the weekly Human of UD, this year has shown me that the well of our culture will not run dry. I love this section. I love that my job is to talk to people about what they love to do and find people with interesting, otherwise unknown, stories.
This year was my second year on staff and my third year of involvement with the paper. This year has been, thus far, my favorite year at the paper. That might be because of our girl gang of editors. From our incredible editor-in-chief to each section editor, every member of our team has displayed an inspiring amount of creativity and determination in bringing every issue to life with innovation and good humor.
I’m incredibly grateful for the leadership and kindness the seniors on our staff have demonstrated. I am also grateful to our program director, Rudy Bush, for all the lessons he taught us and his passion for authentic journalism.
Finally, thank you to all who have been a part of the paper this year; if it was a single article you sent off into the void of our inboxes hoping to be heard, or if you dutifully wrote for us every single week, there aren’t enough words to explain just how important you all are. This paper would be nothing without its writers.
Elsa is pursuing her B.A. in English and will reprise her role as Arts and Culture editor.
Emily Grant, Sports Editor
I stumbled onto The University News as a contributing writer during my
sophomore year. I had no experience in journalism, no knowledge of how to write articles, and was not particularly clued into campus.
I then became a semi-regular contributing writer for the newspaper, writing across all five sections. I deeply enjoyed this experience —and the cash that came with it — particularly because of the people you get to talk to while out reporting.
The News gave me the opportunity to meet and interact with people that I would not have otherwise spoken to. The paper allowed me to meet a bunch of cool people and write about a bunch of cool things, and I am grateful.
As an editor, I have been thrown into the editing and logistical side of things which is much different than skipping about campus, interviewing people and tracking down facts.
There’s a whole lot that goes into getting the paper out every Wednesday that isn’t just about writing. There’s a whole process including editing, layout, photography and distribution.
I’ve deeply appreciated getting to work on this paper for the last year in the editing capacity. It’s a much different experience than simply writing articles, but I still got to meet some cool people like my fellow editors and our Journalism Director, Rudy Bush.
Emily will be graduating with a B.A. in business. She will work as a paralegal after graduation.
Amanda Heinzler, Community Editor
I think Shakespeare had it right when he wrote that parting is such sweet sorrow. As the end of my final year at UD approaches, I cannot help but feel bittersweet.
While I look forward to the adventures to come, I will certainly miss being surrounded by our crazy, compassionate, and clever community. From the wild escapades of Charity Week and the traditions of Groundhog, to prayer intentions being sent out in massive group chats and intellectual debates in the condos, I’ve found that UD certainly lives up to our tagline — the Catholic University for Independent Thinkers.
Being able to celebrate our unique campus culture as the Community Section Editor has been a fantastic experience this year. Whether it was bugging my alumni friends to let me write articles on their post-graduate lives, putting up flyers for Groundhog Guidance, or learning about fun family traditions and campus artists, each week I grew to appreciate new wonderful people who make up UD — especially those that I got the pleasure of working with on The University News.
It’s hard to believe that this was both my first and last year with The University News. I was a rather late recruit you could say. I’ve enjoyed the process and loved working with this team. Thank you to my fellow section and copy editors for helping me learn the ropes, and especially thank you for having faith in me and my sometimes wacky ideas.
Many of us editors may be graduating this year, but I know that the future of our campus newspaper — and our community in general — is bright. I cannot wait to see what ideas you all come up with next!
Thank you all for being a part of my UD community.
Amanda will be graduating with a B.A. in English. She will teach history and English at Frassati Catholic High School.
