What it means to be an Editor

By Lauren Kelley
April 22, 2021

I can’t believe it’s already been 2 years.

I was always told by my peers that Journalism was a tough course. Since it was required for my major, I decided to try not to worry about it so much. Little did I know that my time writing for The Loquitur was going to consume a huge part of my college experience.

I’ve always loved writing. I used to write poetry as a kid and always excelled in English at school. When I learned that taking Journalism meant writing for the school newspaper, I got kind of excited. I felt like I finally had a chance to put my name into something at Cabrini.

My front page article. Photo from Loquitur Archive

For my first story, I covered the unveiling of the new dining space on campus. I remember being terrified, as a commuter student, to have to walk up to strangers and ask questions for interview material. Most people were very nice and willing to help, which I appreciated. I went on for the next few weeks writing news pieces until I was assigned a Perspectives story.

Writing for the Perspectives section means you’re going to get personal or opinionated. It’s where you share your perspective on a certain issue. I’ve always been very outspoken about what I believe in so I thought that this would be the perfect section for me. I wrote my first Perspectives story about my struggles with anxiety and depression.

Titled “My two closest friends: Anxiety and Depression,” this piece was both liberating and terrifying to write and share with the world. The response that I received on this story was overwhelming. As part of your grade for The Loquitur, you have to share your work to your social media platforms. Upon sharing my article about my mental health issues, I instantly had tons of comments, likes, messages and shares.

So many people related to me. So many people did not know that I struggled in the ways that I do. So many people thanked me for helping to break the stigma around mental health. This piece made the front page of our Mental Health Awareness themed print edition of the newspaper. All of this made me feel so proud.

It was at this time that I considered that maybe Journalism was going to be more than just a box to check for my major. I decided that Perspectives was my favorite section, and that I wanted to apply to be an Editor for the following year. I am so glad I got the part.

Working with my fellow Editors on The Loquitur has been quite the experience, to say the least. My team and I had to jump through so many obstacles to learn how we were going to best coach and teach our student writers via Zoom instead of in person like we were trained to do.

Being an Editor has taught me so much. I’ve learned how to manage and schedule my time after taking two years of Journalism. I have learned how to work as a team to complete goals. I have learned how to be a mentor. I have become a better writer.

The Instagram post that announced the 2020-2021 Loquitur Editorial Staff. Photo from Loquitur Instagram

I am so thankful to my professor, Jerry Zurek, better known as JZ, for suggesting that I apply to be an Editor after praising me for my work as a student writer in my first year.

Originally, being an Editor for The Loquitur was just supposed to be a resume booster for me. But it has become so much more than that. Thanks to The Loquitur, I now have a portfolio of work that I am proud of. I have learned how to expand my network through interviews and created so many lasting friendships working with my Loquitur team.

If you are a Journalism student reading this- apply for an Editor position. It will be a lot of hard work with a lot of late nights, but I promise it is so worth it. It’s going to be weird next semester when I don’t have a Journalism course for the first time in two years. I have grown so much and I am so thankful.

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Lauren Kelley

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