The Sandspur

Issue date: 4/24/09 Section: Opinions

Media Credit: Amanda Hampton Bummin: Sandspur Editor-in-Chief, Justin Braun (class of 2010), crashes on a bench after an all night Sandspur lay-out session.

Two years ago the name The Sandspur was synonymous with crap. Many students were not even aware that Rollins had a newspaper on campus, let alone the oldest college paper in Florida. And those who were aware of its existence considered the publication laughable at best. Today, however, The Sandspur is miles closer to credible, and well... at least people read it.

Being Editor-in-Chief of The Sandspur has been the most arduous yet rewarding task I have ever undertaken. At first, I was scared shitless. When the previous, inept co-editors graduated, they left me in charge of a staffless paper. I had no prior journalistic experience, but I found confidence in the fact that the paper could only improve from where it was.

The challenge I constantly faced was a lack of dedication and consistency on behalf of contributing writers. With no journalism class or major offered in the curriculum and without any help or contact at all from the newly established Critical Media and Cultural studies department, I was left with the near impossible task of convincing students to assign themselves "extra-curricular homework." Even after two years of experimenting with free food, monetary rewards and controversial stories in order to attract interest in writing for The Sandspur, we are still struggling to retain contributors.

Yet, despite the difficulties inherent to maintaining a newspaper at a small school, it has improved by leaps and bounds. I could not have asked for a more dedicated, caring and hilarious staff, to whom I attribute a majority of our success. Better company could not have been had while struggling to finish lay out at 3:00 a.m. on a Thursday morning. However, the main contributing factor to the great improvement of the publication is our kick-ass advisor, Stephanie Duesing. Her guidance, expertise and outstanding commitment ensured that we had the resources and advocacy needed to survive on this campus. I consider working with her the most valuable part of my time spent with The Sandspur. Good luck next year without her, as she is on her way to the next stage of her life in Chicago. I wish her the best of luck.

I would like to conclude this reflection of my tenured Sandspur experience with several advisory statements to both my remaining staff and the Rollins Community as a whole. First, read the friggin' Sandspur. It is free, everywhere, and full of humorous nuggets of information providing insight into the psyche of the student body. Seriously, with the way this economy is going, print media is going the way of the dinosaurs, so take advantage of it while it is still in existence. Second, be prepared to piss people off. Everyone loves a good controversy and they are itching to jump on any lack of discretion. Finally, do not take yourselves too seriously--this goes for everyone: staff, faculty and students. This is college and The Sandspur is a college newspaper, which is supposed to cater to the college mindset. Errors will be overlooked, jokes will be played, and most importantly, mistakes will be made. So, please keep in mind that this is all one big learning experience, preparing us for the so-called "real world." It is exponentially less catastrophic to display a lack of judgment while working for The Sandspur than to do so outside of the safety of the Rollins bubble.

Remember Rollins, keep it real, keep it clean and keep it evolving.

Thanks for the ride.

Justin
"JB, Jibs, Jubs, Jubby, Jaybles"
Braun
The Sandspur Editor-in-Chief

Page 1 of 1

Article Tools