Staffers Say Goodbye to The Santa Clara

Editor-in-Chief Farewell

During my first week as Editor-in-Chief of The Santa Clara newspaper, I locked myself out of my office on a Thursday night. I didn’t have my keys, my access card or my phone. Seeing no other option, I ended up climbing through the ceiling to break into my own office so I could keep doing my job. It was one of the most terrifying yet exhilarating moments of my young life.

So if there’s one word that can describe my entire experience with The Santa Clara, it’s clearly this: unexpected. I’m a math major with a lone year of high school journalism experience under my belt. The last thing I expected to do in college was work for another newspaper for three years, let alone become Editor-in-Chief.

And yet, here I am. I accidentally tripped and fell into the wonderful rabbit hole that is Santa Clara’s student-run newspaper.

From climbing through ceilings to thrilling staff retreats at the beach, I have had my fair share of adventure over the past three years. I have panicked about failed stories more times than I can count. I have spent many a Wednesday night in the windowless basement of the Benson Memorial Center, telling stories about the people in our community and what matters to them most.

I’m not an overly sentimental or social person, but I highly value the friendships I made working for this paper. I’m proud to say I’m leaving it in capable hands, and I hope any future editors have as great of a time at The Santa Clara as I did.

Vishakha Joshi is a senior mathematics major.

Managing Editor Farewell

Ever since I won first place in a statewide Texas storytelling competition in third grade, I knew I wanted to be a news reporter. Reporting the news is in my blood, and it is what I am meant to do in life.

The Santa Clara has opened so many doors for me. It set me on the straight and narrow path to making my dreams come true and achieving my career goals.

I started out as a news reporter my sophomore year, was hired as the news editor my junior year and went on to be managing editor for my senior year. I reported on anything and everything from guns being pulled at frat parties, to students launching campaigns to make the world a better place. Chasing the stories, no matter how big or small, always gives me a rush of adrenaline.

The staff at The Santa Clara is what continues to keep me motivated, even today. The gleam I see in a reporter’s eye when they nail a story reminds me of why I do this. I am so proud of our team for improving the newspaper this year through boosting online readership, creating graphics for almost every story and fact checking and editing  every single sentence before it’s printed. I am extremely grateful to have had the opportunity to  report the news at Santa Clara for three years, and I look forward to watching next year’s staff set the standards for The Santa Clara even higher. Farewell, and thanks for reading our newspaper!

Mallory Miller is a senior communication and environmental studies double major.

Slot Editor Farewell

Around 9 p.m. last Wednesday, the fire alarm screeched through Benson. For the editors still in the newsroom, it was an annoyance we didn’t foresee during publication night. It was standing outside in the dark with a group of fellow editors, though, as the alarm wailed on, that I realized the greatest benefit of my year at The Santa Clara.

When I applied for a job at the newspaper last spring, I didn’t know what to expect. I had never worked for a newspaper before and was surrounded by new people. As an introvert, it was a somewhat terrifying prospect. Looking back, though, it was the people I got to work with — those outside with me during the fire alarm and those who had finished for the week — that became the best part of the job. I feel extremely fortunate that I was able to collaborate with nine other editors and an extended staff who opened my eyes to dedication and teamwork.

So thanks, my friends. Thanks for the exposure to different aspects of the university, and for the nights filled with pizza and ice cream that more than made up for the sleepy morning classes the next day. Thanks, too, for the adventures that took us everywhere from Swig Hall to San Francisco; the support for whatever outside project I was stressed about each Wednesday; and most of all, the constant outpouring of love and utter sass. Working for The Santa Clara has completely enriched my senior year, and I’ll miss it all.

Emilie White is a senior English and Spanish double major.

Scene Editor Farewell

I am absolutely blessed to have had the opportunities that I’ve had here at Santa Clara. I come from a small agricultural town with a high immigrant population and a low level of education. I’ve seen how the world can disregard and dehumanize people. I know what it’s like to belong to a group that society overlooks and deems unworthy in many ways.

So when I came across journalism, I saw it as an opportunity to do something for the greater good. Journalism allows me to give a voice to those who are voiceless. While the Scene section publishes stories  about lighthearted subjects such as university concerts and Halloween costumes, there is still the opportunity to bring more serious issues to light. I get to tell people’s personal and important life stories. I get to call out the university administration when they’re thinking with their checkbooks instead of their morals. I get to even the playing field for groups who are at a disadvantage and allow them to fight for themselves.

I hope that this is only the beginning and that I will continue to grow as a journalist, a writer and an advocate. I don’t know where the future will take me, but I will keep on writing, and I hope that all of you will keep reading. Thank you for everything, Broncos. I truly am the luckiest man alive.

Eddie Solis Jr. is a senior English and communication double major.

Photo Editor Farewell

I remember being asked my freshman year by the then photo editor, Michael Erkelens (who was also the photo editor for The Redwood), if he could publish a tennis photograph that I had taken for The Redwood. The next day, I saw my image in hundreds of newspapers around the entire campus. At that moment, I knew that I wanted to see my work published on a weekly basis, but what I didn’t know was that I was about to embark on one of my most memorable experiences at Santa Clara.

After working as a photographer my sophomore year, I became photo editor my junior and senior year. I’ve had the honor to work with a very diverse group of talented people that not only cared about journalism, but also taught me the importance of teamwork.

Long nights and endless hours were spent in the basement of Benson every Wednesday, but work never felt like work. The moment you walked into the office, people were laughing, playing music, cracking up jokes and having free dinner! Pizza was a very common dinner in the newsroom, but we couldn’t afford dessert, so I brought a bottle of honey to the newsroom. I encouraged everyone to try honey on their pizza crusts, which was the perfect dose of sugar to keep us going.

As my time comes to an end, I couldn’t be more thankful for every past and present staff member from The Santa Clara that has truly made my time at Santa Clara one of the most remarkable experiences.

Malu Veltze is a senior studio art major.