Staff sign-off: Matt Leonard
Illustration by Emma Taggert
As a transfer student I came to Richmond knowing just one person on campus — my cousin. Similarly, when I came to VCU five semesters ago there was just one organization that I wanted to join — the Commonwealth Times.
Thus, through meetings, productions and late-night office sessions I quickly became part of another family — the dysfunctional newspaper team — because nothing brings together a group of college students like the crushing anxiety of a quickly approaching deadline in a windowless room.
Starting out as a contributing writer I was intimidated by my editors and the other writers who all seemed to know so much more than I did. They used words like “lede” and left notes on my stories telling me it wasn’t quite what they were looking for. Regardless, I looked up to them and took their advice to heart. With my coworkers as the catalyst, my passion for news and writing grew each and every day.
Frankly, I never thought I would devote myself so fully to something so stressful. I was writing two to three stories a week and was always worried about a deadline. But the reward was immense and worth it.
As I prepare to graduate (in a week!) I realize my time with the CT has prepared me more for the world of journalism than any of my classes.
There are no classes where you will write as much as you do for the school paper. There are no classes where your peers will critique you as heavily as they do at the school paper. And there are certainly no classes where you’ll become such good friends with your boss that one day you wake up and realize they’re suddenly living on your couch.
As I have been interviewing for jobs and internships throughout the last month, I go into conversations knowing I have the skill sets to work at these places. I’ve done these jobs before. And I’ve done them with the best group of people I could have asked for.
The appreciation I have for my coworkers is immeasurable. This year I have been able to count on them every week. They give up their weekend, all weekend, every weekend, just to crank out a paper we all know most of you use as napkins in Shafer.
I can only hope at the end of my coworkers’ college careers they look back on their time in our windowless office with the same level of gratitude I do now.
