Montage editor says thanks and farewell
Collin Reischman
– Managing Editor –
Alas, it is here: My final column at The Montage. In a few short weeks, I’ll have graduated and will begin the final steps into cementing my future at Webster University, which was kind enough to admit me, and the student paper there, The Journal, of which I will be sports editor next year.
If you, the reader, will permit, I’d like to break a few protocols here and say something dangerously personal.
First, to our faculty advisor, Shannon Philpott; I owe much to you. Shannon’s patience and selflessness with regards to her students make her a great advisor; and her knowledge of her subject, and her passion for it, make her a great journalist.
As my advisor, unofficial guru, and substitute therapist and parent, Shannon has inspired me to be better. For that, all of her students should be grateful.
Carlos Restrepo, editor-in-chief of The Montage, will depart with me to Webster as well, taking the position of news editor. Carlos’ legacy will remain for some time after he has gone. As the face of The Montage, Carlos has excelled at keeping administrators in check, keeping the newsroom fun, and always keeping the peace.
To our other departing editors, we see only more success stories. Andrea Royals, current news editor, will soon be working at the SLU student newspaper, taking the same position there. I have no doubt, given the poise and diligence she has shown, that she will do great things there. To Julie Wells, senior copy editor, who will begins a very different chapter of her life when she weds next month, we see only bright things ahead.
Julie has been what all great copy editors are: shrewd, smart, bookish, utterly fantastic at keeping the paper clean, and professional, regardless of the content they have to work with.
Anna Nowotony, our in-depth editor, ends her time at The Montage as well. Anna’s passion for design and her understanding of visual storytelling and the elements and intricacies of graphics merely reflect the level of success she will surely have in the professional market.
If it’s not her vast talent that gets her employed, her warm personality and level-headed temperament surely will.
While Restrepo, Nowotony, Royals, Wells and this writer all depart after more than two years of work, many a talented people will take our places.
Many of our current editors and staffers will remain next year, willing to carry on the work of keeping the students informed, the administration honest, and the campus exciting.
Whether it’s the pile of awards we raked in, the administrators we dogged for incompetence, the student we infuriated with our editorials, or the countless moments of total levity in our newsroom, I know that this was time well spent.
If the current departing staff shows us anything, it shows that The Montage is a place of advancement where good students, writers, photographers and designers can become even better.
I have complete confidence that The Montage will continue to see success; that those who work on its staff shall continue to prosper in their chosen fields; and that more great work is to come.
Those who walk through the newsroom door need no wishes of good luck from us, for they will have the benefit of being a part of one of the best student organizations on any campus: student media.
Keep writing, keep caring, and, as always, keep ‘em honest.
