As this paper is released across campus today, the power of the 110th masthead goes with it; now, looking back at the past year filled with failure, triumph, sleep deprivation, and coffee, we’ve become nostalgic and bittersweet.
In the span of twelve months, we launched a new website, expanded advertising, created workshops for new writers, improved printing, and bolstered finances. We also made smaller changes to the newspaper — such as increasing page size — that we hope you’ve noticed, whether consciously or not.
Despite the amount that we have accomplished, it would be disingenuous to imply that we couldn’t have done more, or that our tenure as editors has been completely rosy. We’ve spent too many hours debating with each other and too few sleeping. We’ve had our moments of celebration, but we’ve made many mistakes along the way. Each week, the correction box serves as a challenge for us to strive towards perfection, while knowing we’ll always fall short of it. Though we are a high school publication, we push ourselves not to settle for mediocrity, but rather to strive to bring each issue to new heights.
Of course, we couldn’t have done this without help. Our two advisers, Mr. Mike Peed and Ms. Cathryn Stout, play instrumental roles in the day-to-day functions of the paper, along with the many interviewees (especially those like Mr. James Stanley) who lend us their time and wisdom. And, of course, the heart of the publication lies in our peers — both those who contribute and those who read. Without you, we wouldn’t have a newspaper.
From the perils of junior spring to the anxiety of senior fall to the languidness of senior winter, we have always found solace in The Choate News. Thank you to the editors who came before us and who will come after us, to the students who read our words, and to the administration who trusts this publication — for collectively giving this group of a dozen newspaper nerds a voice.
Our first editorial, published last spring, was titled “Walking a Line.” In a sense, we have done just that: we’ve enjoyed our time and celebrated our successes while examining ways to improve; we’ve pushed the envelope while respecting some boundaries; and we’ve maintained tradition while welcoming productive change.
The Choate News should continue to evolve and improve with time; it is our sincere hope that the publication we leave today is not the same as the one we come back to in one, five, ten, or fifty years. We have witnessed the newspaper’s profound and humbling power firsthand, and we can only imagine what the next 110 years will entail.
