Elected Targum board taps into old, new experiences
The Daily Targum elected its 143rd editorial board Friday, and though the new board is not completely filled yet, the staff is full of hopes and aspirations of improving the newspaper overall, while still continuing some of Targum's traditions.
The Veteran
Coming into the office as a first-year student eager for a byline, Mary Diduch went from a contributing writer to an associate news editor in less than a year. She eventually became Mary, managing editor of the world, and now Mary, editor-in-chief of the Targum.
"I really have seen it all," said Diduch, a School of Arts and Sciences junior. "People have loved us and people have hated us, so I hope that I can take all of those experiences and repeat what we've done well and avoid what we haven't."
Managing Mogul
Once known as the design master, Diduch recruited Taylere Peterson as the design editor last term. Now a School of Arts and Sciences junior, she is taking her skills in design and journalism to the next level as managing editor and bridging the two to create a better newspaper.
"I'm looking forward to working with Mary. We talked a lot about improving the paper and making it so that people want to pick it up and read it more," she said.
Small and Mighty
After editorial stole her from business, Kristine Rosette Enerio went from being a new writer to University editor and now news editor. She plans to revamp the front page by tying national issues to University students.
"I also want more investigative stories, and I want to look into issues that people don't think about too much on the surface," said Enerio, a School of Arts and Sciences junior. "I'm really excited to be news editor and extend my reach beyond the University."
All in the Family
Keeping the same traditions from last term, the sports desk has two editors returning to the same position and one dedicated desk assistant moving up to associate sports editor. Commonly referred to as a proud dad and his two children, the sports desk is keeping it all in the family.
Steven Miller, returning sports editor, hopes to continue what he was doing last semester.
"I definitely didn't want to step outside of sports because I want to become a sports writer, and I felt like if I stepped out of the office I'd still be involved anyway, so I decided to stay," said Miller, a School of Arts and Sciences junior.
Returning Associate Sports Editor Tyler Barto wants to be more involved in working with the layout of the sports section this term and writing more stories.
"I hope to go more in-depth with my beats and go to the practices more often," said Barto, a School of Arts and Sciences sophomore.
School of Arts and Sciences sophomore Anthony Hernandez started as a desk assistant for the sports desk and moved up on the masthead to associate sports editor.
"I hope to be a lot more involved with sports and the rest of the paper," he said.
Keithstopher
School of Arts and Sciences sophomore Keith Freeman started working as a photographer for the school newspaper at Temple University. He hopes to have a more constant stream of feature photos and start student submissions for photos of the day.
"[Being the photography editor] is an interesting experience in the field of photojournalism, and I'm excited to be a part of one of the top students newspapers in the country," he said.
Designing Woman
School of Arts and Sciences sophomore Olivia Prentzel walked into the office bold and dedicated, coming in as a student with no experience in design but eager to learn the ins and outs. While she admits she likes her predecessor's aesthetic, she hopes to bring something new to the table.
"I think everyone has their own sense of style and that will come with time," she said.
Op-ed Head
While he took over a few months ago when his predecessor left to study abroad in Paris, School of Arts and Sciences junior Matthew Kosinski hopes to recruit new columnists and to write editorials on more University and city issues.
"I want to bring it as local as possible," he said.
Copy Cups
School of Arts and Sciences junior Jillian Pason has never worked at a newspaper before, but she is sure her skills as an editor will grow because of her passion for grammar and punctuation.
"I get to fix all the small mistakes, and I get to come into the office everyday and hang out with all these great people," Pason said.
School of Arts and Sciences first-year student Rashmee Kumar knows that being associate copy editor is just the beginning. She started as a writer for news, but she said her devotion to copy would not deter her from writing and eventually moving up the masthead.
"I really like copy editing as well as writing, so I plan to stick with that and see what happens," she said.
Filled With School Spirit
School of Arts and Sciences junior Reena Diamante is passionate about the University as a resident assistant on campus and the newly elected University editor.
"I like being at Rutgers, and I think that we have a lot of good things not a lot of people know about. I'd like the University section to be more eclectic and hopefully it's something students will want to read," she said.
The Targum Baby
Rutgers Business School first-year student Ankita Panda, the youngest of the office, came with the intention of reviving the Metro section, the city/state section that has been difficult to maintain without an editor this past term.
"I want a regular Metro section more often — I feel like people kind of forgot about it," she said.
Panda hopes to include a variety of Metro stories ranging from New Brunswick politics and the city's art district to state issues concerning University students.
Web Master
Arthur Romano has been with Targum for a few years and decided to stay as online editor for another term because of his passion for technology and for the Web. He hopes to revamp the website by improving its speed, adding more videos and photos by working closely with the multimedia, news and sports desks, and attracting more unique users to the site.
Multi-talented
Joseph Schulhoff is bringing his skills in news reporting and video editing together to draw more attention to the multimedia desk and create videos that are in sync with the paper's content. He hopes more readers will be redirected online to watch the video versions of their favorite stories.
Flying Solo For Now
School of Arts and Sciences sophomore Amy Rowe comes from an entertainment background, as a former Inside Beat writer and the managing editor of her high school newspaper. While she is taking on one of the most important jobs of the office by herself — writing at least three stories a week, mostly on deadline — she hopes she can recruit more associate news editors before the end of the semester.
But there are some upsides for a writing/reporting addict like Rowe — all the good stories will be under her belt.
"I'm looking forward to searching for a partner, but I get dibs on all the good stories for now," she said.
