If you are as good as the people around you, then I'm the best there ever was.
Behind every great accomplishment at Penn State, 20 to God-knows how many people did the work. These people get little recognition, yet they take the quality of their work as reward enough. Examples include dance marathon, building a submarine to race in Florida, University fund raising and much more. They all should be commended, whoever they are.
But today I'm going to give necessary praise to those who create the Collegian publications. I'm sure many other people and organizations work just as hard, but I'm writing about the people I know and love. I'm doing this because the more than 160 news people who put the paper out each day really deserve medals of honor, let alone a column.
Because I head the organization, I get most of the credit, the praise and the comments (not to mention the death threats and the occasional log thrown through my window, but that's another story.)
They start working at 8 a.m., and maybe, if they can, stop working at about 1 a.m. Sometimes, somehow, some of them go to class. No one is sure when they do homework.
You read their stories every day; you see their work in layout, in their photos. And although you don't know it, you see their editing. You see their accomplishments and their mistakes. What you don't see is their frustration, their tears, their hard work and their determination to give you -- the University community -- the best paper they can.
If I could, I'd mention every one of them and tell you about them. But I can't, so I'll tell you about some of them. But I want everyone on this staff to know that they are the best.
I used to think that the only thing I could get emotional about in sports journalism were bad leads, but Anthony Yacullo's story about Craig Fayak after the Miami game proved me wrong -- I cried in geography class. Tony Demangone helped me understand just what was really happening in Bosnia. Corey Gesford, Undergraduate Student Government reporter, proved to me that out of the shadows could come a wonderful surprise. Becky Stumpf saved my butt by being one of the best municipal reporters ever.
"Pissant" Amanda Thompson is living proof that investigative reporting and creativity can go hand in hand. The music scene's favorite reporter -- Jason Cherkis -- has actually gotten me to like Velocity Girl. I don't understand him, but he works hard as hell. I'll never figure out how photographer Judy Fedor can do all she does with a smile constantly on her face.
These are just a few of the many reporters and photographers I could mention. They are the reasons you know what is going on in your community, whether it be sports, arts, features or news. For every few inches of a story you read or every photo you see, they have put in hours of work.
Then there's the editors. When I became editor in chief, I had all these great ideas -- I wanted to eliminate event coverage, I wanted to be more of a watchdog, I wanted to take reporting and design chances. Most of these things have been done, or at least are in progress, but not because of me. I said these things to a room of 25 people, and they did the work. They went back and implemented my ideas, and then their own.
Scott Dodd and Sue Ramsey revitalized town staff. Jessica Hartshorn, despite her thesis, orchestrated the best feature and science pages. Amy Zurzola and Karen Guth energized the all five members of the "funkee" night desk, and Julie Nash and Steph Sprenkle worked with an almost non-existent staff.
R.J. Hufnagel and Lisa Loeffler put up with the craziest people on this planet as opinion editors. And all four sports editors -- and one former editor -- not only saved a staff but made it unbeatable. Sports editor Chris Otto never complained, even when I complained to him about my thesis, and I love him for it.
Arts editors Joey Warminsky and Sally Kuzemchak finally accomplished a life-long dream --they changed the weekend page. The Weekly and the Magazine are the miracles of one Andy Hunn, with the help of Mike Florio. And photo's mere survival this semester is a testament to the kind of people back there.
There are faces behind these names. People who go with the byline and the mast. They will never be famous. And since they are in journalism, they will probably never be rich. They are journalists -- no public relations or politicians here. This is not a career; it's a lifestyle. These people want to educate you, inform you, entertain you.
It is my job to set the tone, to keep them on track, to be a listening ear, to lead, to suggest, to help, to keep Joey and Jason from killing each other, to translate anal-eze for new editor Mike Abrams.
Speaking of the new editor, Mike has kept me sane and driven me crazy in the last year. But he is one of the best things that happened to me and the Collegian this year. A good editor surrounds herself with great people, and it couldn't be more true in the case of Mike. I look forward to getting the Collegian next year, and you should too, because he, and his staff, will make this good paper the great paper I've been talking about all year.
One more person has to be mentioned. Kim Strong Berdy is the best friend and adviser any editor could ever have. The quality of this woman shines through in the pages of this paper.
As I said before, I can't mention everyone who deserves to mentioned for one wonderful reason --there are too many to name. And I will miss every single one of them. I want them -- student and professional staff -- to know that they made me everything I am, and will be, as both a journalist and a person.
As for the The Daily Collegian, it will continue to be one of the best college newspapers in the country, and one of the best organizations at the University. I know this for a fact -- I leave it in the best of hands.
