The beginning of a new year is always a good time to make resolutions for self-improvement. To keep in the spirit of things, we at The Daily Collegian have decided to work on a couple of new projects to better serve our readers.

Expanded science and technology section

Penn State is a large research university, which means that there are a lot of interesting science, medical and health, and technology story ideas to explore. Keeping this in mind, we decided to expand the Collegian's science and technology page, which we introduced to the newspaper last semester.

Instead of one page in Thursday's paper, we are now dedicating six pages in a standalone section in Tuesday's paper. The expanded science and technology section will make its debut next week, so send your story ideas to Beth Baumgardner, science and technology chief, at bab250@psu.edu.

Arts and review section

Although we have an arts and entertainment section in Friday's paper, we thought it would be a good idea to include a page of reviews and profiles in Thursday's paper as well. The page will feature film, theatre and video game reviews, local band profiles, and more.

You can find this page on the back page of the sports section in Thursday's paper starting next week. If you have any ideas for the page, please contact Arts Editor Angela Gates at AngelaGates@psu.edu.

Aside from these new projects, the Collegian is still committed to being the best source of student news and maintaining good relations with our readers. As such, we welcome story suggestions. Organizations interested in having a story covered by the Collegian should send us a brief, typed description a week before the event. Please include the time, date and place of the event, a contact name and telephone number, and whether photography is permitted. To send a suggestion in person, by fax or by mail, please consult our contact information on page 3.

To send a suggestion by e-mail, please write to the managing editor at TimSwift@psu.edu. Please note that submitting a story idea to the Collegian does not guarantee publication.

Aside from publishing stories written by students for students about students, one of the best ways to connect with readers is to give them a forum to express their opinions.

The opinion page is your opportunity to write letters to the editor, to tell us and the rest of Penn State about your feelings on current events, whether it be local, national, or global issues. Letters to the editor are also an opportunity for readers to tell us what we're doing right and what we're doing wrong.

Student, community and university leaders can use the opinion page as a way to address campus and town issues by writing a guest column. Guest columns should be arranged with Opinion Editor Susie Xu at least a week before the desired publication date.

Remember, we are your student newspaper. Make the Collegian work for you.