An Advisor's Farewell

By Mr. Ludwig ('95)

Thank you for reading our final edition of The Rambling Raider and for your continuous support throughout the year. Needless to say, this has been a challenging year for everyone. I want to thank our dedicated editors and writers that came together to produce these amazing monthly editions.  Prior to this year, we were a print-based publication. But during the pandemic, Senior and Junior Editors-in-Chief Harrison Gerson (‘21) and Gabrielle Ceconi (’22) made the decision to go digital. They envisioned a monthly web-based digital edition with a wide variety of high-interest student pieces.  I am proud to say that they have delivered on that promise.

The Rambling Raider took First Place in the American Scholastic Press Association newspaper competition!  In the words of the ASPA judging committee, "The newspaper shows the superior efforts of talented and creative editors, writers, artists, photographers, layout/graphics designers, staff members, contributors, and advisors."

While The Rambling Raider staff never met in person this year, we had many meaningful virtual meetings through the magic of Google Meets. Of course, we missed out on the social aspects of in-person club meetings, yet our virtual meetings allowed guest speakers, student journalists from respected university newspapers, to “visit” us and share their experiences. It was eye-opening to learn about how college newspapers operate and our club members were fascinated and asked many important questions. These types of staff development are very valuable, and significantly, would not have been possible without the advent of Google Meets and similar video conferencing platforms.  And of course, the careful planning, scheduling, and promotion of these events by our Senior and Junior Editors-in-Chief Harrison Gerson (‘21) and Gabrielle Ceconi (’22.)

Maybe you’ve experienced similar silver linings in this raincloud of a school year.  Although you have likely faced challenges and frustrations, are there any highlights of the year that stand out to you?  We would love to feature your stories.