It’s scary being a freshman. I remember struggling to find my classes, make friends and unpack all of my stuff throughout my first weeks as the weather began its downward spiral.
In this maelstrom of anxiety and confusion that you are no-doubt experiencing now, one item stood out from the others in the orientation packet -the Campus Times.
With the lure of free pizza and my remote inkling of interest, I wandered into the interest meeting, not knowing what else I could expect beyond free food.
What I found continues to amaze me to this day. Over the past two years, I have met more friends, have had more fun and learned much more than in anything else I have done at UR. People from a wide variety of majors and lifestyles have all come together in producing this paper, just as they have done for the past 130 years.
In that time, the CT has delivered the details of daily events you may not otherwise hear about, as well as those stories that affect UR, Rochester and the rest of the nation.
We also bring UR movie, restaurant, concert, play, television, music, video game and book reviews and previews.
Through editorials and letters to the editor, the CT brings the opinions of students to the eyes of administration, alumni, faculty, staff, students and community members.
There are so many things to do in the newspaper, and you can be a part of this process.
Do you like writing? Try a taking on a news, features, Eastman or sports story. Hate writing, but like words? Come in and edit other people’s writing. Hate words? That’s OK. Borrow our digital camera and take a few pictures, draw or even come in and help design what the paper should look like. Like working on a Web page that averages more than 2,000 hits per week? Work on the CT Web site. Even if you hate everything else, you can make money or earn course credit by selling ads.
This newspaper is what you make it and the possibilities are limitless. The perks, too, are phenomenal.
If you write a review, the CT can pay for your dinner. We can get you into events and movies before they are released to the general public. In the past, our reporters have met oscar-winner Michael Moore and comedian Jon Stewart, in addition to people as varied as Hillary Clinton and They Might Be Giants.
The CT is simply the best thing I have done in college, and, if you put in a minimal amount of effort, I am positive that you will learn to love it as well.
Come to our general interest meeting on Sept. 8 at 7 p.m., grab some free pizza and have fun while bringing a little order to the chaos of your freshman year. Besides, we have a GameCube.
Schnee can be reached at cschnee@campustimes.org.
