Staff members from different sections of The Miami Student wrote columns about what the publication means to them.
When I committed to the diverse small town of Oxford, I was nervous about when I would find my people, reinvent myself and figure out a career that has as little to do with numbers as possible.
“I can do anything for a year” — an affirmation that stuck with me after realizing that the closest Trader Joe’s would be an hour away, along with all the other quality coffee shops.
On top of all that, I needed to figure out if I should spend time making friends, when I initially planned on grinding out a transcript good enough to score me a transfer into a metropolitan city school.
There was a lot to think about, navigate and plan for.
As an extrovert and someone who thrives on the aspects of community, I knew I needed to join a club that I could pour my energy into and hopefully build some kind of portfolio exploring the world of media. I figured this would help me enjoy my lingering time at Miami University, while also lending to a higher-quality transfer application.
I’ve always had an opinion, and after consuming the entirety of “Sex in the City” in a single summer, nothing seemed more inviting and fulfilling of my fluid interests than a column in the opinion section of The Miami Student.
It felt empowering to know that I could write about my experiences, judge the world around me and stretch every little bit of my two cents as I could.
My first day in the newsroom was at the all-staff meeting following Mega Fair during my first year. This was the first time I was in a space where my peers had been interns for national corporations, winners of national scholarships and the owners of some of the best sticker layouts I’ve ever seen.
There was a sense of collective drive that I wanted to bathe myself in, but I was slightly intimidated. I have always been an outspoken and involved person, but on paper … like genuinely on printed pages. These guys really helped me see how passion, exercised by consistent effort, leads you closer to your goals.
The newsroom respects the most dependable writers but also rewards the journalist who takes a chance to explore the perspective with more nuance.
It was an environment that affirmed a variety of work styles and a myriad of majors that all felt the call to engage with the greater community around them.
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Now, three years later, I find myself writing fewer articles and focusing more on my role as the social media editor. This is a role that often had me questioning my impact on the staff of a publication praised for its infatuation with a hard copy.
But as “the Instagram guy,” I’ve seen the value in capturing many of the behind-the-scenes elements that have kept a publication such as The Student around long enough to celebrate 200 years.
I’ve spent my time soaking up the culture of a team with two centuries of processes, leadership and influence that have added to connecting Miamians to Miami history.
Year after year, the staff of The Student have demonstrated their skill and dedication to print media by enshrining broader stories into relatable perspectives, impacting RedHawks of all walks of life.
Being a part of an eclectic staff, united by an overwhelming urge to create and share stories, has developed me professionally and personally in ways that have yet to be fully measured.
TMS was the first club I ever joined at Miami, and also the first place to make me feel valued for something I produced (my most prized accomplishment being an opinion column about boyhood).
It's what “radicalized” me to add a journalism major my first year, and ultimately one of my biggest influences in deciding to settle for Kroger and one local coffee shop for more than one year of my undergraduate.
Kiser Young is a junior studying journalism and strategic communication. He serves as The Student’s social media editor and is from Dayton, Ohio. He hopes to increase his skills in digital media creation/facilitation and hopes to produce music videos in the future.
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