A farewell message from the 2023-24 editorial board
By Towerlight staff
To the Towerlight community,
Being the editor-in-chief of The Towerlight has been the most rewarding experience not only of my college career, but of my life thus far. I am beyond grateful to have been trusted with the stories of this university and the people that make up this campus community.
There are now just a few hours left of my tenure. I have learned so much and I could not have done it alone.
To my incredible team in the news section, you guys made it all possible. We did an amazing job this year. Please pat yourselves on the back, and finish the year out strong. I am so happy to have seen this section grow so much during my tenure. You all have brought me so much joy throughout this year, and I cannot wait to see what each of you do next. My door is always open for all of you.
To my fellow editors Jake, Courtney, Jonah and Cody –– thank you for all of the hard work you’ve done. I’m proud of what we’ve accomplished, and you better be proud of yourselves. We did something incredible together.
Thank you to all of our readers, to everyone who has shared their stories with us, to all of The Towerlight’s mentors and cheerleaders, especially in the Mass Communication department and at Baltimore Student Media.
I have the honor of introducing you to The Towerlight’s next editor-in-chief, Sarah Sternhagen. Sarah started with The Towerlight as soon as she entered Towson and has since been an invaluable member of the staff. It has been an immense pleasure working with her, and I have no doubt that she will lead this team with grace.
Also joining the editorial board will be Tyler Story. As senior editor, he will be Sarah’s right hand, and together the two will bring The Towerlight to its next stage.
I love this newspaper. I will always cherish what it has given me, and I hope I did it justice.
Signing off for the last time as your editor-in-chief,
Gabe Donahue
Thank you to everyone who kept up with and read The Towerlight over my last four years. Without you all, I’d have little reason to continue reporting on things about this university. I’ve grown immensely since joining The Towerlight, and it’s an experience I’ll always be grateful for.
From my tenure as The Towerlight’s editor-in-chief to being sports editor for a year and everything in between, I feel very fortunate to have had the opportunity to meet so many of you.
Thanks for following along,
Jake Shindel
I transferred to Towson University my junior year of college. I didn’t know where this school would take me or what opportunities it would bring. Little did I know my senior year would be one to remember. Along with making lifelong memories with my friends, classmates and professors, I also had the special opportunity of being sports editor and senior editor for The Towerlight.
This opportunity was graciously given to me by my previous boss, my co-worker, my deputy sports editor, my peer and most importantly my friend, Jake Shindel. Going into this year I was scared, nervous and wasn’t sure what to expect. I had goals and ideas for The Towerlight as a whole and for the sports section in particular.
I accomplished as much as I was able to while having a full schedule of classes by bringing in new writers, strengthening my previous writers’ journalism skills and being a place of support for those who needed it. In myself, I have gained new leadership experiences and skills, I have grown as a writer and editor, and I was able to expand into photojournalism as well.
While my position comes to an end on May 6, I am so grateful for the opportunity that I was given to run the sports section of The Towerlight, work alongside our talented Editor-in-Chief Gabe Donahue and Deputy Sports Editor Jake Shindel, and to gain the experiences that I did. As sad as I am that it has come to an end, I know the sports section will continue to grow and produce well-written content with the incoming sports editor, D’Mari Dreher-Smith. D’Mari is a strong leader and a great writer. She is dedicated to her craft and to the world of sport, and I know she’ll do great things for The Towerlight.
So, I want to say thank you. Thank you to our readers, our supporters and my fellow editors for supporting The Towerlight and the work that I published. My role as sports editor has been so special, and it’s something that I’ll always cherish. Here’s to a great year and to starting the next chapter of my life.
Courtney Ott
Since joining The Towerlight in the fall of 2022, I have always thought that I was the luckiest journalist alive.
I got to work with one of the hardest working staffs in student journalism, supported by a great team at Baltimore Student Media that pushed us to pursue stories that needed to be told.
When I first joined the Towerlight GroupMe, I had no idea what I was doing. I made a lot of mistakes in those first few months. Since my first story about student loan forgiveness and up to covering the SGA in Annapolis, I have always sought to constantly improve my process as a writer while employed as your editor.
I am forever grateful to the readers that keep our keyboards busy, to our professors for accommodating our undertaking, and to the university for being a constant source of news.
As I approach graduation and a career in media, I will forever hold onto the belief that what we did here was something to be remembered.
Jonah Lewis
