Goodbye, from the departing 2025-26 editors
Sarah Sternhagen, Editor-in-Chief
At this point, The Towerlight has taken up more space in my life than anything else I’ve done at Towson, and I couldn’t be happier for it.
I became editor-in-chief as a sophomore (don’t ask me, ask the old editor that promoted me) and have been in the role for the past two years. I have been tested and pushed in ways I could not even imagine when I first started as a staff member, and I have come out a better writer, better reporter, and better person for it.
I want to give an enormous thank you to all my fellow students who keep this paper running. It is The Towerlight staff writers and photographers that keep this ship going. They are constantly impressing me with their skills, and it is such a joy to watch them grow from article to article. For my fellow editorial-board members, they have taken on many of the invisible responsibilities associated with running a college newspaper. It is not a glamorous job, but the editorial boards of both my years as editor have pulled off amazing things and grown this organization exponentially. I will sorely miss all of them.
I also want to thank the countless advisors and professors that have guided me through all this time. I’ve asked many questions and knocked on many office doors over the last two years, and despite feeling like I’m being annoying, nobody has ever treated me that way. I cannot say enough good things about the journalism professors here.
Finally, I want to thank everyone who has read anything from The Towerlight this year. We would not be here if not for our readership. I humbly ask that you come back next semester to see what our 2026-27 staff and editors are up to, I assure you it will be great.
Wishing everyone another year of great reporting, and thank you for supporting student journalists.
— Sarah
D’Mari Dreher-Smith, Sports Editor
Before I even moved into my freshman dorm, I was a writer for the Towerlight. One zoom call with the then sports editor, Courtney Ott, began what would become the three year journey that is coming to an end. When I became the sports editor at the end of my freshman year, I had no idea what I was doing but I vowed to dig my heels in and work as hard as I could.
Being the sports editor has been the highlight of my academic career. This position gave me the privilege of engaging with amazing athletes with even more amazing stories. My goal from day one was to prioritize fair coverage and report things the school deserved to know. In my tenure, Towerlight Sports saw a boom in coverage and readers and produced high level student journalism in a time where news is everywhere.
None of this work happened alone. Through the years, I’ve had the privilege of working with amazing writers and communicators. To the 24-25 editor board, Lauren, Tyler, and Kenny: You each taught me how to better in your own way. I am so lucky to have known you. To the 25-26 editor board, Morgan, Zhanè, Dan: you are all destined for the greatest things and I’ve loved every second of working with you all.
To my deputies over the years, Kylie and Tommy: you both stood by my side and supported me through everything and I will always be grateful.
To Sarah: we started together and we’ll end it together. It’s been an amazing journey.
The Towerlight is in excellent hands and I cannot wait to see the amazing things it does.
Love,
Your friendly-neighborhood girl in sports.
— Mari
Dan Forson, Photo Editor
It’s been a great time working with The Towerlight! From all of the opportunities, to being part of something bigger than myself, I appreciate the team and look forward to the future!
— Dan
