By Elizabeth Scalzo
Editor-in-Chief
I always thought about what I would write in my last words to the FDU community and here I sit with nothing to say.
It has been an honor to serve as the Editor-in-Chief for the last two years. I have learned a lot in my time at FDU and even more in my time as Editor-in-Chief. I want to leave you all with some words of advice and wish you all well as you continue your journey at FDU or graduate and start the next chapter of your life.
Being a leader is more than just taking charge of a group. Leadership is about making tough calls, pushing others to be their best selves, working hard and fighting for what you believe in. Over the past two years we have seen a lot of despair as a generation, which made being a good leader that much harder, but when you care about what you are doing and always put in 100% good things will come.
Don’t be afraid to be yourself. When I came to college I completely changed who I was. I went from being the quiet and awkward girl from a small town in Pennsylvania to being a bold and fearless leader. I did things in college I never would have imagined myself doing when I was in my senior year of high school, but here I am.
Don’t scare easily. As a journalism student, you are taught to shine light in dark places. To comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable. To give a voice to the voiceless. I think our world would be a better place if we weren’t afraid of what people thought of us and did what our hearts know to be right.
It’s okay to upset people. At the end of the day, not everyone is going to like you. You need to remember that it has more to do with them than it has to do with you. Some people are afraid of the truth and some people will be intimidated knowing you are a force to be reckoned with. Take pride in your power and never stop demanding more from people in bureaucratic positions.
Most importantly, take care of yourself. I know it can be hard to put yourself first when responsibilities are piling up on you, but it isn’t worth damaging your mental health over. Take time for yourself and learn to set boundaries when it comes to work and life balance.
Check in with others. During the pandemic, I implemented an icebreaker at every Equinox meeting called roses, buds, and thorns.
- A rose is something good that happened that week.
- A bud is something you are looking forward to.
- A thorn is something bad that happened that week.
This small exercise allowed us all to be there for one another, even though we couldn’t see each other in person.
I also started asking at the end of our meetings “Does anyone have any questions, comments, concerns, complaints, quips, puns, or smart alec remarks?” It became my thing and would put a smile on my staff’s face before the meeting ended.
I’m honored to introduce our new Editor-in-Chief, John Mineses. He is majoring in communication with a focus in digital media and a minor in art. He has worked for The Equinox as a staff writer since spring 2021 and became the news editor in spring of 2022. He has ambitious goals to keep The Equinox going on as a multimedia news organization and bring new styles of reporting to our campus.
Our new managing editor is Kayoneil Wilson. She also joined The Equinox in spring of 2021 and became our student lifestyle editor for the spring 2022 semester. She majors in communication with a concentration in digital media and a minor in website design and development.
Along with the rest of their editorial board these two are set up for great success and I leave with confidence that they will continue on the legacy of The Equinox.
The most important thing I learned from my time at The Equinox is that work doesn’t feel like work if you love what you do. While a lot of change has happened over the last two years I am grateful for the relationships I built because of The Equinox and will forever see this rag-tag bunch as my family.
One last time this is Elizabeth Scalzo, your Editor-in-Chief, signing off.
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Elizabeth Scalzo signing off.
Art by Elizabeth Scalzo
