Madison Kwiecinski – Editor-in-Chief 

Mvk5945@psu.edu

Dear Beacon Readers, 

I want to begin by saying thank you to everyone who has picked up an edition of the paper this year to read, and of course to all of the great people on the Beacon’s staff who helped make it possible to get to print each week. Every person who helped to write articles, take photographs, format the paper’s layout, distribute them around campus, and even donate the extras I am so grateful to. 

I began writing for the paper during my first year here at Behrend, and started editing for the News Section shortly after. I have always enjoyed writing, but I was never under the impression that it was a career path I was particularly keen on exploring. I am a political science major, so I was also always aware writing would be somewhat important to me, but the actual art of journalism was not something I had devoted much time to prior to college. 

In highschool, the concept of a school paper did not really exist for us. There was a loosely structured magazine that came out about once a month. I contributed a few pieces too, but nothing to the extent of an actual student-produced newspaper. 

When I got to Behrend, I was not sure how much I would be able to contribute without any real prior experience. I will be the first to say that it is ridiculous to refrain from trying for something you believe you will be good at simply because you do not think you are good enough yet. It took me a few editions to be really proud of what I was writing at the time, but I am so glad I took the initiative to reach out and learn about the paper. 

If there is one piece of advice I can give, it is to reach out to that club you are thinking about joining and do it. As far as the Beacon is concerned, if you have ever thought about writing a piece for the paper please reach out! Whether you want to write weekly, once a month, or there is just an opinion piece you have been itching to get off your chest, we would be thrilled to hear what you have to say. No matter what your major is or what you are passionate about, there is sure to be a place for you somewhere at the Beacon. 

I have served as Editor-in-Chief of the Behrend Beacon for the 2022-2023 school year and am so grateful to everyone who followed along with the paper through each edition this year. It was an honor to work with everyone on staff to produce a paper to represent our campus each week. I plan to remain on staff at the Beacon next year, and look forward to writing more pieces to be read in future editions of the paper. Once again, thank you all!