Editing, Leadership, and Team Building

Currently in my third year on The Muse, my role in the newsmagazine has changed with time. Starting off my second year as an editor, I had to learn fast how to be a good editor - and what it means to support your staffers in any means necessary. Learning how to plan ahead, how to foster healthy communication, and how to still incorporate a little fun into the schedule, is helping me to strive as an editor and work for the good of our publication.

Leadership

Summer Trainings

During the summer of 2024, I was given my team of staffers: one writer and one photographer. I decided to help them kickstart their summer assignments for The Muse and introduce myself to them in a form of a slideshow. Making a resource full of all the things they might be too scared to ask, I helped to create a familiar bond before meeting them, kicking the school year off before it even began.

A copy of the slideshow (06/01/2024)

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CTE Updates

Throughout my first semester as an acting CTE, I have learned one important thing:
make sure to check in with your staffers, no matter how insignificant or trivial the path to that check up is. Filling out a CTE update chart every class helps me stay up to date with my staffers, and can help us manage the tasks and responsibilities they have on the publication.

Examples of the updates

Print Pre Drafts
During the summer before my senior year, I made sure to sit and plan with my fellow Web Managing Editor to revise the system of planning coverage for our staff. Revamping our previous year's ideas, we each created slide shows dedicated to train our staff to properly research before they started any story, took any pictures, or created any design. This way, after presenting their research to the class, they are better equipped on how to go and handle their assignments as active journalists.

Example of the Print Pre-Draft for the 2025-2026 school year (08/01/2025)

Pre Draft Template 25-26 DO NOT EDIT

Pre Draft Template 25-26 DO NOT EDIT (1)

Pre Draft Template 25-26 DO NOT EDIT (10)

Pre Draft Template 25-26 DO NOT EDIT

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Open Communication

After finding out my staffers for the 2024-2025 school year, I immediately pulled out my phone to find their numbers and make a group chat on Messages. Normally, our publication uses Slack for conversation, but having my own private chatting area for my staffers help us stay more in touch with each other and the work. There is will I text them quick reminders, answers to their questions, or just general conversation. Throughout this semester, I have made it my goal to be always open for my staffers, and make sure that they know to depend on me for most of their questions

Here are some examples of our chats (10/19/24)

Organization

To help combat the struggle of keeping the draft cycle alive and functioning, throughout the year as a CTE I made sure to go through all of the expectations my staffers were given, making a comprehensive list of all major deadlines that they might have in the given cycle

Here is an example of one of my game plans with staff during our spirit week in March 2025

Print Budget

As I stepped into my new editor position as a Print Managing Editor the end of my junior year, I was tasked with completing the print Budget for our issue 4. I had to communicate with each team in charge of creating content to make an educated choice of how many pages to assign to each story. Making sure to know all aspects of everything included in the issue was a challenging feat, but achievable through constant communication to my content teams.

Here is an example of the print budget from Issue 4 2025 (03/01/2025)

Editing

Editing Virtually

Most of my preliminary edits to staffer's work are made in google docs. the comment and suggest feature allows me to not only edit, but explain the things I am looking for while reading, providing an open conversation where I can clarify, elaborate, or encourage any edits that I give.
Here is an example of my edits for one of my coverage staffers (9/24/2024)

Proofing

As Print Managing Editor, making sure each of our spreads are thoroughly edited by staff, editors, and our advisor is so important in order to catch all of the little nuanced things that make or break an issue. After each issue is proofed by our staff, my fellow EIC's/Managing editors work to proof ourselves, and then to apply the proofs of our advisor.

Here is an example of my proofs in our ISSUE 3 in 2025 (11/28/25)