Rebekah Raymon, Design Editor
When I came to Mills College, I was completely new to the Bay Area and California in general, but I was excited to be in a new place. I was just a kid, unsure of what I wanted in college and in life. From the Hellman program to being a club president to working as an RA, I think I’ve had my fair share of experiences and I feel ready to move on to what comes next.
I’m moving back east! I miss good pizza, and bagels, and snow and fall colors. But I will remember all the things I got to do here in the Bay and all the amazing people I’ve met. I went to a vintage clothing auction, walked the Golden Gate Bridge back and forth (my legs did not thank me the next day), explored a Berkeley co-op, and viewed amazing exhibits at the many art museums here. I got to see the ocean on this side of the world and flew to other countries for the first time! If you’re reading this for advice, I urge you to try to travel at some point and see what the world has to offer and what new perspectives there are.
Now, to my friends, you have made me laugh so much and lifted my spirit during the hell that is academics. You taught me a lot about myself these past four years. I will see you again and until then, Snap me!
To my peers in classes and around campus, your energy and passion for justice has inspired me to stand for what I believe in and the work that you do is already making strides. You will go far, I know it!
To the staff at the Campanil, I have genuinely enjoyed being a part of discussions on current issues and events here at Mills and in the wider world. I am always so impressed with how smart and compassionate you all are when pitching news stories and I thank you for making me feel welcome in the newsroom.
It wasn’t easy making my own major at Mills, especially since my focus is graphic design. That was why I was so fortunate to stumble upon a post two years ago in the student forum, advertising open positions at the Campanil. Being the design editor has made me think about how I can use my studies and skills in my future career, whatever that turns out to be. So, I have been officially press-released. Wish me luck!
Marisa Tangeman, Editor-in-Chief
As my days as a Mills student dwindle, I can’t help but reflect on the most formative parts of my experience at Mills. As I walk across campus, memories from different spots remind me of the special moments I’ve had during my four years here. I remember the grueling walk to Founders made enjoyable by the company of my friends, I remember late nights in the library as I scrambled to put my thesis together, and I remember the joy of skipping class to lay in the grass at the first signs of spring. I find myself constantly gravitating towards the newsroom, desperate to appreciate my last moments in the space that has been my anchor throughout my time as an undergrad.
I was a timid and shy first-year when I first stepped foot in the newsroom and was immediately welcomed by a smiling, friendly staff. That staff, along with the former journalism professor Sarah Pollock, supported me in my first attempts at news writing.
I soon became a member of the staff as the assistant news editor and earned my very own desk. Since then, I have always had a place in the newsroom, whether it’s been to decompress on the couch between classes or to have a quiet place to work after the library closes. Over the years, I have also earned the trust of our newsroom cat, Pitch, who has helped me maintain my stress levels during the chaos of production days.
I didn’t join the Campanil for the newsroom, or even for Pitch. I joined the Campanil for the opportunity to gain experience in journalism working alongside an incredible staff. The Campanil staff made me feel like I had a place at Mills when I was trying to figure out exactly where I fit in.
Over the years, the staff has never ceased to inspire and impress me. Each member has devoted so much of their time to the paper with little compensation. I have learned so much from their dedication, work ethic, creativity, critical thinking and analytical skills. I would not have wanted to spend my Tuesday nights and Fridays with anyone else.
This year, I got to make a space for myself in the editor-in-chief office, and am so proud of the growth I have witnessed while in this position. My final duty as editor-in-chief will be signing my name under the previous editors-in-chief on the wall of our newsroom. I am proud to join the ranks of such inspirational people, and while I will greatly miss the time spent with the staff in that space, I feel confident that the Campanil will continue to thrive knowing that it will be left in capable hands.
Molly Stuart, Copy Chief
In the spirit of my arrival at Mills, I have no idea where I’m going with this.
I spent the first day of orientation as a psychology major before jumping into global humanities and critical thought. It wasn’t until this week that this program was articulated to me as a comparative literature program. This made me realize that, to the disappointment of all the people who will be asking me “What’s next?” in the coming months, I’m still figuring out what just happened.
In the meantime, I have some people to thank.
To the staff of the Campanil — Sam, Kanani, Calli, Jeanita, Marisa, Rebekah, Angel, Lila, Dana, Jessica, Shirley, Zee, Felicia, Jamie, Imani — for your critical insights, excellent reporting, conversations, and tolerance of my poor attention span by 6:30 p.m. on Tuesdays.
To Amanda and Kelley for the proofreading, the love, and the group chat.
To Iz, Angelica, and Breonna. May we continue to drag each other for our chart placements.
To the staff in admissions for giving me a job and a bunch of free food after events.
To Gupta for keeping it real with the A/A- grade, for advising and supervising my thesis (and to my thesis group).
To Audrey for actually everything.
To Professors Mehta, Maddison, Strychacz, Magowan, Saxton, Chin, Swope and Bailey for excellent instruction, showing me your dedication to fields and your students.
And mostly, thanks to my family, biological and logical. To my mom and dad who don’t always know what it is I’m doing but let me run with it anyways. To my brilliant brother. To Sammy, to Olivia. To Cass, because where I’m going next isn’t actually a mystery.
I still don’t know where I’m going with all this, but I haven’t done any of it alone.
Calli Storrs, Managing Editor
Being a student journalist of color at Mills is not easy (this topic deserves more elaboration but I’ll be succinct).
There are a few main reasons why that I’ve experienced: the defunding of the journalism department and the Campanil’s own budget as we’ve talked about in other articles, the history of newsrooms nationally being dominated by white voices and bodies, and the collective struggle of student journalists operating in a deficit of resources.
In high school, I was taught that I could give “voice to the voiceless.” I loved the idea that there were so many stories that we had yet to “discover,” which I now realize is problematic.
It took me a long time to explore my racial and ethnic identity, to question and examine my background, and to become aware of some instances of white fragility disguised as liberalism in the many interactions I’ve had in the places I’ve been. Luckily, the Campanil gave me something incredible and priceless: a few precious friends who have been supportive and enlightening through this experience. I’ve learned a lot here.
However much race plays out on the Campanil, I recognize that we are all student journalists, and we all bear the daily weight of responsibilities getting in the way of idealized notions of what is possible.
If you couldn’t tell, I am disillusioned and cynical. I’ve wanted to wash my hands of an organization that let me down so many times, however unintentionally. I’ve been ready to quit many times, almost as many times as semesters I’ve been on staff, and put my energy elsewhere.
So, why did I continue? There is still something in me that leaps when I hear the stories that people tell me, a sense of duty, maybe, and if there is something I can do to leave the Campanil in better shape, at least I can do that. Seeing so many aware and hardworking POC on staff today gives me joy.
I do love the Campanil, the ethics of journalism and the sense of community. There were so many hopes and dreams I had for this organization.
My friend said something a while ago that clicked into all the things I had been thinking and feeling about being a student journalist of color on The Campanil.
Giving a voice to the voiceless—that’s so arrogant. You know they teach it to us in school, and I believed it too. But our communities, communities of color, marginalized communities, they’re not voiceless. They have voices, and they’ve been using them too. They just haven’t been listened to.
Keep listening, Mills.
