Hello friends of The Argus!
Welcome (back) to Wesleyan! As the chill of the fall descends upon campus, so does our reign descend upon The Argus. We are very excited to be serving as your Editors-in-Chief (EICs) for Fall 2024! We want to thank our predecessors Anne Kiely ’24 and Executive Editor Sam Hilton ’25 for their guidance and support as we begin our tenure as EICs.
Although we began our Argus careers at different times, with Caleb Henning ’25 beginning his term his first year as a financial manager and copy editor and Carolyn Neugarten ’26 joining her first year as a news writer, our combined five years of experience have taught us so much about the ins and outs of this wonderful newspaper. Caleb worked his way up to being an Arts & Culture Editor and Head Layout Editor, writing about car crimes and campus theatrical productions, while Carolyn shot straight up through the ranks of news and held down the fort as a News Editor for two semesters, reporting on student activism and local news.
Heading into this semester, we anticipate friendly political debate, as the 2024 U.S. presidential elections approach and students are confronted with making crucial political decisions at the polls. Additionally, as the campus community considers the aftermath of the SJP Wesleyan Palestine Solidarity Encampment, student campaigns for divestment and the ongoing violence in the Middle East will continue to be at the forefront of campus discourse.
Unfortunately, we have to say goodbye to the Food section of The Argus this semester. Throughout its history, the Food section has captivated us with their tantalizing recipes, Middletown restaurant recommendations for weekend bites, and pieces describing their writers’ cultural food traditions. Although we are sad to see the section go, we are hopeful that they can return in the future.
In happier news, we are thrilled to announce that we are beginning a new subsection of the Features section, the Science & Research section. Sida Chu ’26 is leading the charge of rounding out our campus coverage through spotlighting student and faculty scientific endeavors. We envision the Science & Research section emerging into its own full section in the future, and we can’t wait to highlight the incredible work Wesleyan community members have done and are doing to contribute to the scientific world!
In the next few months, we are hoping to build a platform for a diverse group of reporters, editors, and writers, including our Foreign Correspondent Rose Chen ’26, who will bring us coverage from Paris, France! We will also be continuing the Argus Voices Fund initiative, which provides compensation for two low-income students of color to join the Argus masthead. All of our student worker salaries, including our Argus Voices staff, are paid entirely through donations. Please donate to support The Argus Voices Fund and to support our general student workers, all of whom keep The Argus running!
We will also be reinstating our coverage tracker, which student reporters are encouraged to fill out after interviews for internal source demographic information. The coverage tracker will ensure that our articles are addressing all aspects of campus life for all members of the campus community.
We also hope to connect with former Wesleyan Argus alumni who have flourished in their careers at The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Vanity Fair, and ABC News, among others, creating connections our staff can use to jumpstart their own futures through the Argus Speaker Series. Mark your calendars (tentatively) for Homecoming Weekend as Executive Editor Elias Mansell ’24 MA ’25, Financial Managers Lily Goldfine ’25 and Cindy Jiang ’27, and Archivists Sida and Maggie Smith ’27 are hoping to organize a Homecoming alumni event, and we’d love to see all of you there. More information will follow as the event takes shape!
Please reach out to Caleb (chenning@wesleyan.edu) and Carolyn (cneugarten@wesleyan.edu) with any tips or coverage ideas! To keep up with us on social media, follow us on X, Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok.
We can’t wait to see how this semester unfolds!
XOXO,
Caleb & Carolyn