Join the Villager

Join the 2024-25 Villager Staff

Under the new editor in chief Katie Campbell, The Villager is looking to fill out the rest of it’s editorial staff, as well as passionate reporters who would like to contribute stories to Stevenson’s student-run publication. If interested, more information about each section editor position is available below.

Section Editor Applications are due by May 3

Application link: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSfL92ypODlhfb6chS2C5VUfn2-hFUXa_rU2m2ENOgfgLFjI5A/viewform

2024-25 Villager Editorial Staff

1. Editor-in-Chief – Katie Campbell
2. Sports Editor –
3. News Editor –
4. Features Editor –
5. Opinion Editor –
6. Multimedia (Digital) Editor –
7. Photo Editor –
8. Marketing/Social Media Manager –
9. Digital Reporter/Host –
10. Managing Editor

Detailed descriptions are below. If you’re interested in being a part of the Villager staff, please contact us at [email protected], Editor Katie Campbell at [email protected] or Adviser Jeff Browne at [email protected]. Serving on the students news site is great way to put your classroom learning to work in a real-life setting, and it will help you build your portfolio, whether you’re heading into communication, law, journalism, medicine or any profession in which effective communication is key.

SECTION EDITORS: Four content editors — News, Sports, Features, and Opinion — will:

• Lead coverage of and assign other stories, if needed. 
• Attend weekly meetings with editor-in-chief and other section editors to plan coverage.
• Communicate with photo editor, multimedia editor, on-camera reporter and Stevenson resources to arrange for photographs, video, audio and any other digital media that would enhance the text-based stories they produce and/or assign.
• Coach reporters on their writing and structure of their stories. 
• Post stories to our website in a timely manner. 

All four section editors are expected to produce at least one story every week of the semester, whether reported or written by themselves, by another person, or by a team. Editors should reach out to sources in a timely manner, and encourage other reporters to do the same.

The News editor  and Features editor will cover both news content and student life coverage. They may alternate focus or favor one category over the other over time, but both will generate ideas and advice on both content areas. These editors may delegate responsibilities between themselves as necessary and are encouraged to go outside the confines of their News/Features concentrations in both editing and story development.

The Sports editor will be responsible for making sure Stevenson sports are covered consistently and thoroughly. If the editor is able to assemble a staff, they should delegate beats and make sure each story is produced quickly and effectively for the Villager. The sports editor will also be creative with story ideas — features on players and coaches, key figures, as well as analytical pieces about game patterns, athletic spending and SU sport trends.

The Opinion editor will be responsible for determining the content of and editing all opinion pieces. The editor will occasionally write columns and assist any staff members writing a column. They will work with the editor-in-chief to edit and/or respond to letters to the editor.

DIGITAL EDITORS: Two digital editors — Photography and Multimedia (Digital) — will:

• Provide visual and audio content to the EIC and other Section Editors by 
  • producing the digital elements themselves or 
  • delegating and coordinating photographers and videographers to story assignments. 
• If they assemble staffs, they will:
  • Lead photo/digital meetings.
  • Coach photographers, videographers and graphic artists. 
  • Assign deadlines. 
• Attend all weekly meetings to plan. 
• Communicate with other editors to ensure stories have accompanying visuals.
• Oversee visuals needed for live sporting events.
• Edit photos, videos, audios and other digital content in a timely manner.
• Place finished visuals onto the server in the proper folders, including video platforms that enable editors to embed video into stories.

The Photography editor will be responsible for loading photos into the media library on the Villager website, complete with photo credits and captions. 

The Multimedia (Digital) editor will also work with designers and illustrators on visual (non-photo or video) components of our site, including illustrations, graphs, graphics, videos and audio stories or podcasts. They will work with our marketing/social media manager on socialling out our photographers’ work.

MARKETING/SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER: The marketing/social media manager will be a part of the management team that meets once per week during the semester. Their primary job responsibilities will be to: 

• Use social media to give our content a broader reach and establish new readers.
• Be aware of social media trends and keep our platforms up to date for our audience. 
• Be aware of our social media’s peak times and when to best publish stories.
• Find new ideas on how to constantly improve the Villager’s social media.
• Plan an early-semester promotional event for the Villager and create promotional digital and non-digital items that:
  • Encourage participation in the Villager.
  • Drive readership to the Website and social media accounts.

The marketing/social media manager will be responsible for the day-to-day posts on social media channels. This position is the original brand ambassador for all things Villager and should adhere to all ethical guidelines.

DIGITAL REPORTER/HOST: The digital reporter/host will serve as the face and/or voice of Villager video and audio content. These can include, but aren’t limited to:

• Video news packages
• Video sports packages
• Video features packages
• Audio news stories
• Podcast episodes

The digital reporter/host will be a part of the editorial team that meets weekly to determine coming content for the Villager. They also will work closely with the Multimedia/Digital Editor in the field and in the studio to make sure all video and audio products are cleanly edited and meet professional standards.

MANAGING EDITOR: The managing editor will be responsible for organizing stories in process and ensuring deadlines are met. The managing editor is also responsible for the Villager’s income and will work with the editor-in-chief to support the Villager’s financial needs through fundraising and advertising. Their primary responsibilities will be to:

• Track progress of stories to ensure timely publication.
• Contact reporters who fail to meet deadlines and provide extensions.
• Plan and lead fundraising events or initiatives.
• Campaign to outside organizations to support the Villager financially.
• Work closely with the marketing/social media editor to advertise fundraising events.