“Great moments are born from great opportunity.”
Inside a dimly lit ice hockey locker room in 1980, Herb Brooks spoke these seven words to his rag-team of college hockey players before they defeated the Soviet Union for the Olympic gold medal. Brooks’ team made history that night in New York. As we walk through the glass doors of McKinley or pass by the Dav on the way to class, each one of us will have the opportunity to make our own history on AU’s campus this year.
Today, we will receive our first set of syllabi and begin navigating our campus home and our city. While TDR has changed, new professors have arrived and additional classes have been added to the schedule, some things at AU will always stay the same. Our friends will always be there to support us, and we will have the chance to grow into the passionate individuals we are capable of becoming. Like athletes preparing for the Olympic gold medal game, we are about to embark on the journey of a lifetime. AU is our field, our stage, our place to be whoever we want to be and showcase our talents to the world. It’s a place for us to explore our interests and ourselves.
As editor-in-chief of The Eagle, I want to bring fresh ideas to the paper and expand our content on new digital platforms. I see The Eagle as a place for students, like myself, to gain real-world journalism experience, to interact with peers and to share news with the campus community. My work on the paper helped me secure an internship this summer, but more than that, the paper introduced me to friends and mentors who changed the way I see the world. Eagle alumni, including Mark Lieberman, Eric Saltzman and Heather Mongilio welcomed me on to the staff at the paper and guided me through the learning process. The Eagle connected me with the community, and I hope to further connect the community with The Eagle.
Twice a semester, newsstands around campus will be filled with special editions of the paper, but we will continue to produce online content daily. Through Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and a mobile app, my staff and I will also bring the news right to your phone with as much speed and accuracy as possible. I can’t promise that the Eagle will be perfect this year, but I can promise you that we will work hard to deliver news in an engaging and informative way.
When I first came to AU as a member of the swim team, I knew I wanted to be a student-athlete, but my professors, teammates, classmates and friends have led me to become much more than that. I’m proud to be a part of this school, and I love being a member of the AU family. The nights may be long, and the mornings may be early, but this year, we have an opportunity.
Let’s make it great.
sscovel@theeagleonline.com