Until Jan. 27, The Spur is taking applications for seven staff positions as it says goodbye to its graduating members: Kevin Danielson, Jill Hoppe, Cole Miska, Nicole Schwing, and Fernando Tabares. The paid positions that are being vacated are news editor, photography editor, graphic design editor, A&E editor, advertising manager, editor-in-chief, and sports editor.

Danielson joined The Spur during his freshman year. While he worked as a staff writer and sports editor, he now holds the position of news editor.

“The news editor is an important position not only because this person helps decide what to cover, but they also design the front page,” Danielson said. “The stories on this page are the first things a reader sees. I have to make sure that these stories follow proper guidelines for grammar, style and ethics.”

Danielson cites working on the paper for giving him a unique connection to the university.

“My favorite part is getting to talk to professors, staff and students that I wouldn’t normally have had the chance to meet,” Danielson said. “I like hearing their perspectives on various stories I’ve covered.”

Hoppe has the unique opportunity to work in more than one position. She is the paper’s photography editor, graphic design editor, and copy editor.

“As the photography editor,” Hoppe said, “it is my responsibility to take and edit photos for the paper, in addition to collaborating with the staff photographers to get interesting photos for an article.”

The photography editor is also in charge of editing photos and keeping track of photography equipment.

“The graphic design editor is responsible for the overall look of the paper,” Hoppe said. “The two most important tasks I have as graphic design editor are ensuring visual consistency and designing advertisements for clients.”

When describing her responsibilities, Hoppe mentions the importance of collaboration. As the photography editor she needs to make sure section editors have the best photos for layout, and as graphic design editor she is required to work closely with the advertising manager in order to meet clients’ requests.

Hoppe describes her time at The Spur as one of the highlights of her time at SMSU.

“I have learned so many skills that I will be applying in my future career, such as leadership and time management,” Hoppe said.

Like Hoppe, Miska also has the opportunity to work in multiple positions as the paper’s A&E editor and the advertising manager.

“The arts and entertainment (A&E) editor is an editing a position for a page (sometimes two) in the middle of the paper,” Miska said. “The A&E section is an important part of the paper for the uniqueness of its content – it’s the only page that has a majority of content that originates from outside of campus. What’s covered in A&E isn’t always based out of Marshall, but is still relevant to student life.”

Miska stresses the importance of the advertising manager because the paper is partially funded through advertisements.

“The ad manager has two main responsibilities: first and foremost is recruitment and training of advertising representatives,” Miska said. “Teaching someone all that a marketing education has taught me is challenging but rewarding work.”

“The second responsibility is keeping records, which the business manager helps with immensely. The paper requires records of customers, prospective customers, and how many ads were sold to keep the financial side running smoothly.”

Despite the large amount of work the paper depends on him for, Miska is thankful for the experience.

“Working for The Spur has been a great opportunity that has taught me much about writing, about people and about working as a team,” Miska said.

Schwing manages staff, conducts meetings, and assigns stories for The Spur as editor-in-chief.

“What I feel to be my most important responsibility is promoting a friendly, professional work setting in order to recruit and maintain a focused, committed staff,” Schwing said. “Immediately after becoming editor in chief, I realized the value not only of recruiting and maintaining a staff, but of also encouraging staff members to seek new information and to engage in a learning experience that prepares them for the work force.”

Like the other staff members, Schwing is satisfied with her work at the paper.

“I’m proud of what The Spur has become during my time as editor in chief,” Schwing said, “and I am grateful for the editors, writers, photographers, and business managers who have been a part of a wonderful and enriching experience.”

Tabares is the paper’s sports editor. As such, he is responsible for the generation, editing, and layout of stories included in the sport section of the paper. He recounts his time at the paper fondly.

“Working with The Spur has given me valuable experience that will hopefully help open doors for me in the future,” Tabares said.

The Spur will be taking applications until Jan. 27. Anyone interested is encouraged to apply to as many positions as they like. To receive an application, contact Nicole Schwing at [email protected] or the newspaper’s faculty advisor Ruthe Thompson at [email protected].