Dear Students, Faculty, Staff and Administrators,

This is a bittersweet time of year for everybody. Seniors are graduating, underclassmen are saying goodbye to their friends for the summer while campus blooms and the semester ends.

As a senior graduating in a little over a week, I am a mixture of emotions. The time I have spent at Shippensburg University has been the best four years I could have asked for. By last fall I completed my major, minor and general education requirements leaving me with free electives for my final semester. Many of my friends joke with me saying, “I did college right.” And I think I have to agree with them. I enjoyed my classes. I learned a ton, but most of all, I got involved — and I got involved early.

I began my time at The Slate four years ago in August 2010 on the first day of my freshman year. I sought out the newspaper and I jumped in head first, eager to learn. Throughout my time at the paper, I learned more than I could have ever imagined, but it would not have been possible without the help of Dr. Drager, The Slate’s adviser.

I will be forever indebted to him for all of the hours we put in at The Slate to make the best product, or for the thousands of questions I asked, some of them repeats, but I just wanted to be sure. Dr. Drager was the best kind of mentor. He pushed me to succeed and excel in all I do. He challenged me in a way no other educator could and continued to fan the flames of my passion for journalism. For that, I am eternally grateful.

To my staff, past and present: Thank you. Thank you all for pushing me and challenging me. You are all wonderful. You made these past four years fantastic. I do not know what I would have done without the support of everyone who put in hundreds of hours to make sure SU gets the news. We became a very strange, dysfunctional family, but that is part of what being a Slater is all about.

As I close this letter and this chapter of my life, I want to say thank you to the students, faculty, staff, alumni and administrators who support us every week by reading our print edition and those who stay connected to us online. There are big things ahead for The Slate. I am jealous I do not get to stick around and help make them happen. I have the utmost confidence in next year’s staff to turn out a high-quality, professional grade product just like we always have.

Finally, thank you to The Slate for the best four years of my life.

With one final Slate Clap,

Cara Shumaker
Editor-in-Chief
2013-2014

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