Letter from the Editors
Photo by Mōhailani Peloso
To the readers and supporters of The Pacifican,
Let us take a moment to stop and smell the roses, shall we? Too often, we get caught up in the to-dos, the expectations, and the endeavors of tomorrow. When we wrote to you last fall in advance of our first installment of articles, we never could have imagined we would be here today. As excited as we were for you to read the work of our writers, we were unsure of the paper’s future and filled with trepidation regarding whether the community would love The Pacifican as much as we did. We wanted to protect the paper’s history, further its legacy, and revitalize student journalism on the Pacific campus. In large part thanks to you, not only did we do that, but so much more. So, let us rejoice, reflect, and review, for that is what this special edition constitutes.
To begin, the paper would not be a paper without the diligent authorship of our writers and attentive editorship of our editors, and the articles they produce. We committed to publishing weekly stories in four distinct sections, and that we did. Most every week, a story for everyone, recapping happenings in every corner and crevice of campus, could be found on our website. You, the Pacific community, showed us how desperate you were for this restoration of coverage by engaging with articles on social media, discussing them in classes, and emailing us with questions. Thanks to the staff’s collective efforts, a buzz of news, features, and opinions has returned to campus.
Turning the page, due to our loss of campus funding, we knew the business aspect of the paper would be a constant area for improvement. For the first time in years, The Pacifican now offers advertisements, and we are looking forward to rolling out even more comprehensive offerings in the fall. We also released the paper’s first-ever Crowdfunding campaign and held community fundraising nights at local businesses. Thanks to the attendance and generosity of many of you, we were able to survive another year and actualize many of our goals, including producing this special edition.
Our Communication and Photography Teams worked tirelessly this year to fulfill our goal of modernizing the paper. Their efforts lit the way for the future, with our social media presence and engagement growing exponentially. Further, their work allowed our newsletter, released mere months ago, to retain subscribers in the triple digits. The Photography Team provided comprehensive media coverage and increased the visibility of the paper. Looking ahead, we hope to showcase more of their work in galleries on our website.
Reflecting further, our staff grew from seven to 25 members. That alone encapsulates the year we had. Although we had to move offices unexpectedly, our spirits were not dimmed. We faced each challenge head-on, keeping our attention affixed on what we knew the paper could be. So, let it be clear that though the future of journalism may feel unknown, interest in it is only growing at Pacific. And, what is most certain, is that it will only continue to grow.
To conclude, we want to thank our Advisor, Jonathan Partridge, for his consistent guidance and wisdom. We also want to thank all of YOU for your support of the paper. Whether you requested a meeting to discuss an article, aided us in our business efforts, donated to our cause, or read our work, you are a part of The Pacifican forevermore. With that, we will be back! And thank you again!
With sincere gratitude,
Amaya Leiby, 2024-2025 Co-Editor-in-Chief
Kara Uchizono, 2024-2025 Co-Editor-in-Chief