The Butler Collegian will be under the leadership of a new adviser and a new editor in chief for the spring semester.
Daniel Comiskey, deputy editor at Indianapolis Monthly, will assume the role of adviser. He will replace Nancy Whitmore, who was serving in the role on an interim basis.
Katie Goodrich, junior journalism major and political science minor, will serve as editor in chief.
Comiskey, who earned a master’s degree in journalism from Indiana University, has worked at Indianapolis Monthly since 2006. He said he earned his master’s degree with the intent to teach students, whether in a classroom setting or in an adviser setting.
“This business can wear people down, and you don’t see that in young student-journalists,” he said. “The enthusiasm is contagious.”
He said he will not be “dictating vision” for the Collegian, but will rely on input from Collegian staff members and advise them accordingly.
“This is uncharted territory for everyone,” he said. “There’s a brand-new editor in chief, a new adviser, you have a newspaper that’s suddenly digital-first. There’s a whole lot of change, and we’re all going to have to figure it out together.”
Goodrich began as a news reporter for the Collegian during her first semester on campus. She has served in a new role each semester, including assistant news editor, news editor and managing editor.
Goodrich will replace junior Matthew VanTryon, who is doing an internship next semester. She said she is looking forward to beginning in her new role.
“I think the fresh start is going to be good for us,” she said. “We have some kinks to work out in our workflow, but I hope we have a semester of great content and great reporting, and we have a lot of fun in the newsroom.”
Goodrich said she is focused on improving the Collegian’s digital presence. This semester, the Collegian switched from a weekly print product to a monthly print product.
“There are a lot of interesting things that happen on campus every day, and we are going to be able to tell those stories,” she said. “I want us to be able to improve our digital presence and social media presence so we can share those amazing stories with campus, our neighbors in Butler-Tarkington and our followers like our parents at home. I want those people to get involved with the Collegian, and I want to build that community around this paper.”
The Collegian is now accepting applications for the spring semester. To apply, pick up an application outside the Collegian office or contact Goodrich at kmgoodri@butler.edu.
