Greetings fellow EWU students, my name is Michael Brock, next year’s Editor in Chief of The Easterner. When I was hired to the position a couple months ago, I was naturally thrilled about the opportunity. I have been in journalism for four years and I am ready to lead the paper into its next phase.

The hire also gave me some time to reflect on The Easterner’s success this year. Our writers, reporters, photographers and editors all worked tirelessly to continue improving, both as individuals and as a team, throughout the year. We covered some pretty impactful stories in each section and I’m proud of the content we produced every week.

My main goal for next year is to build on the momentum that Brandon, Logan and the rest of the staff established the past 30 issues. One of the ways we will look to continue pushing forward is by launching a “digital-first” initiative.

Not “digital-only” mind you, but “digital-first.” Don’t worry; the print edition of The Easterner isn’t going away anytime soon.

Digital-first essentially means that we’re going to have a revamped presence online. We will be posting daily, timely content on our website (theeasterner.org) rather than waiting until after the print edition comes out to do so. To match the new initiative, we will have a mini re-launch of the site over the summer.

The aim is basically this: When a pivotal event happens next year — whether it be sports, news or arts and entertainment — our staff will work to have an article released online within 48 hours. Everything else will have a predetermined deadline, so long as there is new content up every day for our readers. We will then edit and shape each story so it makes sense for print, or leave it out altogether.

Another objective of mine is to continue gaining and building partnerships between The Easterner and the various departments, clubs and organizations on campus. Those connections will only help us cover more stories and in turn, better inform our readers.

With this new initiative, our audience — the students — are as important as ever. We want to tell your triumphs as well as your trials, and the story of Cheney and EWU. The Easterner will continue covering impactful, far-reaching stories in an objective manner. I am excited to lead the charge ahead, and hope to meet or hear from our readers soon.

We are always open to story ideas, contributing content from students or simply comments on ways we can improve. You can reach me at [email protected] over the summer or our new Managing Editor, Jeremy Burnham, at [email protected] with any concerns.