Joining The Paisano changed the direction of my life. I had just switched my major to English and had no clue what I was doing until I met Professor Diane Abdo in her editing course. Professor Abdo praised The Paisano and piqued my interest in joining.

After my first meeting, I was already covering my first event and began my journey in the world of journalism. Not only did I grow as a writer, I became part of a family; a family that supports creative differences and united as one to create something amazing – the best college newspaper in the state of Texas. My favorite memories are the late nights rushing to get the newspaper done, enjoying pizza along with some of Professor Abdo’s amazing home cooked meals while editing the pages and having a laugh or two. We drove each other crazy, but that’s what family does.

My time at The Paisano has led me to my current position. I am currently the assistant editor at The News of San Patricio, a local newspaper covering anything and everything back in my hometown. I write, edit and take photos for the paper as well as designing page layouts and posting our content online.

If I had not joined The Paisano, I would not be where I am today. Everything I learned about journalism came from Professor Abdo and The Paisano’s amazing editors. I learned how to write news stories, headlines, photo captions and work with Adobe InDesign, which is conveniently the same program I currently use for work. When applying for my current job, I was able to showcase my abilities to my employers through everything I did at The Paisano, and I was offered the position the next day.

If you’re thinking about joining, do it. You won’t regret it.