Not having the college experience you were hoping for? Needing a resume boost to apply for internships? Looking for life skills to prepare for after graduation? Searching for a community to call your home? If you answered yes to any — or all — of these questions, then we have a place for you. Check out our three reasons why you should join your student newspaper, and if you are attending UTSA, why you should join The Paisano. 

• Experience and resume-building

Experience in your desired field will not just fall in your lap, and a student newspaper is not just for writers. Running a student newspaper includes writing, photography, graphic art, business, social media, website management, page design, advertising, multimedia, magazine and more. This alone is enough diverse opportunities to interest most students. Even if your major is computer science, but you have a passion for photography, your student newspaper can be an outlet for this. 

Not only are the opportunities endless, but the best part is that all of this can uplift your resume and set you apart when it comes time to apply for jobs and internships. Having tangible proof of your work and a designated corner of a website to display it can set you apart from competitors. The Paisano alumni, using skills learned and nurtured working on a student newspaper, have gone on to work at places like National Geographic, KSAT, The Los Angeles Times and countless others who have become lawyers. 

Unlike other student newspapers, The Paisano is independent, which means it receives no funding from UTSA. Because of this, it relies on advertising sales and donations. The Paisano operates as a nonprofit organization and with everything at the paper 100% student-run, staff members learn real-life skills on what it takes to uphold finances, sell ads and lead teams. Not just in terms of learning crafts, working for a student newspaper can teach you discipline and help you grow in your field, working with like-minded individuals and growing with feedback. Operating with deadlines, feedback and structure are skills that you might not always pick up in class. 

• Uplifting community

Student newspapers serve as a home to hardworking individuals passionate about getting news and information to students. While newspapers like The Paisano operate seamlessly and professionally, staff members still have time to create long-lasting professional and personal relationships. With monthly socials and dinners provided each production night, time to get to know each other is highly valued. Past socials for The Paisano have taken place at Chicken N Pickle and The Divide Beer Garden. 

Not only do student newspapers value cultivating internal community, but uplifting the student community is all a part of the job. Events that The Paisano holds to do this include the annual “Get Your Pot at The Paisano,” where we pass out plants to students and our “Fall in Love with The Paisano,” where pumpkins are passed out and students have the opportunity to paint them. 

At their core, student newspapers’ mission is to give students valuable information and keep them informed on what they might not know about on campus. Through this, both its internal and external communities are being elevated. 

• Trying something new

Joining any organization can be daunting, especially if you do not know exactly where you would fit in. This is where The Paisano is so special — it requires no prior experience or portfolio in any field. All you have to do to be involved is to be interested in learning. The beauty of The Paisano is that it is long-term commitment-free. It requires no dues or payments and if you do not want to contribute one week, you do not have to. All of your contributions are on your terms and you will never be pressured to take on more than you want. 

If you are interested in learning more about The Paisano, here is a rundown of our weekly events. These events are not mandatory and each meeting and production night are open to all UTSA students. 

• General meeting: At 6 p.m. every Wednesday at 14526 Roadrunner Way. At this meeting, attendees will be given a rundown of what The Paisano is and hear from each editor about their pitches for the week. From there, if interested, you can pick something up. When an attendee picks a contribution up they have until Sunday at 1 p.m. to turn it in. 
• Production night: Each Monday, The Paisano staff meets at the office at 5 p.m. to copyedit and finalize the page designs made by our editors. Dinner is provided and past dinners have included Taco Bell, Costco pizza, Slim Chickens and Chick-fil-A. 
• Distribution: After the newspaper pages are finalized on Monday night, they are sent over to the press to be printed and distributed on campus. The distribution team meets every Tuesday and places papers on all Paisano stands around campus. Expect to start seeing new papers around 12 to 1 p.m. on Tuesdays. 
• Tabling: If you are on campus Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday, you have likely seen our staff passing out papers. At tabling, we put the paper in students’ hands and answer any questions anyone might have about the print or how to get involved. 

Getting involved in your student newspaper could be life-changing, as we know it has been for some of our staff. Growing and learning in a safe environment can unlock skills you did not even know you had, and having room to fail, learn and develop is crucial for the workforce. 

If you heard anything that interested you but are still on the fence about getting involved, feel free to reach out to our managing editor at [email protected] or come to our next meeting at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, March 7 at The Paisano Media Arts Center located at 14526 Roadrunner Way, behind The Block food truck park.