By Emily Goldberg, Editor-in-Chief
Four years ago, around this time of year, I was sitting alone in my basement with COVID-19. Despite being sick, I had an important decision to make. I stared at my computer screen, on it my acceptance letter to Yeshiva University. “Accept Admissions” – all I had to do was press that button. Such a simple, small action; little did I know how that one click would change my life forever.
It was because of that decision that I discovered my passion for journalism, the thing I want to devote the rest of my life to. It was because of that decision that I met my best friend, whom I cannot imagine living my life without. And it was because of that decision that I have had the immense privilege of being a part of the YU Observer, an experience that has completely and utterly shaped who I am today.
You could say the fact that I joined the YU Observer was all just a coincidence. I was driving in the car with my father the summer before I began YU when I got an email that the YU Observer was in need of a layout editor. I figured I might as well apply for the job, as I had been the layout editor of my high school newspaper. After all, it would be a nice way to begin getting involved in my college community.
At that time, I intended to pursue a degree in architecture. Anyone who knows me now just laughed, because they know that if there is ever a moment I am doing something unrelated to journalism, for me it is a moment completely wasted. After writing a few articles for the YU Observer my first year on campus, I fell in love with this new passion I found ‘by mistake.’ I switched my art major emphasis from architecture to photography, tacked on a journalism major and the rest is history.
Call it destiny or fate or God or whatever you want, I know it sounds cheesy, but something out there made sure this paper was going to be a part of my life. The person that I am today and the future I will be walking into would be entirely different without the YU Observer; it’s a reality I cannot imagine.
1,400 words will never be enough to encapsulate how much the YU Observer means to me. It is a part of who I am; it has become an essential piece of my identity. I have learned so much from working with the editorial staff and YU students over these past three years. The experiences I have had have challenged me to step outside my comfort zone and allowed me to grow in ways I could not have even imagined.
I have witnessed firsthand the power that students have at YU to create change by sharing our unique voices and perspectives with others. We do it because we care, because we know that YU can be a much better place. And we yearn for it to be better because it means so much to us. Getting to read the stories that so many students have had the courage to write has changed my outlook on a variety of topics. I am honored that I have gotten to help share them with others too.
And yet, while reflecting on my time at the YU Observer, I also learned something new about this passion I thought I knew so intimately. A realization that came about as I began typing these very words.
Journalism not only has the power to make our university a better place by challenging those who read our articles to view the world in a different light; it also has the power to change us, the writers. Whether it be by speaking to people who have different perspectives than our own for a story or by digging deep to bring our innermost thoughts to light, we end up learning more about ourselves through writing, changing and growing as we do.
1,400 words will never be able to fully express how much the YU Observer means to me, because 1,400 words will never be able to encapsulate how much the YU Observer has changed me.
I would be remiss if I did not take a moment to thank the many people who have been a part of making me the person that I am today through this newspaper. To my predecessor Aaron (Yitzy) Shaykevich who prepared me immensely for the task of stepping into this role: Thank you for always believing in me and encouraging me, even when I doubted myself.
To the entire YU Observer editorial team: It is because of your dedication and immense effort that the YU Observer has become the success it is today. You have all taught me so much over the past three years, and I will miss the late night writing sessions and laughing at inside jokes no one else understands (and deleting all your Oxford commas). The final product of the newspaper on the stands every month would not have been possible without this incredible team I have had the privilege of working alongside this year.
Most importantly, to my managing editor, Shira Kramer: I never would have stood a chance of running this newspaper without you. Thank you for being by my side through both the meaningful moments and the challenges, the laughs and the tears. You have been a true partner to me in leading this paper. I have no doubt that I am leaving it in the most capable hands, to carry on all that we have accomplished into the future.
At the end of last year, as one of my first acts as editor-in-chief, I decided to change the YU Observer’s about page. I did it because there was one crucial element I thought was missing from the definition of what the YU Observer really is: the voice of the students.
Everyone, no matter their writing background or future career plans, is encouraged to write for the YU Observer. For many, doing so is not an easy task and takes immense bravery. I am inspired by every YU student who has been courageous enough to put themselves out there and take that step, as terrifying as it can be. It is because of these brave students that YU can inch closer to becoming the place we all envision it can be. It is because of these students that the changes so desperately needed at this university have begun to take place.
At the same time, I have only served as editor-in-chief for one year, and I feel as though we have barely even scratched the surface. There are so many stories we never got to report on and so much work left to bring about the changes that still need to be made. Even as daunting as it may sometimes be, this school needs its students to speak up and challenge it to do better. That is what makes the YU Observer unique, why I have so much respect for this newspaper: It is the place YU students know they can go to share their voices, so that others can finally listen.
So never stop using your voices. Never stop believing that you have the power to create a better tomorrow at YU. It starts with you, the students.
I challenge you to ask yourselves this: Who were you when you first walked through the doors of Yeshiva University, and what kind of a place was it when you first entered its halls? Now think: What kind of a place do you want it to become for those who will walk in those doors after you? What kind of a place do you want to leave for them?
Are you doing all that you can to make it that for the future generations of YU students?
As I think about where I am headed next, like so many of my graduating peers, I cannot lie and say that I don’t wake up every morning petrified of the future. The unknown is an extremely scary thing. But what I do know is that without both the YU Observer and the students of YU, I would not be prepared for what lies ahead.
So in however many years from now, wherever I may be, however many articles I may have written by then, I will always think back to how that one small click in my childhood basement is the reason I made it here today.
I may only have 1,400 words left, but I will never forget that this is where it all began.