Meet the new Editor In Chief Jenna LaConte!

meet the new

Editor-‐In-‐Chief The story of my relationship with Gavel Media begins like that of many other Boston College stu-­ dents and their extracurricular activities. After my freshman year, during which I made the discovery that I never needed to leave Newton Campus be-­ sides to go to class and to sneak into the occa-­ sional Mod, I came back as a sophomore ready to get a life. Don’t get me wrong — the Newton dweller lifestyle was great, and I have nothing but sympathy for Upper kids who never get the chance to try it out. Still, I needed to get involved before my brain turned into complete and utter mush.

Flash forward to Student Activities Day of my sophomore year. I wish I could say that Gavel Media had been in the back of my mind since I entered BC, but like many of my peers, I had never even heard of Gavel Media before this day.

(Or, maybe I had and I just assumed it was a Law School publication. It happens to the best of us.)

I also wish I could tell you that I had some kind of epiphany at The Gavel’s table that Student Ac-­ tivities Day. I didn’t. I don’t even remember writing my name down for their listserv, but a few days later, I got an email about an upcoming Gavel Me-­ dia info session.

So, that meeting must be where I realized that I was destined to write for The Gavel, right?

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Wrong. I skipped it. I may have wanted to get more involved, but I was taking baby steps.

By some miracle, The Gavel hosted a second LQIR VHVVLRQ D ZHHN ODWHU DQG , ¿QDOO\ GHFLGHG WR go see what the group had to offer. What I found was a slightly disorganized group of people who had a lot on their plates and genuinely good inten-­ tions. I was sold.

As much as I can try, it is simply impossible for me to put into words the transformation that The Gavel has undergone in the last two years.

What started out as a low-­budget newspaper is now a top-­notch magazine. We publish so many online articles every day that I can barely keep up, whereas posting one article per day was a VWUXJJOH ZKHQ , ¿UVW MRLQHG 'XULQJ P\ ¿UVW FRXSOH of months, if 15 people showed up for a meeting, that was a good turnout. The last time I was in a room with everyone from The Gavel, there were about 70 of us squeezed into my living room for our annual Christmas dinner, and the number has continued to grow in my absence.

Oh, right, my absence. I should mention that I am currently studying abroad in Parma, Italy.

Maybe you already know this because of my blog, Abroad and in a relationship with food. Or maybe you’re familiar with my other blog, The un-­ solicited celebrity advice column. If either of these

The Gavel may still be young, but thanks to all of these people as well as the handful of individuals who came before them, it is well-nourished. I would even venture to say that, at the age of four, it is somewhat of a prodigy.

May 2013

JENNA

blogs  are  familiar  to  you,  or  if  you  know  me  on  any  level  as  a  person,  you  are  probably  aware  of  my  resistance  to  act  serious  in  most  situations.

And  yet,  here  I  am,  announcing  myself  as  the  future  Editor-­in-­Chief  of  Gavel  Media.  In  spite  of  my  love  for  satire  and  my  need  to  turn  most  things  into  a  joke,  I  can  assure  you  that,  above  all  else,  Gavel  Media  as  an  organization  is  my  pride  and  joy.  It  is  my  Boston  College  experience.  I  could  not  be  more  honored  or  excited  to  give  myself  fully  to  this  organization  when  our  current  Editor-­in-­Chief,  Mason  Lende,  graduates.

It  is  always  sad  when  a  club  has  to  bid  farewell  to  its  seniors,  but  for  The  Gavel,  this  is  an  espe-­ cially  tough  loss.  We  are  saying  goodbye  to  the  ¿QDO JURXS RI SHRSOH WKDW KDV EHHQ ZLWK 7KH *DYHO since  its  establishment  in  2009.  The  Gavel  is  their  baby,  and  they  kept  it  going  when  barely  anyone  was  reading  because  they  believed  it  would  be  worth  it.  It  was  worth  it.

To  our  senior  section  editors,  thank  you  for  writ-­ ing  articles  back  when  the  only  viewers  would  be  your  parents  and  your  Facebook  friends.  Thank  you  for  nurturing  our  continuously  growing  pool  of  writers  and  turning  us  into  a  team,  not  just  a  staff.

To  our  senior  copy  editors,  Marion  Halftermey-­ er  and  Shannon  Cogan,  I  do  not  envy  your  job.  Thank  you  for  being  so  meticulous  and  refusing  to  settle  for  anything  less  than  our  best  content.

To  Rob  Rossi  and  Olivia  Simone,  thanks  for  challenging  us  all  to  take  our  online  and  print  ar-­ ticles  a  step  further.  Rob,  thank  you  for  prioritizing  the  Gavel  over  everything  —even  your  coveted  position  as  the  wrap  guy  at  Late  Night.  Olivia,  thank  you  for  all  of  the  hours  that  you’ve  put  into  our  print  editions.  We’ve  come  a  long  way  since  our  newspaper  days.

Mason,  I’m  actually  glad  that  study  abroad  put  an  ocean  between  us  during  your  last  semester  as  Editor-­in-­Chief  because  even  from  here  I  can  www.bcgavel.com

barely  keep  it  together  when  I  think  about  you  leaving.  Thank  you  for  being  the  Liz  Lemon-­iest  leader  since  Liz  Lemon  herself.  Thank  you  for  choosing  The  Gavel  over  sleep  even  when  it  negatively  impacted  your  health.  Thank  you  for  not  giving  up  when  it  would  have  been  the  easier  thing  to  do.  Thank  you  for  pestering  me  about  The  Gavel  at  all  hours  of  the  day,  even  when  you  are  driving  me  crazy.  Thank  you  for  not  getting  angry  when  I  tell  you  that  you’re  driving  me  crazy.  Mostly,  WKDQN \RX IRU NHHSLQJ 7KH *DYHO DÀRDW IRU DOO FXU-­ rent  and  future  Gaveliers  whose  love  for  Boston  College  centers  around  their  love  for  Gavel  Media,  as  mine  does.

I  would  be  remiss  not  to  thank  our  readers,  without  whom  I  would  still  be  writing  articles  for  the  sole  purpose  of  emailing  them  to  my  parents  as  proof  that  I  am  being  slightly  productive  at  BC.  Thanks  for  making  what  we  do  count.

I  look  forward  to  working  with  the  entire  ever-­ JURZLQJ VWDII RI *DYHO 0HGLD QH[W \HDU VSHFL¿FDOO\ my  three  future  right-­hand  ladies,  Managing  Editor  Katie  Levingston,  Online  Manager  Emily  Akin  and  Print  Manager  Jillian  Timko.  Maybe,  just  maybe,  our  work  relationship  will  turn  into  a  friendship,  but  I  can’t  make  any  promises.

The  Gavel  may  still  be  young,  but  thanks  to  all  of  these  people  as  well  as  the  handful  of  individu-­ als  who  came  before  them,  it  is  well-­nourished.  I  would  even  venture  to  say  that,  at  the  age  of  four,  it  is  somewhat  of  a  prodigy.

To  our  readers,  I  urge  you  to  stay  tuned  and  see  what  we  have  up  our  sleeves.  I  have  big  ex-­ pectations  for  The  Gavel,  but  more  importantly,  I  hope  that  you  expect  big  things  from  us.

Jenna Laconte Editor-in-Chief 9