To our readers, 

On Saturday, the Clarion welcomed back many alumni to our campus to celebrate the 125th year of being the student newspaper at the University of Denver. It was one of the greatest days in our newspaper’s history. 

We started the day by visiting the outstanding exhibit on the main floor of the Anderson Academic Commons. The exhibit has archives from every decade the Clarion existed and takes visitors on a path of the most important news we have covered. Jessica Smith and the entire Special Collections and Archives team did a great job in curating the exhibit and reflecting on the eras of our newspaper. 

We then moved to the back of AAC and played some DU-themed trivia. The alumni and current staff worked together to answer three rounds of historical questions and it was a fun time getting to hear stories talking about who the identity of Denver Boone was in the 70’s, what covering Woodstock West was like and the differences between how the Clarion was operated. 

At noon, we left for Magilone Hall and hosted a luncheon. We continued to tell more stories about our Clarion experiences, I got to talk about our current rebranding efforts and we revealed a new fund for traveling costs. Our writers will now have the opportunity to travel to assignments and get that experience that is very common throughout the journalism field, thanks to the gracious donations from alumni. 

That night, several of us attended the second hockey game of the weekend and watched the team trounce Northeastern, 5-2. It was a happy ending to the spectacular day. 

The reason why this was one of the greatest days in our history is that we have never really fostered the connection between our alumni and the students on the current staff. This was the first event of its kind and was the perfect catalyst for keeping this connection strong. 

I said during the luncheon that it is super hard to feel that the Clarion makes an impact on the current student body, as many students aren’t interested in reading the news as much as previous generations of students. I’ve heard many students in my time here at DU say they didn’t even know we have a student-led newspaper. On occasion, it has made it very, very hard to stay motivated to keep this newspaper going. 

But, seeing the amount of people that flew in from all parts of the country and seeing how much they cared about what is being done with the Clarion has given me extra motivation to put in 110% of my effort into working with the Clarion. I want to make every alum proud of what is being done with the Clarion and proud of the fact that we continue to build off their groundwork. 

Because what the Clarion does is important to this campus whether you know about us or not. It’s also the reason why we have lasted for 125 years. We are the voice for the students. Throughout our history, our student body has been upset with a boatload of issues and we have continued to amplify those who want to make the university a better place. 

We seek the truth and nothing but the truth, and we do not have to represent the ideals of the university. We established this identity a long time ago and this current staff will be dedicated to making sure that identity does not bid farewell. 

It was an honor to be in the presence of every alum who could make it to Saturday’s reunion. I am super pumped that this will not be the last reunion and a new tradition has begun for the Clarion. May this newspaper last for 125 more reunions. 

Sincerely, 

Riley Laub 

Executive Editor