Aggie Alumni:

Dan Halcomb Jr. ’35, editor in chief in fall 1933, went on to edit, publish and manage a dozen newspapers in California and two in New York, retiring as publisher of the Santa Clara Journal. “He was friends with Randolph Hearst, and turned down an offer to put together and run a museum on the history of newspapers at San Simeon because he didn't want us kids to be so far away from good schools,” said his son, Dan Halcomb III ’66.

Chuck Wright ’56: "Around 1953 or 1954, there was a regular article called 'From the Watertower,' written by an anonymous writer called Loquacious. It had some great gossip, 'behind the scenes' facts and criticism where needed. I guess it's safe after 50 years to tell that I was the writer. It was fun while it lasted."
 
Mark Clevenger ’51, editor in chief in spring 1950, entered the Air Force after graduation, where he became an information technician and journalist, helping found the Air Weather Service magazine, The Observer. After he was discharged, he pursued a long career in public relations with the Lockheed Aircraft Corp., then joined the University of Washington as director of  information services and eventually taught in the department of marketing in the business school. After retiring, he launched his own public relations agency. “Every Wednesday night we’d spend half the night in Sacramento proofing the paper. But back then the co-eds had curfews—they had to be in the dorm and couldn’t go out after 10 o’clock at night. So we had to get a special letter of dispensation for the gal editors to stay later.” He also notes that during his tenure he was so taken by a piece of horse artwork by yearbook artist Joan Hoover that he asked his arts editor, Kurt Munnich, to rework it with a sheaf of wheat as a mane. “It became the official seal for the school until the modernists decided it was too rustic.” Munnich went on to become chief forester and vice president for Scott Paper Co., headquartered in Everett, Wash.

Jane (Conant) Blue ’60, M.A. ’78, was a writer for the Aggie sometime in 1956-1958. Blue worked at The Suttertown News in the 1980s, but her primary interest is poetry, which she has published in many national magazines and anthologies. “The Aggie at that time had very little budget and a minuscule staff. Gene Farmer was the editor. I remember him sitting on a steel table as we brainstormed possible stories. He was older than the rest of us and had a dry sense of humor. But he was also very serious, and I believe he wrote most of the major stories. It was the cold war. There was H-testing at that time. We were the pre-protestors. We still thought you could work within the system. Gene was from the Midwest and had a working-class background. He was old enough to have been in the service, perhaps Korea, but I don't know for sure that he was. He went on to write for Laugh-In and Chico and the Man.  If anybody knew him better than I did and why he was at Davis in his late 20s or can add to the sketchy bio I have, I would be interested in hearing."

Dixie Jordan, editor in chief in 1962–63, now editor and publisher of Berkeley-based monthly Parents’ Press, which was one of the first regional parenting magazines when she co-founded it in 1980 after working as reporter and copy editor for daily newspapers in Grass Valley and the Bay Area, including the Contra Costa Times in Walnut Creek.  During her year as Aggie editor, the paper listed a social director on its masthead and “redecorated its rather shabby office with furniture that had been brought in for a regents’ meeting in the same building and was somehow spirited down the hall afterwards.” Jordan added, “I wish I could remember some serious journalistic high points, but the memory that really stands out was meeting a TASS reporter at a party for the USSR minister of agriculture at then-Chancellor Mrak's house. We were probably the only people there under 30, and his English was limited to ‘Journaleeests must drink!’ (which I suspect we proceeded to do). We also got together a parade of old cars for the Picnic Day parade and invited past Cal Aggie editors to join us—some of them quite a few years past. [Spring 1928 Editor] Dean DeCarli was one of them, as I recall.”

Dan Halcomb III then

Dan Halcomb III ’66, editor in chief in fall 1964, worked as a reporter for a variety of newspapers including the Los Angeles Times, edited a fashion magazine and ran an advertising agency before “retiring” into teaching journalism at Reno High School, where he advises an award-winning student newspaper. “Personally, I saw the Aggie's role very simply: to get the news out—the news of interest to the UCD community—and to do it in an interesting manner. We were quite creative in our layout at times. None of us had any significant experience in journalism prior to joining the Aggie staff, nor any real training, and we had pretty much free rein to say and do as we pleased. But we took our jobs very seriously and tried to make our paper as interesting and informative as possible.  For some of us, it was the center of our lives at UC Davis. . . . It seemed the whole world was turning upside down at the time.  When I arrived at UC Davis as a transfer sophomore in 1962, we were still in the national post-war mindset of Father Knows Best. Those innocent years of the ’50s and early ’60s were blown to smithereens, however, as the Vietnam War, the Beatles, drugs and free love all conspired to challenge our most basic tenets. At the Cal Aggie, we tried to report on as much of all that as possible, but it was happening so fast and so “out of context” that we could barely see the forest for the trees. So we reported issue by issue, with rarely a chance to stop and reflect. I look back now and wonder at it all. So much happened so fast.”

Judy Green then

Judy Green ’67, editor in chief in spring 1965, recently retired after more than 32 years as writer and editor for the Sacramento Bee, though she still writes a column about children’s books. “I have fond memories of the nutsy stuff we did with the Aggie. It was stressful, never enough resources, but fun nevertheless. Chancellor [Emil] Mrak was a great guy to work with. With the Civil Rights Movement, Vietnam War cranking up and Free Speech movement all cooking along, plus the start at UC Davis of the student review of teachers and courses, there was never a dull moment.”

Howard Egerman '68, news editor and writer of a column called "The Mischievous  Muckraker," is now a social security employee in East Oakland, a union representative for the American Federation of Government Employees and editor of his union paper. "Some of my memories as a staff member were in  l968 covering then-presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy when he spoke at  Freeborn Hall, covering then-Gov. Ronald Reagan, getting my picture  taken with him and finding what a nice person he was—he even answered questions of a student journalist and then later answered one of my questions at his news conference in Sacramento.

"As a columnist I did a variety of things which turned out differently. I rated fraternities on a grossness quotient and some wanted to be rated higher. I had two beauty contests, Miss Muck and Miss Rake, and people wanted to be entered as well.

"Being on the Aggie was a wonderful experience. I  started as a person who edited my high school paper and found that later on when I went to government service and became active in my union that I could edit our regional union paper, Union Line from Region 9, and we even won two journalism awards at our national convention in Atlanta."

John Gannon ’72, Aggie staffer in 1969, went to law school at Hastings and became a lawyer in Boise, Idaho, working primarily in consumer/small business litigation. He also served a term in the Idaho Legislature. "I decided to try my hand at journalism at the Aggie in 1969. The editor said to get ‘something interesting.’ My neighbor at Beckett Hall had several reptiles in his room, including a 10-foot python, so I wrote my first story about the Snake Man on Campus. The editor was so excited he got a picture of Henry with the snake, and much to my surprise the Sacramento Bee and AP picked it up. A short summary ran in Norfolk, Va., where his parents lived. The residence hall people had to investigate. It was a great way to start my reporting career with the Aggie and later as an intern at the Davis Enterprise."

Susanne Rockwell ’74, M.A. ’96, reporter in 1971-72 and feature editor in fall 1973, worked for 15 years as a writer and editor at newspapers, including the Vacaville Reporter, Winters Express and Sacramento Union, edited the faculty-staff Dateline UC Davis paper for 11 years and is now a UC Davis senior public information representative and new media/Web editor. “Lessons learned at the Aggie: I remember my first story on salmonella and am now thankful that my editor was a science major who could save me and my story—and the Aggie—from total ignominy. And during my senior year, thanks to the copy editor who had genuine professional experience, for help with the editing or we would have really been lost. I also met my husband, for a short time the managing editor at the Aggie, my senior year."

Curt Robinson '74, M.A. ’81, Ph.D. ’95, news editor in 1972-73, editor in chief in 1973-74 and Media Board member in 1990; went on to a long career in publishing, serving as director of marketing and public relations for UC Davis Extension, as editor in chief of the California Department of Education's Bureau of Publications, as a deputy to State Superintendent Delaine Eastin '69 for teacher's retirement issues, as head of the Office of Water Education for the California Department of Water Resources, as an assistant vice president of enterprise activities and foundation executive director for California State University, Hayward, and now is executive director of Geothermal Resources Council in Davis. “If I recall my Aggie history correctly, the April 1, 1972 (April Fools issue), carried a story written by Neil Barker '74 which reported that The Who was scheduled to play at Freeborn Hall in the coming days. Needless to say, an enormous line developed at the Freeborn Hall box office. This spoof did create some disappointment but also some merriment by the Freeborn Basement pranksters at the Aggie.

"Following the 1973 tensions between the Aggie and The Third World News (TWN), the two papers developed a close and supportive relationship because of the efforts of Drew Brown '75, Mel Davis '74 and Ken Bodie '75—even including TWN in the Aggie as part of its weekly distribution and increasing campus and community exposure for TWN.

"In 1973, the Aggie began carrying Doonesbury on its daily editorial page thanks to editorial page editor Tim Arnold '76.

"For the April Fools 1974 issue, the Aggie changed its format from a 70-column-inch tabloid page to a 168-column-inch, full-sheet newspaper, which was the genesis of the Aggie becoming a self-supporting and a more independent voice of the students (1973-74 was the first year that the Aggie broke even). The change in format resulted in increased advertising revenues (and commissions), and business manager Alan Kato '74, advertising manager Jeff Dickie '75 and advertising salesman Randy Achee '75 were thrilled because their commissions for advertising sales increased enormously at this time (the commission for a full page ad more than doubled!). Some students bitterly complained because the full-sized newspaper became unwieldy and therefore less readable in the back of a boring class!

"With the change in format and increased advertising revenues, a new generation of entrepreneur was born, and Jeff Dickie and Randy Achee went on to graduate and become publishers, and Rebecca Canary '76 became advertising manager and helped the Aggie further stabilize its revenues.

"Working on the Aggie enabled me to have a long and happy career in communications ... as a columnist, editor and publisher. What else might a history major do?"

Gary Hector ’75, editor in chief in 1972­–73, worked as a reporter and associate editor for Fortune magazine and wrote a book, Breaking the Bank: The Decline of BankAmerica.

Steve Huddleston ’76, managing editor in 1975–76, publisher of the Reporter daily newspaper in Vacaville.

Rich Moreno now

Rich Moreno ’78, managing editor in 1976–77, recently became director of student publications at Western Illinois University in Macomb, after 14 years as publisher of Nevada Magazine. Moreno was also student body president in 1977–78. “I firmly believe my time in the Aggie offices in the basement of Freeborn Hall helped me to decide my career path; I was originally going to go to law school but ended up attending the Columbia School of Journalism.”

Rick Kushman now

Rick Kushman ’79, editor in chief in 1978–79, television columnist for the Sacramento Bee. “Here’s what made this so cool: Having no journalism adviser, having no budget demands other than that we break even—it was the most pure journalism ever around. We didn’t have a clue what we were doing.” But in a post-Watergate era when journalism was viewed as a noble calling, “We just tried our best to be noble.”

Jeff Aran '80, staff writer and paste-up artist in 1978-80, worked as a marketing director for a circus, publications manager for Foundation Health Plan, then as editor of the Sacramento Realtor magazine while he was studying law. Aran is now an attorney in Sacramento. “I used to write movie and theater reviews, as well as a column titled 'Laughter & Tears shared by Jeff Aran.' My editor was Rick Kushman, who was Mr. Sports back then and didn't care much for soft news. I learned a great deal from him though, and now, ironically, he is the television writer for the Sacramento Bee.

"In those pre-Microsoft days, we were just learning to write stories on computers, but they were printed and run through a waxing machine to be laid out (pasted) upon large boards. We worked long hours after school, usually until 11 or 12 at night putting the paper 'to bed.' When it was finally finished, one of us would run it downtown to the Davis Enterprise for printing. If you ever noticed a crooked or missing headline, that's because the wax didn't hold! (Nowadays, of course, the paper is designed in cyberspace and sent electronically to the printer.)"

Brent Coleman now

Brent Coleman ’80, managing editor in 1979–80, now a features copy editor and occasional features writer for the Cincinnati Enquirer. “The Aggie was my life in college. Some students joined sororities or fraternities. The Aggie was a special ‘frarority.’ In many ways, it was sandbox journalist in that we had no real professional advisers. But it was a great way to learn the ropes and gave me such a solid foundation that I never felt the need to go back for a master's. When I graduated in June 1980, I hit the ground running and have worked for newspapers ever since.” More photos . . .

Pat Flynn now

Pat Flynn ’80, sports editor in 1975–76 and campus editor in 1976–77, now senior editor for sports and business at the San Diego Union-Tribune.

Jerry Hirsch now

Jerry Hirsch ’80, campus editor in 1979–80, now staff writer for the Los Angeles Times, covering agriculture with an emphasis on the wine business, restaurants, supermarkets and some food-safety issues. “The most important thing I remember about the Aggie is that it gave me the opportunity to collect clips I used for graduate school admission and to gain summer employment at the Woodland Democrat. The Aggie taught me how to put my butt in a chair and focus on organizing and writing a story on a daily basis, a crucial skill for this business.”

Susan (Hermann) Peisker '85 wrote for the Aggie in 1981-85. She then worked in advertising and corporate communications before deciding to stay home with her three children. Peisker currently lives in Texas, where she is homeschooling her children and volunteering at Teen Court, where teenagers acting as attorneys, bailiffs, clerks and jurors sentence their peers. "I first walked into The California Aggie newsroom as a very new freshman, just a few days after classes started in 1981. I loved to write, but I had absolutely no experience as a reporter. I was pretty determined that I wanted to work for the Aggie, so when I was sent to cover a story about a controversy over new gas pump nozzles, I went. Since I had absolutely no knowledge of gas pump nozzles, I did what I had to do: I took a lot of notes. I guess my strategy worked, because my editor kept handing me stories and I eventually ended up on staff, writing for the Aggie until I graduated in 1985.

"With the staff position came the responsibility of a beat, which made the job a lot of fun. After working the police beat for a while (and earning the nickname Scooplet), I was assigned to the city council meetings. When things were a little slow on our beat, we would pick up other stories or talk our editor into letting us cover special events—like driving into San Francisco to attend the Press Club luncheon. Once, another staffer and I went to Sacramento as the Aggie representatives for a meeting of all the UC student newspapers. As I recall, Willie Brown’s office had organized the event, but he never showed up for it. Nevertheless, we met several other legislators, at least one of whom is now in national politics.

"Feature stories are a great way to round out one’s reporting experience and we were encouraged to write them often. I participated in an enjoyable series on alumni from the early days—most of whom had graduated in the 1920s. I also did some crazy 'investigative work,' like staying overnight in a homeless shelter, and covering a story on skydiving by being strapped in the open door of an airplane at 10,000 feet.

"Working at the Aggie was one of the best jobs I have ever had. I learned so much from the ups and downs that come with the responsibility of having my name on the byline. What made the job so great was the autonomy we had. We ran the whole paper on our own; we had some great people who were diligent enough to do it well and who trained others to do likewise."
 
Victoria Colliver ’87, editor in chief in 1986–87, now a reporter covering the health-care industry for the San Francisco Chronicle. “I have fond memories of my days in Lower Freeborn. . . . God knows I spent more time there during my last two years at Davis than I did in class and studying!”

Margaret Perrone ’87, held a number of positions from 1981 to 1986, from news writer to copy camera operator. She now lives in Benicia and works as an editor and writer for textbooks and newsletters. "It was a great education, and I recognized it as valuable experience even then. I was especially happy to see the Aggie Style Manual mentioned in your lead. To my knowledge Anne-Marie Fulfer and I wrote the first style manual, in 1985, when the AP Manual of Style proved to be inadequate too often for us. No excuses--look it up!
 
"I have lots of memories of The Aggie that can hardly be termed 'favorite.' But one does make me smile to this day. It actually occurred four years after I left UCD. I was walking to work in San Francisco one day, when I ran into another Aggie alum on the street corner. We briefly chatted about many things when the topic of The Aggie came up. She swiftly pulled out her wallet and showed me an anonymous classified that had run one Valentine's Day. She said she had carried it with her ever since that day because the message on it gave her hope and made her feel less alone in the world. I was stunned. It was something I jotted out at the last minute to fill space. For all the thousands of copies of The Aggie I had seen strewn as litter across campus everyday, there was a scrap I had written that actually touched someone. Maybe it wasn't a big news story or a captivating photo. But to her it was inspiring, and I was flattered." 

Ethan Watters ’87, editor in chief 1985–86, has written for a number of national magazines including New York Times Magazine, Spin, Discover, Details, Men’s Journal, Mother Jones, GQ and Esquire. He co-founded the San Francisco Writers' Grotto, wrote the book Urban Tribes: Are Friends the New Family? and co-authored two books about recovered memory therapy and the mental health profession. He is now working on a book about evolutionary medicine.

Peter Castles ‘88, news and sports staff writer in 1987-88, now a community relations project manager in Sacramento and freelance writer for Sacramento News & Review and other local publications: "Crawling out of Lower Freeborn and inhaling the fresh night air after scratching out yet another story.

"The mixture of slight euphoria and palpable exhaustion that comes after BARELY making the deadline.

"The tears of hilarity running down our faces as the sports staff share yet another unbelievably lame quote by an Aggie athlete (which we MUST run in the story!).

"The feeling of satisfaction (and relief) when your editor--in my case, whiz kid Howard Beck--makes only minimal changes to your copy (which means you finally get to go HOME!).

"The quiet pride and sense of accomplishment as you pause between classes to check out your story in the next day's edition."

Lisa Lundquist ’88, feature writer in 1984-86, now district manager for Blockbuster. "I can still recall that sense of excitement and the smell of the 'dungeon' when I'd head down there to meet with the copy editors and other writers. One of my favorite people down there was J.W. And although I was a Little Sister and also worked with a fun group of folks at the UCD Bookstore, the Aggie was by far the coolest 'club' to be in back then!

"The story I remember most is one that I wrote about the then-new AIDS epidemic. It was one of my first articles, and I remember there was quite a stir in the newsroom because I wanted to use the word 'rectum' when describing how AIDS was transmitted. I don't remember if it made it into print or not. My, how times have changed."

Noel Wilson Gallagher ’90, editor in chief 1989–90, communications director for the Richard and Goldman Fund in San Francisco after working in media relations for UC Berkeley and as a reporter for the Los Angeles Times and reporter and news editor for the Associated Press.

Howard Beck and his wife, Mariko.

Howard Beck ’91, editor in chief 1990–91, now a sportswriter covering the New York Knicks for the New York Times. “I think one of the great joys and advantages of working there was: It was just us—students. We had all the responsibility. Ninety-nine percent of the time, I think we handled the responsibility very well because we understood that no one was going to take the fall for us.”

Ben Fox ’91, city editor 1990–91, Caribbean news editor for the Associated Press.

Daniel Brown ’92, editor in chief in 1991–92, now an NFL columnist for the San Jose Mercury News.

Paiching Wei ’92, art director from 1989 to 1992, now graphics director for the San Jose Mercury News and goes by the single name of Pai.

Brenda Hensley '93, Cred. '94, who worked at the Aggie in 1989-94 as classified ad clerk, editorial typist, April Fools’ issue writer, assistant ad manager-layout, assistant ad manager-on campus and business manager, is now a Vacaville middle school mathematics teacher and president of the Vacaville Teachers Association. "For me, The California Aggie means UC Davis. It was my sorority/fraternity, a fellowship among people with a common goal. It was my niche on campus. It was my safe place when my world was crashing around me. Those windowless rooms were my safe haven. I knew there that my contributions would be appreciated and acknowledged, not from professors or people in authority, but from my peers. Our editors-in-chief during my tenure were excellent: Noel Wilson, Dan Brown, Howard Beck, Rachel Wettergreen, Nathaniel Levine. All of those folks have gone on to work in the field of journalism.

"My favorite memories of the Aggie are those that only the staff have: Taking the annual staff picture (including the one that printed with 'Shit Howdy' above it), attending the annual retreat in Tahoe (I went to four). We worked hard, bonded and partied a little on those retreats. The day the U.S. bombed Iraq in 1991, we were on that retreat. Fifty of us huddled around one TV. The annual Sin-and-Dye party that we threw at a staff member’s house every year: We had to dye our hair a crazy color and bring our favorite sin. It was a long tradition. The Orgasmatron dark room door: It was always fun watching an editor try to explain that one to a young student tour group. The songs that our sports editors would create on Sunday evenings and sing for the staff shortly before the midnight deadline. I had nothing to do with paper at night, but I would often come in just to hear the songs. Making  Donna Dennis, our head clerk and only 'adult' on staff (I call her my college mom),  laugh at some crazy antic we had engaged in at the office was just good clean fun. The dramas, the relationships that turned into marriage and those that turned out to be disastrous for working conditions, the late nights, the missed deadlines, going to Lyon’s after the paper got delivered to the Enterprise for printing; the memories just keep flooding in. Right there, in the basement, with no sunlight or stars, but with the knowledge that you were contributing to the campus in a positive way; that your work meant something to over 25,000 students and staff."

Rachel Wettergreen Wilner now (Photo: San Jose Mercury News)

Rachel Wettergreen Wilner ’93, editor in chief in 1992–93, selected this June as first woman sports editor of the San Jose Mercury News, one of a few women running sports departments at major metropolitan dailies. “I can't imagine a better way to prepare for a career in journalism than working at the Aggie. All the issues I dealt with there—deadline pressure, conflicts of interest, anonymous sources, personnel issues—are the same things I see every day at the Mercury News. Probably the best thing about working at the Aggie was the way everyone learned from each other. There was no “adult” around, but everyone took their responsibilities very seriously—including their responsibility to teach the next generation. Whenever aspiring journalists ask me whether they should major in journalism, I always say no: They should get a good liberal arts education and work at their college paper—they'll learn more and have more fun.”

Nathaniel Levine ’94, editor in chief in 1993–94, now graphic artist for the Sacramento Bee. “Everything I learned about [graphic design], I learned at the Aggie, mostly all self-directed study and from my peers. . . . There was a lot of talent on the paper then. I learned a tremendous amount from the people I worked with.”

Todd Perlman '96, editor in chief in 1995-96, now West County bureau chief for the Contra Costa Times. "To this day, some of my best friends are former Aggie colleagues, and that in and of itself is remarkable. They were there to support me the day angry students spent upwards of an hour deriding me for an editorial criticizing a hunger strike over affirmative action rulings, and they stood by my decision not to accept an advertisement from Holocaust revisionists that specifically targeted campus publications. But I will forever be indebted to the Aggie for giving me the chance to meet Marcia Brady. I was managing editor in spring 1995 when Marcia (aka Maureen McCormick) visited campus to give a speech on birth control. Thankfully, I had skipped class and was sitting at my desk in Lower Freeborn when she returned a call I had put into her on a lark a day earlier. The call caught me so off guard that I was barely able to keep my composure enough to conduct an interview—all the while my staff, realizing who was on the other end of the phone, was laughing, pointing and making rude gestures. The next day, I was among a select few students who got to meet Marcia before her speech in Freeborn, and she gave me an autographed photo: 'To Todd, Love Maureen.' I still have it."   

Julie Dalrymple now

Julie Dalrymple '98, city editor in 1998, now works in marketing and development for the Diablo Regional Arts Association, a nonprofit organization in Walnut Creek that raises funds for the Dean Lesher Center for the Arts. "I could list a multitude of memories from The Aggie newsroom. They return to me often, in vivid reminders of a wonderfully intense period of my life filled with deadlines, headlines, interviews, parties, dramatic failed romances and budding life-long friendships. In 1998 I was the city editor of The Aggie and spent the vast majority of my time down in the basement of Lower Freeborn writing, editing and loving every minute of what felt like our own secret world. While 'the real world' has definitely had its share of memorable moments, there has been nothing like the camaraderie, innocence and carefree enthusiasm that was shared in that chaotic newsroom.
 
"There were the countless parties, like my 1997 Halloween party which ended up in our own paper's 'Police Briefs.' There were the perks, like sneaking in to hang out with bands that played in Freeborn Hall. And there were the challenges, like struggling together through rough editorial board meetings, staying up together till 2 a.m. to hit late deadlines and once somberly heading home early from a Tahoe retreat to cover the story of a student who had passed away in a car accident.

"I loved writing about the nuances of Davis, covering everything that makes the campus and city such a uniquely beautiful place to spend time, may it be a few years or a lifetime. Whether writing about a day in the life of the mayor or covering the appearance by President Bill Clinton, I was proud of every byline. I learned more about writing, about myself and about teamwork in those few years than I could ever have hoped for.

"These days I go back up to Davis to recharge my batteries, to 'reset' my life in a sense. In fact, I visited just a few months ago in between jobs and actually went back down to the Aggie newsroom. A heavy sense of nostalgia hit the moment I descended the stairs—those stairs that I used to run up and down numerous times a day as an ambitious budding reporter. I was surprised but happy to find that the newsroom itself hadn't changed a bit. My old wooden desk was still in the same place, with the same carvings, remembrances of the ghosts of previous Aggie editors. I could hear Scott Aramaki's infectious laugh. I could see Mike Brooks blinking in the light as he emerged from the darkroom. 'T' sat in his office talking on the phone, David Connors worked diligently on his latest story, and Joe Johnson walked in scrutinizing the day's edition. I was surrounded by friendships I thought would never end, a youthful exuberance I hoped I'd never lose, and a remarkable experience I knew I'd carry with me forever."

Kylie (Ware) Heintz '00, campus editor in 1998-99 and business manager in 1999-2000, now public relations manager at Barracuda Networks Inc. in Mountain View.  "As many other previous staffers have recalled, I too remember the camaraderie that was enjoyed in Lower Freeborn. It was an intense camaraderie that outsiders could not fully grasp. We were a very tight group and would defend each other to a fault. I was the campus editor during the 'Hart Hall' comic stip controversy described in the article, and I can remember the pain that everyone on staff, myself included, felt when our fellow students erupted in protest against us. I can also remember the Media Board meeting that was held to discuss the issue and the number of students, both Aggie staffers and other students that filled the room, all with their own ideas and perceptions of the situation. I think we, as a staff, learned a lot that day, but I think the rest of the campus learned a lot about the 'secret world,' as Julie Dalrymple described the Aggie confines in her rememberance, as well: We were students, just like them, putting out an enormous piece of work each and every day without the assistance of any professional journalist at the time. When looked upon in that sense, I think many (hopefully) came to respect what it was that we did every night. But it also made the Aggie and the Media Board realize that some direction was necessary, and I am glad that changes were made and an adviser was put in place. I think the whole situation, as painful as it was at the time, made the Aggie and the campus as a whole, a stronger community."

Eleeza Agopian ’01, editor in chief in 2000–01, pursuing a master’s degree in communication, culture and technology at Georgetown University after working as a reporter for the Orange Country Register. “As for my own personal memories of the Aggie . . . here's one story I love telling: Just before Valentine's Day my senior year, I wrote a somewhat sappy column hinting at a recent breakup. It was a tough one, but my Aggie friends were rallying around me and generally being the supportive family-by-proxy they become when you spend nearly every waking hour together in the basement of Freeborn Hall. As it turned out, I ended up manning the night desk at the Aggie on the night of Valentine's Day. I came back to my desk after a short bathroom break to find a heart-shaped box of chocolates on my desk. Touched that my friends were trying to make me feel better—and feed my chocolate addiction—I asked who they were from. ‘Oh yeah, the chancellor just came by looking for you. He wanted to wish you a happy Valentine’s Day,’ said Shan Carter, the managing editor. I didn’t for a second believe that the chancellor had come to Lower Freeborn at 8 on a school night to drop off some chocolates for me. I hassled them until Shan told me that I had better e-mail the chancellor to thank him or he’d think I was some kind of jerk. I didn’t believe him and thought it was all a ruse. . . . But then the rest of the night staff started insisting the story was true so I finally sent the chancellor a note that looked like this: ‘Dear Chancellor, I just wanted to thank you for the lovely box of chocolates. It was a very sweet gesture and I really appreciate it. If, however, for some reason this makes no sense to you, I just want you to know that my friends have just played a really cruel trick on me and I wanted to cover my bases so you wouldn’t think me rude.’ He promptly replied back: ‘I don't know why you would think that, but I hope you enjoy the chocolates.’”

Shan Carter ’01, managing editor in 2000-2001, recently became a multimedia producer for the New York Times after working as a designer and multimedia producer for the San Jose Mercury News and graphic artist for the Alameda Newspaper Group.

Tara Ramroop '03 writes: "In 2001, I applied as a news writer for the city desk of The California Aggie, hoping to pad my resume with news experience and make a friend or two while I was at it. In 2003, I left the paper as a longtime staff writer and dreaded the thought of leaving the friends and boyfriend I met and grew to love in Lower Freeborn Hall. Today, I'm working as a staff writer for the San Francisco Examiner, still love my Aggie friends to bits and continue going strong with campus editor emeritus Ben Antonius '05. It's hard to dwell on the long hours and missed classes I exchanged for a fulfilling job, great friends and a fantastic boyfriend."

Roya Aziz ’02, managing editor in 2001–02, has reported for PBS’ Frontline/World and for the Christian Science Monitor about her native Afghanistan.

Fitz Vo ’04, editor in chief in 2002–03, now a copy editor for the Sacramento Bee.

Andrew Whelan ’04, editor in chief in 2003–04, now deputy press secretary for the U.S. House Committee on Resources. “I do still follow the Aggie, though the number of people I know who still work there is quickly dwindling. . . . One of my favorite stories is when we interviewed the wrong person for ASUCD Senate endorsements. A student with the same name inadvertently got the invitation to interview. We had no idea through the entire interview—the answers were unusually awful, and we had to stifle our laughter. We thought, ‘This guy is absolutely clueless!’ Finally he gave up on the act and ’fessed up near the end of the interview. He really could have gotten away with the whole thing had he wanted. Of course, that would have been beyond embarrassing for the paper. I like to think we would have caught the goof in time!”

Nadine Elsibai '05 , city editor in 2004–05, now government reporter for the Bloomberg News’ Washington, D.C., bureau.

Ryan Fuller ’05, editor in chief 2004–05, copy editor, the Fairfield Daily Republic.

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