Finding a path to WSU and the libraries

My first trip to WSU was an arduous five minutes from my house. Despite the lengthy drive, I knew WSU was the place for me.  

I have lived in Pullman since my junior year of high school. Growing up as a military brat and moving every two years, I liked the sense of staying in one place, and both my parents are WSU alumni. WSU’s journalism program and reputation of intense Cougar pride drew me in, and I appreciated Pullman’s charm. 

I transitioned from high school to college during the height of the pandemic in 2020. I remember my heart sinking when I received the email stating that my freshman year would be entirely online. 

Now, I am a senior multimedia journalism major with a minor in anthropology, preparing to graduate this month. For more than a year, I have been an intern for the WSU Libraries, creating videos, taking event photographs, and writing articles for the Browse newsletter. 

As I interviewed people from nearly every department in the libraries, I gained insight into a new world of research, archives, and librarians behind the scenes. I have had some amazing opportunities, like interviewing the daughter of a record-breaking donor, following students as they digitize old photographs, and speaking with WSU’s provost as she celebrated renaming the chancellor’s house with help from the WSU Libraries. 

Whether it is a musician performing in the library or students conducting research, I witness firsthand the passion community members hold for the libraries and tell their stories. 

I love discovering why people love what they do and translating their contributions and personality to a larger audience, so viewers grow as fond of the library employees as I do. Librarians grew used to seeing me walking around with a camera and microphone equipment or covering events, stopping to wave as I passed by their desk. 

I have heard “You’re everywhere!” more than a few times.

Although I already had a background in journalism prior to my internship from my news editor position at the Daily Evergreen and involvement with the religion and rural reporting projects, I significantly grew my videography, photography, and newsletter-building skills at the libraries. 

Writing with an organization’s voice and understanding what content viewers want to see shaped my understanding of storytelling in public relations and of building relationships. After my first foray into the public relations world, I found a passion for it that will continue with me as I search for a career postgraduation, using the skills I’ve learned from Browse and the Murrow College. 

Like most graduates, I am still figuring out what comes next for me, but I hope to find a position related to my communications work at the libraries that uses my multimedia journalism abilities. 

Go Cougs!