I would’ve liked to know more about staff members’ personal interests, hobbies and opinions about the College. Questions that were more critical of the way students treat staff would’ve been more valuable (and interesting) to read, than simply a list of “memorable interactions.” Instead of “What does your job entail?” why not “How does your job keep the college running?” or “What’s the most important part of your daily routine?” And let’s be frank, “What’s the best/worst part of your job?” is just a lazy question.
The spread only asked questions about their work and nothing about their identity outside the Middlebury bubble. It did a poor job of humanizing the staff — if anything, it reinforced the stereotype that staff members exist solely to serve students on this campus. What about their involvement in the community? What are they passionate about? What do they like to do for fun?
Journalism is in the business of asking good questions. As the semester winds down, I hope the editorial board keeps this in mind for future stories, even in its final issues.
Hye-Jin Kim ’17 offers a critique of a Features spread.
