This year, our newspaper is saying goodbye to three amazing editors as they graduate from Drew. As is tradition at the Acorn, we invited the seniors to share their experiences and wisdom before they leave the school and the newspaper.
Charlotte Wells
Charlotte Wells (‘24) is the co-editor of the sports section, as well as a member of the women’s swim team. She is graduating as a double major in French and English with a concentration in writing communications and a minor in humanities.
Wells hopes to go to France next year for a teaching assistant program. In the future, she wants to work in journalism or a related creative communications industry.
What is your favorite memory from the Acorn?
“I always had a lot of fun hanging out with the editorial board after meetings and publishing weeks, but some of my favorite memories include bouncing around the office while dramatically singing Taylor Swift and the time that Nicole sang Baby Shark like an opera singer.”
Is there any advice you would like to give to current students?
“My advice would be to try new things, even if you’re not sure you’re really interested in them or not sure if you’re going to like the people. You might end up being really surprised by how much you like it and can make a lot of amazing new friends that way.
Brandon Dennis
Brandon Dennis (‘24) is an English major and the co-editor of the sports section. He joined the Acorn as a copy editor before becoming the assistant news editor. After graduating, Dennis hopes to go into content editing.
What is your favorite Acorn memory?
“The most memorable thing I have from the Acorn was the first time I was there and I walked in with Emily [Pieczyrak] (‘24) to the first meeting two years ago, when they were moving offices. They were sorting old newspapers, as well as just organizing the room. I had asked Nicole [Sydor] (‘24) ‘Do you want me to just organize the papers?’ Because people were kind of doing it but just taking it from one pile and putting it into another pile. And Nicole, having never known me, since I was very much not a part of the Acorn yet, said sure. Then, I took every single table across that room and organized them [the newspapers] chronologically. Afterwards, she was like ‘Who the f*** was that?’”
Is there any advice you would like to give to members of the Acorn?
“Take an intro to journalism class and learn how to use commas. Jokes aside, journalism classes give you the bare bones and then give you a groundwork to propel forward throughout your experience at the Acorn and utilize it as a place to train the tools that you’re given in the class, as opposed to learning on the fly.”
Teddy Droar
Teddy Droar (‘24) is a psychology major and creative writing minor and the Student Life and Arts section editor.
What will you take away from Drew and your experiences here?
“I guess I’ll take away the lifelong friendships I’ve made the most, and also take the newspaper sweatshirt I got, so that’s a plus.”
What is your favorite Acorn memory?
“Having Elizabeth [Blank] (‘24) photoshop me into various photos. She’s a wizard. Wizardette? I don’t know if wizard is gendered.”
Is there any advice you would like to give to current students?
“Genuinely follow your passions. You can make it work, I promise.”
What are your plans after graduation and in the future?
“Probably doing psych research and/or getting famous. You’ll probably know which one ended up happening by the time you read this.”
The Acorn wants to thank all of these wonderful people for dedicating their time and hard work to our organization. Without them, the Acorn would not be as incredible as it is. They made our office a welcoming and fun place, while pushing everyone to be better writers and editors. We wish them all the best in the future and cannot wait to see what amazing things they do!
Sierra Walker is a junior majoring in media and communications and marketing and minoring in Spanish.
