A publication without its struggles is impossible. There is no such thing as smooth sailing for people like us. But in the past year, the Amaranth struggled for sure, more so than usual. But we persisted, mainly because it is our job and setting ourselves up for failure is not really an option.
The coming of the new school year brought a new light to the publication. We had anew and fresh ideas, and we were ready to do our best in producing this magazine.
When I first found out that I was appointed as the new Editor-in-Chief I was really nervous because I was afraid that I wouldn't be able to measure up my predecessors.
Everyone has apprehensions, especially when given such important positions but I am not going to let mine hinder me from doing my job.
Having the first all-girl editorial board is a daunting task maybe because of the belief that women are prone to being more personal than boys. But we try to be as impersonal as possible, and try to address issues that people do not notice or cannot voice out.
This year, we held a workshop for our new staff to acquaint them with the old members and to improve their skills in writing and layouting. We are hopeful that they will be as committed to the publication as we are.
We hosted the RTSPC 2014. It was a lot of fun and very educational. I think that this year's speakers were the best that we had so far. People from UP Los Banos, PACE, Rappler, and GMA were there which made for a very impressive event.
We also attended Philippine Social Good Summit in Tacloban City on September 2014. We got to hear foreign and local media talk about disaster preparedness and risk management. This event was hosted by Rappler.
The Amaranth website is also up and running, just log on to amaranthvsu.com to access campus news online.
There is however some misconceptions about the Amaranth that my students still hold.
First of all, the Amaranth does not belong to any college or department. We are entirely autonomous. Some think that we belong to the Department of Development Communication and that only development communication students are allowed to join. That is totally not true, everyone as long as they have the qualifications are allowed to join.
Second, the Amaranth does not belong to us. But as we've said time and time again, it belongs to you, the students. We are merely its caretakers, the voice of the students. We strongly encourage you to contribute and write for Amaranth. Let it be your voice that is heard.
Lastly, it is not easy producing a magazine. I pray that you would understand that making a magazine is no walk in the park, especially if it was preceded by Best Magazine awardees. And the production goes through a lot of process, which we are still trying to adjust to.
I believe that the whole is only as good as the sum of its parts, well at least I do when it comes to a publication where teamwork is needed for it to succeed. We tried our best to make this issue the best that we could make it. It took a lot work and effort. But hey... C'est La vie, and trust as we are riding the rough rides.