During the fall 2024 semester, the news section covered a wide range of events and topics across campus. Coverage spanned from event recaps, such as charity fundraisers and campus speakers, to how Wake Forest students responded to national and global events, such as the first anniversary of Oct. 7 and the 2024 Election.
The news section was led by News Editors Maria Silveira and Skyler Villamar-Jones, who covered the welcoming of the class of 2028 at convocation, as well as the opening of an on-campus child care center. Editor-in-Chief Maddie Stopyra covered the death of Wake Forest Security Officer Gary (Sergio) Anthony Ward, the announcement of a major renovation project on the Reynolda campus and the appointment of several staff members in the Office of the Chaplain.
Wake Forest hosted Super Bowl champion Peyton Manning in their Face-to-Face forum, held a record-breaking Hit the Bricks fundraiser, and remained out of the U.S. News Ranking’s top 30 for a second consecutive year.
Before the first anniversary of Hamas’ surprise attack on Israel on Oct. 7, which sparked the Israel-Hamas war, the news section covered the petition for and subsequent cancellation of Oct. 7 speaker Dr. Rabab Abdulhadi. The news section published a chronicle of how Wake Forest responded to the Israel-Hamas war on the first anniversary of Oct. 7, and covered the four events held on campus to commemorate Oct. 7, the talk given by Dr. Abdulhadi off-campus on Oct. 7 and the vigil hosted by Free Palestine to commemorate Palestinian lives.
The news section also covered the 2024 Presidential election with the student government’s passing of the Executive Advisory Committee for the election and a guide to voting. The news section also covered how students and professors discussed the election in academic settings, as well as how first-year students felt in their first-of-age election.
Wake Forest held the annual World Culture Festival and Project Pumpkin events, received a $6.6 million donation for the School of Divinity and held feedback sessions for the campus memorialization project and campus climate survey results. Wake Forest EMS introduced “stop the bleed” kits to campus, and the University hosted an “AI for Good” conference and news anchor Anderson Cooper in their second Face-to-Face forum.
We’re proud and thankful for the diligent reporting done by our old and new reporters, and we look forward to continuing to tell the stories of Wake Forest this upcoming spring.
