Welcome to the inaugural issue of Volume 68 of The Panel! With Volume 67’s editors passing the torch to our group, the new staff is incredibly excited to begin our work. Led by Editors-in-Chief Jack Weldon ‘20 and Charlie Donahue ‘20 as well as Executive Editor Chetan Shukla ‘20, the editors of this year’s volume are prepared to make their mark on the Panel tradition. As we look ahead to the future, each team member has aspirations for where they hope to take their section of the publication.
Jack Weldon, one of the three new leaders of the paper, is excited about the prospects of online expansion and graphical innovation. “The Panel has made great strides in recent years in developing a strong web presence with The Panel Online, which this past year had a record-breaking view day following the Varsity Football Championships. Looking ahead, I want to continue to uphold the website and find ways to make it easier to access for students and faculty alike. Graphically, The Panel has also improved significantly under the hand of editors such as Ishaan and Matt. It is important to keep advancing the newspaper towards sleek, exciting, and comprehensive graphic design.”
Chetan Shukla, who will also be leading the publication in the upcoming year, asserts: “Through contests, we may even have prizes up for grabs. Overall, in Volume 68 of the Panel, I plan to better communicate the news on campus to the Belmont Hill community and to happily incorporate suggestions from the readers.”
Charlie Donahue rounds out the trifecta of new Panel leaders: “On behalf of the three of us, I am exhilarated to begin Volume 68 of the Panel. From where we sit, the 2019-20 school year will be an exciting time for this publication. At school, Mr. Schneider will begin his first year as a returning headmaster right on the cusp of the transformation of our beloved chapel and other important long-range planning objectives. Beyond, our country is preparing for another presidential election. The opportunity to report and opine on these matters to you all is truly an honor. We endeavor to continue the excellent tradition built over almost seven decades that was so well exemplified for us by Matt Smith, Nick Daley, and Thomas McEvoy, and hope to make a mark in our own right as well.”
This year’s News section will be led by Andrew Jonghyun Lee ‘20, with Howard Huang ‘22 serving as assistant editor. Andrew had this to say about his plans for the year, “My goal for the Panel this year is to build on what we accomplished last year and to improve the overall quality of Panel articles and layout. Also, as a “Veteran” in the Panel, I will try and prepare my assistant, Howard, so that he is best prepared for a section head position next year.”
Jake Pappo ‘20 joins the staff as Opinions editor, with assistant editor Sreetej Digumarthi ‘21. “The Panel should always strive to fulfill their primary role as a publication: to inform the Belmont Hill community on important news, regarding both the school and the world. For the Opinions section, I’d love to see some new faces write articles about anything for which they have a true passion, for this is how the newspaper best reflects the intriguing individuality of Belmont Hill’s students.”
The Arts section welcomes Andrew Jinhee Lee ‘20 as section editor and Tyler Forg ‘21 as assistant. “Throughout the end of this school year and the majority of next, I wish to maximize article efficiency through improving editor-and-writer communication through quick email/text responses and conversations head-to-head at school. Also, as the arts editor, I will try to incorporate all the performing arts that occur at Belmont Hill in the article assignments and many upcoming movie reviews which the audience would surely appreciate.”
Finally, Jackson Riffe ‘20 and assistant editor James Markis ‘20 will be leading the Sports section. “I have been a part of The Panel for 3 years now. This year, as the Head Sports Editor, I hope to keep everyone up to date on all Belmont Hill sports. I’m looking forward to a great year!”
Other notable additions to the staff include Jaylen Walker ‘21 as Photo Editor, Charlie Booth ‘20 as Copy Editor and Renny Gong ‘20 as assistant Copy Editor, and Luke Hogan ‘22 and Ryan Griffin ‘22 as staff writers. Elias Hyde ‘20 returns to the team as Graphics Editor and cartoon aficionado, while Charlie Mullaney ‘20 and Liam Peterson ‘20 continue to hold down the fort in the Backpage.
The prospects for this year’s volume are auspicious, and the staff cannot wait to get started. Please enjoy this first issue, and make sure to be vocal about what you like and your suggestions to any members of the staff. Above all, we wish to serve Belmont Hill with accurate information and high-quality content, and by working together with each other as well as with the student body and faculty, we hope to do just that.
Welcome to Volume 68!
-The Panel Staff
