Wy named editor in chief for USI student newspaper The Shield

The University of Southern Indiana's Student Publications Committee has selected Gabi Wy as editor in chief of USI's student newspaper, The Shield, for the 2017-18 academic year. She will replace current editor, Sarah Loesch.

Wy '18, from Newburgh, Indiana, is majoring in journalism and criminal justice studies. She currently serves as features editor at The Shield, where she has worked since 2015. She also serves as an intern at the Evansville Courier & Press, where she covers breaking news and features.

Wy, who began working with The Shield as the News Editor in her freshman year, looks forward to the opportunity to establish the importance of journalism more than ever. "I hope to continue to be an uplifting presence in the newsroom as the next editor-in-chief," she said.

"I would not have gotten so quickly and so deeply involved at The Shield if someone had not taken the time to introduce themselves and let me know what The Shield was, so I would like to be that bridge for other people."

Wy named several areas she would like to emphasize during her time as editor, including recruitment of new Shield staff, better pre-planning for stories and a more robust presence on social media. "Social media is now a primary way students and America's population are consuming their news, and we need to be mindful of that and utilize the accounts we have," she said.

In a written recommendation, Philip Marcelo, a reporter for the The Associated Press said of Wy, "I have no doubt she has what it takes to lead the paper and hold her peers to the highest journalistic standards."

Applications for positions at The Shield are available online or in The Shield's office. To get involved, call 812-465-1682, or visit the office in the lower level of University Center East, Room 227.