I know it's cliché but I have to start my inaugural column with a welcome back to everyone at UB. If you're a veteran reader of the paper or a new addition, I want to say thank you and that I hope The Spectrum will take coverage of UB to the next level this semester.
I've been thinking all summer about what I wanted to say in my opening issue and after a lot of thought, it's simply this: You Matter!
That's right, I'm talking to every person with a person #. That eight-digit number that we keep on the tip of tongue or on the tip of our pen seems to define us in a way during our time at UB.
Being one of about 29,000 can make you feel insignificant, but I'm here to implore you to ignore that impulse at every cost. I want to know what you're thinking and how you feel about any and everything that happens at UB.
You are the student body and we – The Spectrum – are your voice. I fully expect you to use us to deliver your message to whomever it is intended for.
This school is the greatest in the world in my eyes. How corny, right? The funny part is that I'm serious. I love UB and the past four years have been the best of my life. Mostly because in that time I met my beautiful wife, but also because of this school.
UB represents the greatest parts of society. We have a strongly knit community, some of the smartest people in the world, a great athletic program, a beautiful campus, and people that I feel genuinely care about the person sitting next to them in whatever class they end up sitting in.
I love this university so much that I have vowed, in my position as editor in chief, to do a service for this school, providing the best coverage of every aspect of it that my staff and I can possibly give.
The toughest part of the job is that I can't do it alone, even if I wanted to. I need you – the UB student – to be my eyes on the outside and help hold people accountable as well as give people praise for a job well done.
People tell me all the time, "There's too much apathy at UB, nobody really cares that much about what's going on. At least not enough to speak up about it." I tell those people how wrong I think they are and now I need you to prove it to them for me.
This is an exciting time to be at UB. We have a new president, a medical school that's being moved downtown to help revitalize the city of Buffalo, and an athletic program dedicated to providing top-notch talent to entertain us.
If you see there's a game coming up, get your free ticket. If the president is doing a meet-and-greet, be the first in line. If the Student Association is putting on a movie night, don't miss it. Experience this campus and all the great stuff it has to offer.
After you're done, let us know all about it and help us showcase the best school in the country in the best city in the world.
Have a great semester, and we hope you keep reading.
Email: matthew.parrino@ubspectrum.com
