History of The Chronicle
The Shawnee State Chronicle is the editorially-independent, student-run newspaper of Shawnee State University. Publications have been passed around campus throughout the years, but they haven’t always been titled with The Chronicle. Our collection of previous issues is currently being digitized. We at The Chronicle are working through the archives to learn the history of this student newspaper and would be happy for any contributions to make up for gaps in information and years within the archive.
The current name, The Chronicle, emerged sometime around 1992. The name has had slight variances since, such as University Chronicle, The Chronicle, or Shawnee State Chronicle. When first named as the Shawnee State University Chronicle, the slogan was “The Truth is a Weapon.” At this point, the newspaper was dealing with some serious investigative journalism. They even found an expense account being misused by former President Clive Veri to purchase alcohol for board members. Students also covered the Faculty Strikes (in both 1987 and 1990), publishing extra editions in order to get the information out to the student body. Even despite calls over content from the office of former Speaker of the House, Vern Riffe, the paper still continued to stand for Freedom of the Press. In more recent years, students have been focused not only on campus events, but also community and national events. Students had the chance to travel to the 2017 Women’s March in Washington D.C., walking the entirety of the march before ending on the White House lawn. Students have been working on building an online presence for The Chronicle, both through various websites and social media accounts.
Advisers included:
Dr. Mark Mirabello
Dr. Stylianos Hadjiannis
Melody Sands
Terry Hapney
Ann Linden
Mikhail Smith
The Open Air ran from 1987 until 1992 (approximately) as the student-run newspaper.
Advisers included:
Fannie Madden-Grider
Alvin Madden-Grider
Dr. James Flavin
The Star ran from 1985 until 1987 (approximately) as the student-run newspaper.
Advisers included:
Fannie Madden-Grider
Alvin Madden-Grider
The Gemini has articles in the archives from 1975. Though the length of this name is unclear, this version of the student newspaper was ran while the university was still Shawnee State Scioto Technical College.
Advisers included:
Emily Gulker
The student newspaper did have issues before this, though they are not in the archive, the first issue of The Gemini still mentions the new name. That new name was chosen from STC (Scioto Technical College) and OUP (unknown anagram) because of the symbolized connection with the star sign Gemini-marking the two as twins. This marked the instance of two institutions becoming one, and Gemini was deemed even more symbolic as the newly merged academic and technical programs would have to word side-by-side for the newly merged institution to succeed.
Despite the difference in names and advisors, The Chronicle has continued to bring information to the student body. The Chronicle—Shawnee State University’s official student newspaper—continues to be packed full of news about the things that matter to SSU students, faculty, and staff. The Chronicle also continues to provide a great means through which students who are interested in journalism and/or communications- related careers can build a solid portfolio that will help them find jobs in the future.