The Lutrinae is a tight-knit group of individuals who all have a passion for journalism and expressing themselves through writing and visuals. Unfortunately, with every passing year, we have to part ways with some of the people we’ve spent the entire year with, pitching stories, attending events and sharing lots of laughter.
As assistant editor this year, I’ve discovered the camaraderie that being part of a news team provides. As I prepare to become editor-in-chief this fall, I hope to foster these same relationships and lead a team of confident journalists.
We wanted to take the opportunity to celebrate and highlight the hard work of our graduating staff members and wish them well on their future endeavors.
Nick Zuniga – Staff Writer
After Zuniga graduates, he will be attending Saint Mary’s College of Moraga to achieve a master of arts in counseling, following his psychology degree earned at Cal State Monterey Bay (CSUMB). He is also planning to change things up once he turns 27. “Once I turn 27, I’m gonna do something fun. I don’t know what, I might go back to school and study chemistry because I think chemistry is kinda fun!” Thinking about his financial future, “If I study chemistry then I can get a [doctorate] in psychiatry and psychiatrists make much more money than counselors.”
Working with the Lutrinae for a year and a half, he has many favorite memories in the newsroom. He always brought a wonderful energy to our weekly meetings, and they were even one of his favorite parts of the job. “My favorite part of working at the Lutrinae is being messy in the meetings because then it makes everyone else be messy.”
A memorable experience for him was writing his Werk Witch article and getting exposed to different things around campus. Nick also commented that he loved working for his best friend, our editor-in-chief, Andrea Valadez.
Zuniga also wrote a weekly movie review for the newspaper in his column, Nick’s Flicks. “[Writing my column] is fun because I always got to go to the movies with my boss and best friend and we would get to watch the movies together,” he said. “I love going to the movies already and so once I started getting paid to do it, it was just super fun and just gave me a better understanding of movies.”
His favorite installation of Nick’s Flicks was his article on the movie Challengers. “The movie itself was really good and I wrote it whilst I was in San Francisco, and I always feel so inspired when I’m in the city. I just had a unique approach to that [article] that I usually don’t have for my movie reviews.”
As someone who got to read at least one of his articles every week for an edit, I can tell that he is a passionate person who cares deeply about those around him. It was a pleasure to get to know him this year at the Lutrinae and we will definitely miss his “messiness” during meetings.
And finally, Zuniga’s parting words: “Walk around knowing you’re a star and people might treat you like one.”
Helene Marie Kristensen – Contributing Writer
As our resident contributor for the past two and a half years, Kristensen has a bit of a legacy at the Lutrinae. She is an international student from Norway and would often bring Norwegian treats to our weekly meetings.
After graduation, Kristensen will be returning to Norway. “I’m going up north to go to graduate school. I plan on pursuing a masters degree in peace and conflict transformation. I’m still waiting to get in, fingers crossed!” We are definitely crossing our fingers, as she won’t hear back from her university until July.
When looking back on her time at the Lutrinae, she “struggles identifying one specific thing” to be her favorite memory. She said “I feel like just the people and the community and the vibes. The community you have when you have people dedicated toward journalism and want to produce good journalistic work [is special]. I’ve gotten to do a lot of work with good colleagues, who are essentially my friends.” Another favorite memory is when she, some Lutrinae staff members and the faculty advisor were trapped in the newsroom by a group of raccoons at the doorway.
Helene’s Vineyard was a popular column in Volume 7 of the Lutrinae and we believe Helene is on her way to becoming a Sommelier. “I never thought I would ‘get into wine,’” she said. A lot of her introduction to wine was fostered by her parents. “My parents really like Italian wine and they are easy [wines] for beginners to like. Pairing that with a lot of the good cooking my mom does created a healthy relationship with food and wine. That softened the introduction through having that pairing.”
Kristensen also shared that the idea for her column sparked from a conversation with our editor-in-chief. “One afternoon, she was telling me she was trying different wines and I explained to her you have to find the one you like because they’re all different.” She typically conducts some research, cross referencing her own palette with the information found on the wines she tries on the Total Wine & More website.
Her favorite vineyard she’s written was the one about stick wine. (Our faculty advisor, Dave Kellogg, endorsed this choice himself). “I’m really proud of that one. I also was told the viewer statistics for that article were really good.”
Kristensen has a very bright personality and has the ability to make friends quickly. She cares deeply about issues that are important to her and always is seeking out the best stories to add to her portfolio.
She shares some advice for her final words: “If you are torn between what to study, take up a minor. It will help you determine if your major is what you want to focus on, or if your minor is your true passion, or just a hobby.”
Samantha Hutz – Photographer
During Hutz’s first year as our staff photographer and member of the Lutrinae, she has taken beautiful photos showcasing what it means to be a member of the CSUMB community.
After walking across the stage, Hutz will be taking on the city, moving to San Francisco and attending the University of San Francisco Law School. She will be pursuing her Juris Doctorate with the goal to become a licensed attorney. “I also hope I can make time during this next phase of my education to participate in photojournalism in the area,” she said.
Her work was also frequently featured on the columns page of our newspaper, with her game review series titled Game Girl Advance. While she was hesitant at first, “the culture here at the Lutrinae is one that really encourages everyone to contribute in ways they excel at and find fulfilling. That extra push I got from my coworkers inspired me to make something I found fun and rewarded me for engaging with one of my interests.”
Although Hutz won’t be continuing her column next year, she is “glad that I’ve been able to keep enjoying games at a time when I’ve seen so many friends fall out of love with the hobby.”
One of her favorite parts of working at the Lutrinae is the opportunity for a creative outlet. “Although I enjoy being creative in my own time as well, the pressure to always be productive means working somewhere like the Lutrinae helps me to prioritize being involved on campus and creating artwork that I can really be proud of,” she said.
Hutz has photographed almost every event we’ve covered at the Lutrinae, so it was hard to narrow down a favorite. Her top three events that she photographed, in no particular order, were Werk Witch, the California Faculty Association strike and Otterlands. “Each of those events had such incredible energy and I feel that I was able to reflect that in the photos I took.”
She truly has an eye for producing the perfect photo. Her skills are evident in every shot she’s taken and has contributed greatly to the overall look of the newspaper. She will make an excellent lawyer, as she is always willing to stand up for herself and those around her. Her creative and clever mind will be missed.
Hutz’s final words: “I hope people who have attended CSUMB this past year can look back at my photos and recall those feelings and those moments years from now.”
Congratulations to all of our graduates, we wish you the best of luck!