A changing place

Dear readers,

College has many lessons to offer, and this may be its most important: Discover your place.

While you are searching for yours at Duke, The Chronicle’s staking out new ground. We are in the third floor of the Flowers building, we are in the bin next to Alpine and outside your offices, we are online. But no matter where you find us, the 106th volume of The Chronicle hopes to find its place in your everyday life.

For its 106 years, The Chronicle has focused on undergraduates. Students are an important part of our community, and we will continue to keep a sharp eye on their issues. But Duke is a big place and it’s home to more than just undergraduates.

Duke is a place for graduate students, faculty, staff and employees across the University and the Health System—and so is The Chronicle. From reporting on the University’s budget deficit, we already know that stories relevant to campus do not always have an obvious connection to students.

Like you, Duke is my place, but it isn’t my only one. I’ve grown up around Duke and Durham—I went to high school in Durham and I sold Girl Scout cookies in Duke Hospital where my mom works. Just as The Chronicle isn’t only an undergraduate paper, neither is it a campus newspaper. We serve the entire Duke—and surrounding—community.

This year we are taking especially seriously our duty to facilitate dialogue across campus and Durham, not just among undergrads and administrators. As we take a closer look into these communities we, send me an e-mail at lcr15@duke.edu if you have a story idea or come up to 301 Flowers if you want to talk about the paper, my door is always open.

To accommodate its expanded coverage and audience, The Chronicle is expanding its place online. You can still find The Chronicle in bins across campus, in the health system and even at restaurants like Mad Hatter’s and Nosh.

If we are going to be part of your place, you should be part of ours—help us provide more complete and accurate coverage by letting us know what is working and what isn’t. Although The Chronicle is produced by undergrad and grad students, we welcome faculty, staff and the community to write letters to the editor, submit guest columns and apply to be columnists.

In the meantime, we hope this, our largest issue of the year, helps you learn more about your place. We have taken an in-depth look at how Duke spreads its name, examined what makes Durham the third most popular place for Duke grads to live and explored issues like the oil spill.

Flip to Sportswrap and find out what Duke’s chances are at winning another National Championship.

Look through Recess, The Chronicle’s weekly arts and entertainment section, for a preview of the upcoming Duke Performances season.

If you’re wondering what will be big this year, check out Towerview magazine for its annual recommendation of 10 people and things you should know about, from incoming basketball players to the rising status of Central Campus.

So keep reading—our place is your place.