​Join the Editorial Board

It’s not often that an English major, M.D./Ph.D. student, East Campus resident assistant and Bollywood dance team captain gather to debate vociferously. But in Flowers 201, these students hold great debates around our humble conference table. Twice a week, their voices and others from across campus come together to gracefully mold, shape and weave together answers to the hard questions we confront. Together, they take on issues ranging from the intricacies of social life to the financial responsibility of our University. We are the Editorial Board, The Chronicle’s independent voice that stands apart. Today, we invite Duke’s best and brightest to join the fray.

The mission of the Editorial Board is to enrich our campus’s dialogue by offering forceful opinions on a variety of issues; to hold students, faculty and administrators publicly accountable for their statements and actions; and to challenge readers with the questions they need to be asking about their time in higher education. Enabling our dialogue is the rapport members build with one another. In our minds, the goal is to do so much more than merely broach topics—any group of students can do as much in a common room at 2 a.m. In our minds, these issues deserve better, and we strive to give Duke students an intelligent voice to wrangle with.

If you find that your mind readily wanders to questions like why Duke Kunshan exists, what the Young Trustee’s role really should be or how the secret Trident Society continues to be Duke’s Illuminati, you will find us more than willing to include you in our collective search for answers. If you think that the ideas you come up with for Duke—from our food options to our sexual misconduct policies—are straining to be let loose on the student body, you should plug yourself into our microphone and reach the students, faculty, administrators and alumni who read our column every day.

Our process is simple. We brainstorm the topics that matter most to students as well as those that manifest themselves in the long-term for the University. We then define, examine and pick apart the issues, arguing until our debate comes to a head. By majority vote, we determine where the Board ultimately plants itself. The process is an imperfect science and demands members keep themselves in the know on many parts of campus life and the bigger picture of higher education, but it is a rewarding one. It requires a thirst to understand the landscape of higher education, the history of how Duke has been and the potential for where it can yet go. Our members therefore are deeply invested and cognitive about their student experience and at the end of the day yearn to create a better Duke.

Our University and our student body are ever-changing, not to be underestimated or easily understood. So as we continue to dive into the issues, we encourage you to take the plunge with us by joining the Editorial Board. Applications are due next Friday, February 19. Email lg138@duke.edu for more information.