As the Roots editor and a journalist, the word downtime is not in my vocabulary. I can always find something that needs to be done for my section. It might be coming up with new story ideas, contacting a source or constructing the layout of the week for my page(s). 

My morning begins at 6 a.m., and on more than one occasion I have wanted to throw my alarm across the room. But for me, an early morning wake-up is a must with a packed schedule. 

After resisting that urge, I lace up my running shoes and head out for my morning run. I find getting just two or three miles in is a great way to destress and start my morning off on the right foot. Depending on the day I will also squeeze in a weight lifting session at the gym. 

My classes change day to day, but the real work typically begins at 9 a.m. with my first class of the day and continues until noon. Before class, I send all of the emails required for stories or make phone calls. 

I typically eat breakfast at this time, which always includes Bulletproof coffee.

After my classes end for the day I will hold readouts with my reporters, conduct my own interviews, write articles, or work on material for the Roots section. 

Readouts are one of my favorite parts of the job. I always like to make readouts fun and enjoyable for my reporters. It helps ease the stress that can come along with critiquing someone’s work. 

On a day that does not involve production, I will end work at around 5 p.m. to eat dinner and start on my classwork for the day. My Spanish tutorials come first because if I do not get those done they will not get done. I will follow that up with some neuroscience and animal behavior. 

A day that does involve production will be entirely dedicated to that. I study when I am waiting around for material from other editors, reporters or for my pages to be checked. 

The Roots section only runs two days a week, with one online production day and one in-print. I hope when the fall semester arrives we will be back to three days a week in-print production.