You never truly feel ready for the job of leadership until you are already doing it.
I thought my experience at the Evergreen and other school newspapers would be enough. After all, I had been writing for two-and-a-half years, had been Sports Editor for a year, had plenty of experience on In-Design, and had taken all of the core classes for the Murrow College.
On paper, my resume checked all of the boxes. I can only presume that’s why the Student Media Board entrusted me with the job of Editor-in-Chief in the first place.
In reality, there was no way I could say I was ready to do this job on Day 1, when I took over officially on May 16th, 2025.
Truthfully, I was not ready in June, when I began the process of hiring reporters for the next year. I certainly was not ready in July, when we sent out the first enewsletter. I was not ready on August 11th, when we had our first in-person day of staff training. I certainly was not ready on August 13th when we began work on the Week of Welcome edition, our first print edition of the year.
Yet, at some point, in the middle of October, I found myself in the newsroom, finishing up the newspaper at 8 p.m. after a relatively stress-free Wednesday, and realizing: I know what I’m doing. I’ve got this.
I can’t tell you when or how it happened. But since then, this job has felt natural.
With my friend Connor at my side as Digital Managing Editor, things sped up. After a couple of years of low staffing, I am pleased to report that the Evergreen has been enjoying a renaissance under our leadership.
We increased production by over 40%, publishing over 1300 stories during my time as Editor-in-Chief. In 10 out of 12 months, we increased production from the 2024-2025 school year. We still aren’t back to pre-pandemic levels (when the Evergreen was routinely publishing over 2,000 stories a year) but we are trending back in the right direction, which is a good start.
We printed 32 weekly newspapers, including 10 extended, special editions.
Most importantly, we expanded the Evergreen’s digital presence. We sent out 80 enewsletters, a massive upgrade in the way we’ve produced digital content. As much as we love designing and printing physical newspapers, the future is digital. I know future Evergreen leaders will continue to increase our presence online, as we continue to navigate the new digital world we live in.
I am very proud of what we have accomplished. Rebuilding the staff, increasing production, and establishing a consistent bi-weekly digital enewsletter were my top three goals when I took over, and I am pleased to say we met those goals. However, there’s something more important than anything I accomplished here.
I learned that leadership is about more than any accomplishment, award, or ceremony. It’s more than meetings and paperwork.
When I first became EIC, I asked myself what kind of leader I wanted to be. I’ve had strict bosses who ran no-nonsense workplaces and made you aware when you made a mistake. I’ve had teddy bear bosses who give everyone a warm hug but fail to discipline or set expectations.
I decided I wanted to be less of a boss and more of a friend with wisdom who could guide the Evergreen in the right direction. It felt natural to me. I’ve always been someone who values human connection, and I’ve never been someone who enjoys yelling or being strict.
What I came to understand is that ultimately, leadership is not something you can plan for. Whoever I set out to be when I began my term as EIC was not the person I ended up becoming.
The best thing I did was respect my employees. Yes, being editor is a “big deal,” but the reality is we are all peers at the Evergreen. We’re all within a five-year age range, and we’re all college students. Nobody is truly above anyone else, and I hope my leadership style reflected that.
So much of the job comes down to three areas: guidance, decision making, and problem solving. Decision-making was easily my least favorite, being an indecisive person at heart, but I learned that sometimes, you have to make hard calls as a leader.
Of course, the best part is the people I got to work with. Everyone who worked at the Evergreen as an editor, reporter, or photographer made this past school year better for the Evergreen. It sounds cliché, but the truth is, I loved working with everyone here, and would do it again if I could.
It has been an honor, Pullman. Stay joyful!
Levi Coovert
Editor-in-Chief
