As I walked into the Hilltop office at HowardUniversity for the first time, I saw a sign that read, “The Hilltop Has No SickDays.” I remember thinking, “It can’t be that serious.”
It was the second semester of my freshman year. I hadjust been promoted from photographer to photo editor. My first night in theHilltop office gave me a rude awakening to what I would experience from thenon.
Back then, the computers were outdated and slow. Itwould take an hour to do something that should take 15 minutes. The computerswould freeze, the Internet would be down and it could be 3 a.m. Meanwhile, youwould have a midterm at 8:10 that same morning. You were not going anywhere,because the bottom line was that the paper must come out.
A dedicated staff set aside their lives to make thathappen. Quitting was not an option.
The good friends, long talks and hysterical laughingthat spouted at all hours in the morning kept me going. The Hilltop is like away of life for me now. My body is trained to be up until 4 a.m. everyWednesday and Sunday during production nights.
In spite of my extreme exhaustion from being in theoffice for hours on end, I felt that all my work had paid off when I walkedacross the yard the next day and saw students sitting on a bench reading thepaper, with my photo large on the front page, even though I know most peopledon’t even pay attention to the credits.
As a photographer, I am always on call. If a breakingnews story happens on campus, The Hilltop will be the first media organizationthere, no matter what. I have learned to always keep my camera with me. Thereis a good chance that I would be walking to class and see a campus policeofficer asleep on the job or a car crash in front of the Towers. Snap. It willbe in the next issue.
For all the time and energy I spend in the office, itpays off 10 times over. All of my internships, networking, experience,friendships, money and job opportunities have come from this very place.
The Hilltop has opened so many doors for my future. Iwould not be where I am today without the grace of God and the paper.
Currently, I am the assistant to an NBA photographerfor the Washington Wizards. I have assisted professional photographers at the2005 NBA All-Star Weekend and the 2004 NBA draft, and I have shot photos ofPresident Bush at the commencement of Louisiana State University.
The Hilltop has taught me how to survive when it iscrunch time. As the senior photo editor and third-year veteran of the nation’sNo. 1 collegiate publication (and that is not just HBCUs, that’s the whiteschools too), I am proud to say that we will honor the pioneers who paved theway for us.
We will take The Hilltop to another level by goingdaily.
So rest assured, if it happens on Monday, you willsee it in the paper on Tuesday. It’s as we say in the office, “The revolutionwill not be televised, but it will be in The Hilltop.”
