One common refrain that readers will see when glancing over any article celebrating The Varsity is its age. As of this October, this newspaper will be 140 years old — you are all invited to the party. While we take great pride in continuing the legacy of one of Canada’s longest-running student newspapers, the very age of The Varsity may give students the perception of an unchanging institution, disconnected from the campus.
This year, my team and I hope to bridge this perceived gap between students and the newspaper that we love. This year, we want to engage with you. We want to hear your concerns, your experiences, the big and little things that you care about.
While this goal is something that our masthead is dedicated to, regardless of external factors, the creation of the Student Choice Initiative (SCI) has certainly highlighted just how important it is for us to continue our long-standing goal to earn your trust as a reader.
The SCI allows students to opt out of certain incidental fees, including The Varsity’s levy of $2.87 per semester for undergraduates and $0.87 for graduates.
While this policy has raised questions about our place and responsibility at U of T, our consistent and responsible reporting on not only the SCI, but on issues that are important to students, has proven just how essential we are to the community.
As you continue to read our content, be it investigations into U of T’s finances, campus theatre reviews, or recaps of Varsity Blues games, I hope you will consider supporting us by staying opted-in.
Advocacy-editorial divide
As the SCI continues to be a pressing facet of campus life, I will be continuing the policy established by my predecessor, Jack O. Denton, to recuse myself from editing articles on the SCI.
The justification for this is simple: I must continue to be an outspoken advocate for The Varsity as an essential service while also upholding the paper’s long-standing commitment to responsible and fair reporting. Therefore, a recusal would allow for a separation of my advocacy efforts and the The Varsity’s editorial operations.
The news team’s reporting on the SCI — led by News Editor Andy Takagi and Deputy News Editor Kathryn Mannie — will be edited and published by Managing Editor Ibnul Chowdhury, instead of myself. Moreover, Ibnul, Andy, Kathryn, and all associate news editors will refrain from publicly expressing any opinions on the SCI.
Ibnul will also take over editing and publishing responsibilities for all SCI articles found in our other sections. Therefore, I will not be involved in any of the content we produce about this topic.
I am continuing this policy so as to further assure our readers of our enduring commitment to the values of fair, just, and accurate reporting.
The Varsity will always be here as an expression of the student voice, in all its diverse and multi-faceted forms. However, it’s up to you, the students, to work with us, fund us, and tell us what we can do better.
Josie Kao
Editor-in-Chief
Volume 140
