Opinions editor Rachel Kookogey originally arrived at Hillsdale with hopes of being a pre-med student.
However, one trip to the Collegian office changed those plans.
“I just walked into the office, just to see what it was like,” Kookogey said. “And I kind of got guilted into it.”
Kookogey began her Collegian career at the end of her first semester at Hillsdale with an article reviewing “A Christmas Story”.
This article led her to rethink her future goals at Hillsdale.
“The extracurriculars I wanted to do were mostly journalism related, so I had to ask myself why I was tying myself down tolike a science major if my interests are more tied to other majors.”
This led Kookogey to pursue her interest in the Rhetoric and Public Address major.
Kookogey took her first rhetoric class with Dr. Stoneman and reports that she hasn’t looked back since.
Rachel also dove head-first into the journalism program. During this time, Rachel discovered her love of covering live events.
“It was really cool seeing your name in print, and then just meeting people and being able to tell [other people’s] stories,” Kookogey. “I just dove headfirst and got really involved in it.
Kookogey soon aspired to be a Collegian editor after visiting the office one night before the papers were sent to the printer.
“I walked in and was like, ‘oh my gosh, like, I’m just a freshman and all these people are staff. But I knew I wanted to be here on Wednesday nights the following year.”
Rachel’s favorite part of journalism is getting to meet, interview, and work with a variety of people. She hopes to utilize these communication skills upon graduation.
“Whatever I do, I definitely want it to be people oriented and working in person,” Kookogey said. “I might do something with broadcast or in event planning, using skills that I’ve learned in college like working with people and problem solving. That’s the nice thing about the Journalism minor and the Rhetoric of Public Address major, they are very versatile.”
Outside of the office, you can catch Rachel staying active and involved in the college by teaching dance lessons and running social media for Hillsdale’s own Hockey Club.
Kookogey looks forward to continuing her Collegian career during her senior year.
