Robyn Radomski
(Aug. 31, 2026) As summer winds down, vacations come to an end and Penn State students return to campus for a new academic year, it’s a good time to reflect on what brings us together as members of the Collegian Alumni Interest Group and why our work matters.
Our commitment is simple but important: to support student journalists and help ensure that The Daily Collegian remains a vital training ground for the journalists of tomorrow.
Our mission is to promote The Daily Collegian and the evolving Penn State student media community as a place where students can learn, experiment, and prepare for careers in the media formats of their time. Our vision is to help fuel the Collegian’s transformation into an innovative, student-powered media organization that reflects the rapidly changing world its journalists will inherit. And our values remain rooted in the importance of an independent, student-run news organization that serves its communities while providing meaningful professional training.
Everything we do is guided by four strategic priorities:
1. Support students through mentorship, scholarships, and financial stability.
2. Help students build careers by exposing them to career pathways in an increasingly uncertain journalism environment.
3. Strengthen our alumni network so we can engage, advocate for, and support today’s student journalists, while celebrating our shared Collegian history and future.
4. Help advance the Collegian’s future through advocacy, research, and funding leadership.
What are we doing?
Here’s a snapshot of where we are and where we’re headed:
1. Building stronger relationships with Penn State and Collegian leadership.
We are working collaboratively with Penn State Student Media Director Ray Schmitt and Collegian Inc., the Collegian operating board led by local journalist Sarah Rafacz. We also had the opportunity to meet with new Bellisario College Dean Emily Metzgar shortly after she arrived at Penn State. These relationships are important as we work together to think strategically about the future of student media at Penn State and the role the Collegian can play in it.
2. Investing in the future.
We continue to grow our two endowment funds. The Collegian AIG Sustaining Fund, an endowment launched just a year ago thanks to the generosity of our members, now has a solid foundation to help support the Collegian’s long-term future. Our Collegian Scholarship Endowment Fund has grown to approximately $400,000 and provides two scholarships each year, currently about $5,000 apiece, to outstanding Collegian journalists.
If you haven’t contributed recently, please consider doing so. Gifts of any size make a difference. Every single dollar helps.
3. Using research to help shape the Collegian’s future.
We are continuing the work begun with our landmark research study of hundreds of 501(c)(3) college news organizations, which examined best practices and opportunities for sustainable student journalism. That research is helping us think about a roadmap for the Collegian.
Collegian alumni Bob Buday and Bill Guthlein, along with a team of dedicated alumni, are leading this effort again this year. One area receiving particular attention is audience development. A recent Student Monitor survey found that only 26 percent of students at the average U.S. college read their student newspaper, either in print or online. Reaching and engaging today’s students is clearly one of the most important challenges—and opportunities—facing student journalism.
4. Looking beyond the Collegian to the future of student media.
We believe the Collegian’s future is closely connected to the future of student media more broadly. As Penn State considers how its student media organizations can evolve in an increasingly digital and multimedia world, the AIG is eager to be a constructive partner, bringing the experience, expertise, and perspective of our alumni to the conversation.
Looking ahead
There is much more to do, but we should also take a moment to recognize how much this organization has accomplished. The AIG has grown into a committed network of alumni who care deeply about the Collegian and the students who pass through its newsroom.
As we begin another academic year, we remain focused on the same goal: helping ensure that Penn State students have the opportunity to learn journalism, master multi-platform media, develop their voices, and build meaningful careers.
The impact of the Collegian Alumni Interest Group ultimately depends on all of us. Every hour volunteered, every idea shared, every student mentored, and every dollar contributed helps strengthen the student voice and preserve the Collegian’s extraordinary legacy.
Thank you for being part of it—and for helping us build what comes next.
How You Can Help
There are many ways to support the Collegian’s future:
~ Give. Contributions, large or small, strengthen our endowments and support students.
~ Engage. Mentor a student, share your expertise, make a connection, or attend an AIG event.
~ Connect. Help us find more Collegian alumni, and bring them into the AIG community.
~ Choose one thing you can do this fall—and do it. Every contribution, connection, and conversation makes a difference.
I’ll save my real “signing off” as AIG president for next month, when my term ends. For now, there’s still work to do, students to support, and a Collegian future to help build.
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