Two and a half years ago, I set out on campus with a handful of fliers — none sporting the Student Activities approval stamp — and tacked them around Ward, MGC, and the library. The fliers decried both my eagerness and desperation: “Interested in Progressive Politics? Writing? Photography? Design? Come brainstorm with me!” These early meetings, all of which were pathetically attended, were formative to AWOL. The few who came out, all as excited as I was about this seemingly dead-before-it-started project, supplied more than support; they got their hands dirty, and as a team with unwavering spirits and a failure-is-not-an-option ethos, AWOL became a real campus magazine.

What started as a group of friends begging other friends to write articles has mushroomed into a once-a-semester publication with an annual budget, office space and a stellar editorial board. Support and enthusiasm has been campus-wide. Other student organizations, professors, faculty advisers, AWOL readers, and perhaps most importantly, Campus Progress (who have supported us with a gracious grant since our inception) have all bent over backwards to defend and even fight for AWOL. The list of people who have had a hand in AWOL is long and exhausting, but without each individual contribution, AWOL would have failed miserably. I can’t take credit for establishing AWOL because its sustenance and endurance has been buttressed by scores of amazing people.

I asked one of the founding editors, Andy Tarrant, class of ‘08, to reflect on AWOL now after first setting the project in motion two and a half years ago. He echoed my feeling that the project coalesced around collaboration.

“What’s really important to realize is that it couldn’t have come together without the work of a whole group of people who believed in it and wanted to see it through. It really honestly was a group effort, and everyone did their part,” Tarrant said. “I hope it continues to grow and get better. If the team putting their time and efforts into it now is anything like what we had to start (And hopefully even better. Remember all the delays in getting copy in?!), I’m sure it will.”

Often, supporters and friends of AWOL chime that they’ve stopped reading The Eagle in place of this magazine. But that’s not what AWOL is trying to do and it never was. The Eagle — despite our editors and writers disagreeing with many of the paper’s editorial positions — is an important and vital source of AU news. They cover breaking news, the school’s politics and campus speakers and events. None of this is our territory; we’re not competing with The Eagle. AWOL exists as a campus-based political and cultural news magazine. We focus on long-form pieces and argumentative and investigative journalism. It’s important that the manufactured rivalry be dispelled. We’re friends of The Eagle, and at the same time will monitor and hold the paper to professional journalistic standards. AWOL will be a watchdog on The Eagle’s coverage just as they should scrutinize us. And both of us will keep our eyes on the school and its organizations. We’re both a part of AU’s student-run media ecosystem, and the relationship between us is characterized by reciprocity, not competition.

As an editor of a magazine, or even a leader of a student organization, ambitions are defined by the years spent on campus. This places an unusual weight on the shoulders of student leaders who are trying to accomplish big things — you only have four years to do it!  So leaving AWOL is hard for me. There’s a long road of improvement ahead and I wish I could help drive the efforts. But considering the remarkable progress the magazine has made since the first issue (which was assembled by four people and bankrolled partly out of a scholarship refund), I’m proud and almost completely astonished. What’s more, the magazine is being left in fine hands. The cast of students involved with AWOL now — especially the editorial board and several outstanding writers — are the smartest and most talented group of kids AWOL has ever seen.  I wouldn’t be able to leave AU without these students. I trust them more than anyone. The next chapter of AWOL will undoubtedly surpass the high benchmarks it has already set.

After graduating in May and driving 2800 miles cross-country to cut my teeth in a daily newsroom, my enduring passion for reporting will hopefully find a nice home. But the week-to-week experiences of working with AWOL have refined my sensibilities as a curator and editor and have sharpened my journalistic instincts. If you’re reading this now and share a passion for journalism, writing, politics, the future of news and keeping a mindful voice at AU, I encourage you to get involved with AWOL. The students with passing curiosities often end up comprising a part of AWOL’s backbone. Without the involvement of students like you, who have enough interest in the magazine to at least riffle the editor’s note, AWOL would cease to exist. Become a part of AWOL by contributing your part. Chances are, whatever skill set you have, we can put it to use.

I can’t more emphatically extend my gratitude to all students, to faculty, and to Campus Progress who made this a reality. And I can’t stress enough how critical new student involvement is in the progression and success of this magazine.

These have been some of the most rewarding and exciting years of my life.