New editors, managers to take 'DP' helm

After a year of spending countless hours in their windowless office at 4015 Walnut Street, the 26 members of The Daily Pennsylvanian's 118th Board of Editors and Managers are ready to pass on the torch. Tomorrow night, at the DP's annual banquet, the new leadership of Penn's independent student newspaper will officially take over. Although they will certainly enjoy the additional sleep they'll get over the semester, the members of the 118th Board will look back on having earned the DP's second consecutive Associated Collegiate Press Pacemaker Award, one of the nation's top college journalism honors. This year, they covered news ranging from the openings of Huntsman Hall and the Pottruck Health and Fitness Center to the Pennsylvania governor's race. Tomorrow's ceremony will include a keynote address from David Borgenicht, a 1990 Penn graduate and former DP staffer who co-authored the popular Worst-Case Scenario Survival Handbook and is now a publisher in Philadelphia. University President Judith Rodin will also address the attendees, as will incoming Executive Editor Amy Potter. Potter, a College junior from Albuquerque, N.M., served as senior sports editor on the 118th board. This year, she will lead the new group of editors and managers and will serve as president of the organization. In her new role, Potter plans to focus on "improving the quality of our reporting and the quality of the paper on a daily basis," she said. In addition to being an outstanding choice for the position, Potter is the first woman to serve as executive editor since 1994. She called the DP "a remarkable institution." "We have a responsibility to deliver news to our community," Potter said. Flanking Potter will be Marla Dunn and Deryn Dobson, who will lead the 27 students on the editorial and business boards as well as hundreds of DP staffers. As managing editor, Dunn, a College junior from Silver Spring, Md., will oversee the DP's daily editorial operations. Before serving as assignments and features editor last year, she covered the facilities and Greek life beats for the newspaper. "I hope to build on the DP's standard of excellence, increasing both the breadth and depth of news coverage," Dunn said. She looks forward to "continuing to provide a source for the truth for our readers in and around Penn." And Dobson, a Wharton junior from Newtown, Pa., will run the corporation's daytime operations as business manager. Last year, Dobson was the DP's finance manager and was also a member of the Executive Board. This year, she will act as vice president of the corporation and will chair the Business Board. In addition, Ross Clark, a College junior and native of Winston-Salem, N.C., will take the reins of 34th Street Magazine, the DP's weekly arts and entertainment supplement. Other members of the 119th Editorial Board are Steven Brauntuch, Madlen Read, Rachel Velcoff, Ashley Parker, Vivian Hsu, Andrew DeLaney, Greg Muller, Zach Silver, Mary Kinosian, Caroline New, Christopher George, Jeff Shafer, Noel Fahden, Daniel McQuade, Chris McFall, David Young and Matthew Jones. Serving on the new Business Board are Dobson, Saul Safdieh, Miranda Maney, Alexandra Zarrilli, Jennie Woltz, Spencer Schrage and Jennifer Klein.

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