Two WSU students join Gazette staff for summer

Meghann Ferguson

Jasmin Seaman

The face of the Gazette staff is changing slightly this summer.

Meghann Ferguson and Jasmin Seaman, both Washington State University students, have been hired as interns at the Gazette this summer to fill some staffing vacancies.

Ferguson, who began work May 4, jumped into the position of intern reporter, filling in while another reporter was on vacation for two weeks.

“At first, it was a little overwhelming because I kind of just dove in, but it gave me a good idea of how the whole job works and how the office works all together,” Ferguson said. “I wouldn’t trade that experience.”

Ferguson will be at the Gazette through much of the summer and help to fill in when production manager Jana Mathia goes on maternity leave this month, in addition to other reporting duties.

The 19-year-old junior at WSU from Olympia is majoring in public relations and minoring in business administration. With just more than three weeks under her belt as an intern reporter, she has also decided to add a second major in journalism and media production.

“I’ve always had a passion for writing, but I hadn’t had the experience yet,” Ferguson explained. “This is definitely something I want to continue in my future.”

Ferguson said she is enjoying jumping into the Whitman County communities.

“My favorite part is how I’ve been kind of integrated into this community that I didn’t really know about before,” she said. “It happens fast. I’ve been able to really immerse myself in the community and feel at home.”

Ferguson added she is looking forward to gaining experience this summer.

“I’m excited about applying what I’ve learned from school to real-world experience and not just having to read about how to do it and acting as a real-time journalist rather than just a student in the classroom,” she said.

Ferguson is heavily involved in the WSU community, having been a re-establishing member of the Pi Beta Phi sorority in 2014 and serving as the vice president of philanthropy from 2014-2015. She is now a chapter member of her sorority and serves as the director of student life at ASWSU. She previously served on the philanthropy committee and executive council of ASWSU and also serves on the marketing committee of the Student Entertainment Board. She is additionally an employee at Bagels & Bottles in Pullman.

A native of Olympia, Seaman began working with the Gazette May 16 and will be working as the advertising intern through mid-July. Seaman will be filling in for graphic designer Liz Nelson during her maternity leave, set to begin next week. She is also filling a current vacancy in the advertising department.

“I’m going to learn so much, I think,” she said. “Seeing my ads in the paper, I just get all giddy because it’s so new to me. I have already learned so much.”

Seaman, who is a double degree in advertising and Japanese, said advertising allows her to get to know the community.

“I love how I can be creative with it,” she said. “I love advertising for this small town newspaper because people come in and it’s more personal. Your work, your art, it actually means something to somebody.”

Seaman studied abroad in Japan in the summer of 2015 and actually was able to live with her grandparents while abroad.

“I lived the life my mom lived growing up there for a little bit,” she said. Seaman added that living with her grandparents allowed herself to immerse in the culture more and learn the language faster.

Seaman is a member of the Chi Omega sorority at WSU where she the website and is also an active member of the marketing club at WSU. She currently serves as chief financial officer in the club and marketing intern. Her anticipated graduation date is in December this year, and she said she is not sure of her plans after graduation right now. However, she does have a goal for her internship.

“I’m going to make the Whitman County Gazette miss me,” she said. “That’s my goal: to be so good that they’re going to miss me when I’m gone.”