Hello, Evanston, We are taking the center column this morning, June 28, to let you know that we are retiring from our editorial and leadership positions at the RoundTable.
Our retirement at this time is in accordance with our plans to build a sustainable future for the RoundTable, something that we, together with members of our Board and Advisory Committee, have been working toward for the last 18 months.
Tracy Quattrocki has been working closely with us for the past 18 months. She will assume the duties of executive editor on July 1 and has already implemented some changes. Most of the RoundTable’s journalists will continue, and there will be some new voices. We will continue to write articles but on a much more limited basis.
Much has been accomplished over the past year and a half:
- We became a nonprofit organization with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status.
- We launched a new website and implemented a membership model that we trust will being us financial sustainability. Nonetheless, we intend to keep the website free and accessible to all.
- We switched from an evening newsletter to a morning one.
- Our social media presence is robust, with Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram accounts.
- We secured grants to fund specific writing projects to help diversify our staff and implemented outreach to local schools to showcase student writing.
On the journalism front, we have continued to provide strong news coverage for the community. Last October, the RoundTable was named the best non-daily newspaper in northern Illinois by the Northern Illinois Newspaper Association. In May we received a Lisagor award from the Chicago Headline Club for best community newspaper.
In the past 23 years the RoundTable has been a free community newspaper that provided fair and objective reporting. We provided in-depth coverage on important issues facing the community, including early childhood development; public education and opportunity and achievement gaps; affordable housing; health and mental health care; environmental sustainability; economic development; building developments and zoning; major crimes and police activities; restorative justice; reparations; fiscal responsibility and accountability of governmental bodies; and the many things that contribute to the culture and fabric of Evanston.
We are confident that the RoundTable’s new leadership team will continue to provide fair and objective coverage on these and other important issues facing the community. We hope to see you aRound town.
— Mary and Larry Gavin