In this episode of 'SEMO Spotlight', we speak with multimedia journalism major and longtime Arrow staffer Taylor Slavens. Taylor shares fond memories, stories from the Arrow, and words of wisdom for the Freshmen of SEMO.
She details with quiet warmth and steady conviction her transformation from an essay-loving kid to an award-winning newsroom leader walking across the stage at graduation.
Taylor’s story is one of steady, hands‑on growth. At the Arrow, she didn’t just write, she learned to lead. Describing the challenge of managing volunteer college writers, she framed it not as an administrative task but as mentorship: sitting down with new reporters, teaching interview technique, guiding drafts from first line to final edit.
That dedication shows up in the newsroom’s output and in the relationships Taylor forged. She called the teaching aspect “very fun,” and it’s clear those late nights and long hours were as much about friendship and community as they were about deadlines.
The sense of stewardship extends to the website Taylor rebuilt, endearingly referred to as "her baby.” What began as a messy, overlooked platform became a carefully reorganized, multimedia-forward publication through months of summer work and thoughtful redesign. The payoff is already tangible: a first-place nod at the Missouri College Media Awards and a national Pacemaker nomination, all recognition that left Taylor both surprised and deeply proud.
Through the conversation, Taylor’s love of writing came through as the steady engine behind it all. For her, journalism is not a side project but a calling; it's something that makes balancing seven stories in a week feel less like toil and more like a lived conviction. Yet she’s humble about the journey. When she started college, she didn’t have a map or a path, only a love for essays and a DARE contest trophy that hinted at a future voice. Now she leaves with awards, leadership experience, and the rare confidence of someone who found both craft and community.
Taylor’s advice to incoming students is simple and sharp: “Do it and do it scared.” It’s a mantra for anyone standing at the threshold, unsure whether to raise their hand, apply for a role, or pitch that first story. The lesson is that fear isn’t a stop sign but a signal—step forward despite it, and the work will teach you the rest.
Our conversation also captured the everyday textures of student newsroom life with some of her favorite memories at the Arrow, being the joy of a successful and engaging tabling event, the camaraderie of paper nights, and the small rituals that bind colleagues into a team. Those moments, from teaching a new writer to reworking a website layout, and laughing in the newsroom, all add up to a career foundation, and Taylor’s memories show how meaningful they are.
As Taylor moves beyond campus, the thread running through her story is clear: a fidelity to craft, a willingness to lead, and the courage to try even when uncertain. Those qualities turned a college newsroom into a proving ground and a community into a chosen family.
For listeners and fellow students, her journey is a reminder that excellence is rarely accidental; it's shaped by late nights, steady mentorship, and the stubborn belief that putting yourself out there, even when scared, is the only way to grow.
Graduation is both an end and an invitation. For Taylor Slavens, it’s a beginning, one that promises more reporting, more leadership, and more stories shaped by the same curiosity and care she brought to the Arrow.
