The student newspaper at San Antonio College is closing at the end of the semester, 95 years after its first edition went into print.
The Ranger announced Tuesday that it will cease operations in December, after the faculty members who oversee the program retire. The reasons for the closure aren’t completely clear, although enrollment in the classes that staff the paper have been low recently.
Editor-in-Chief Sergio Medina said he was overwhelmed when he heard the news. He’s worked for the paper for four years and said it gave him the opportunity to develop journalism skills at a college he could afford.
“You understand from the get-go the weight of what you're doing, because you're not only working for a grade, you are putting news out there that benefits the community around your college,” Medina said, adding that he believed more students would enroll in the classes that staff the paper if they were better promoted by the college.
The Ranger has covered the community college since 1926. It was named one of the top 100 student papers in August.
The newspaper stopped producing a print edition in 2019 due to budget cuts.
SAC President Robert Vela said in a statement Tuesday that the college “has no intention of discontinuing student journalism.”
“The rapidly changing nature of 21st century journalism has led the way to new and exciting ways to gather and deliver news and information,” Vela said in a letter sent to students and staff. “We are exploring many avenues that will make sense for the SAC community and keep student journalism thriving on our campus.”
Medina said he was reassured to hear student journalism will continue at SAC, but he still has a lot of questions about what form it will take.
“Personally, as a journalist — someone who is responsible for covering this — it makes me wonder ‘OK, well what is actually the plan to do this?’” Medina said.
A spokesperson for the college said SAC will announce their plans once they are finalized.
