Since arriving in LaGrange, I have wanted to give our newspaper a facelift. There are opportunities for us to improve the daily design of our paper, which will create a better, more enjoyable experience and connection for all. I wanted to take a moment and bring some of these soon-to-happen changes to light, to make you aware of what will be taking place soon.

The most glaring opportunity we will be taking advantage of is removing the rail from the front page of our newspaper. The rail, while serving a purpose, limits what our reporters can do from a design perspective quite drastically. We want the front page to draw people in, to engage people. With more dynamic photos and a sleeker design we’ll be able to achieve this mission. Currently, the front page is prone to becoming stale, as there is simply not enough room left on the page with the inclusion of the side rail.

We have already dipped our foot, so to speak, into this new territory on occasion. Wednesday’s newspaper was an example of this, and it was one of our best-looking editions we’ve had since my arrival. This will make an immediate impact once we have a chance to remove the rail on a full-time basis.

Something else we will be doing is implementing more columns from our writers on a consistent basis. News writing and column writing are two different beasts, and they take different skill sets. Column writing, however, allows our writers to engage with the community in a different way. I have had a number of people tell me they have appreciated seeing columns I have written in the past months. I can assure you the reason for this is not because I am a distinguished or gifted writer, but simply because this medium helps people feel more connected to the author.

There is much more we plan to do, many more changes we hope to implement in the near future. These are simply a few examples of the steps we are taking toward creating a newspaper that you as a community can be proud of.