Tuesday, March 19, 2024

Staff & About

The purpose of The Snapper shall be to disseminate Millersville University and the surrounding community news concerning students, faculty, administration and staff in an unbiased and unprejudiced manner and to facilitate expression of the attitudes and ideas of the student body and faculty, administration and staff.

—The Snapper Constitution

The Snapper publishes 6-8 issues per semester, delivered to newsstands Wednesday evening for the Thursday edition. Our newspapers are currently located in the following places:

  • SMC (NEAR THE GALLEY & AT ENTRANCE)
  • THE LIBRARY
  • GORDINIER HALL
  • HASH HALL
  • CAPUTO HALL
  • MCCOMSEY HALL
  • HEALTH SERVICES
  • LYLE HALL
  • STAYER HALL
  • AND SELECT OFF-CAMPUS LOCATIONS

The Snapper invites any and all contributions from students, faculty and staff of Millersville University, and we accept staff applications regardless of major. If you'd like to join, please click on the apply page at the top of the screen.

Our office: SMC 015

We renovated our office over the summer in 2019, adding new furniture, lights, and decorations. After more than a few years of neglect, we cleaned everything, opened up the space by rearranging the furniture, and added a lounge area to provide comfort for our editors and visitors.

Executive team

Morgan Huber (she/her)

Editor-in-Chief

Hey readers! I am a senior at Millersville studying Social Studies Education with a concentration in Government & Political Affairs. In the Fall 2021 semester, I transferred to MU, starting as a staff writer before my promotion to associate opinion editor, Opinion Editor, Managing Editor, and now EIC! While working for the campus newspaper, I have had the opportunity to meet so many great people with unique and intriguing ideas, and I cannot wait to put my voice and others’ out there in upcoming articles. In addition to helping run The Snapper, I also currently student teach social studies at Hempfield High School and serve as a news reporter for LNP | LancasterOnline. When I’m not writing, I’m … writing! You will most likely find me in the Snapper office, the Hub, or manning the info desk in the SMC while writing an article, lesson plan, or short story. I’m a massive nerd when it comes to history, politics, popular culture, and Marvel comics, so bring any of those up and I’ll probably talk your ear off. I also enjoy music, movies (especially sci-fi and John Hughes flicks!), and seeing new places and new people, wherever life takes me! I have loved every moment of my time with The Snapper so far, and I anticipate all the exciting adventures that await me here. Happy reading!

Whitney Walmer (she/her)

Managing Editor

Hello! My name is Whitney, and I began my journey with Millersville University of Fall 2020. I am an English and Digital Journalism major. Some things that I love to do in my free time are cooking, baking, hiking, watching movies, and hanging out with my friends. I love getting to write about what I am passionate about, gain experience, and hangout with cool people while doing it.

Our amazing editors

Abigail Manbeck (she/her)

News Editor

Hi everyone! My name is Abby Manbeck. I am a junior psychology major minoring in criminology. This is my third semester at The Snapper. I have previously been a staff writer and for a brief time an associate arts & cultures editor. I am now the news editor for The Snapper. What I love most about being the news editor is that I get to explore all the news topics, whether it be hard news from the world or some interesting things that go on, on or around campus. When I am not writing about news for my section, I love to write reviews for arts and culture. For my section however, I love to cover news stories from around the world. When not at The Snapper, you can catch me strumming my guitar, singing, performing in community theater shows, Irish dancing, reading books, and making jewelry. Have a great year everyone!

Mark Linker (he/him)

Opinion Editor

Hey everyone, My name is Mark Linker and I’m a junior here at Millersville University. I’m a communications major with a minor in psychology. I joined The Snapper at the end of last semester as the opinion editor. I’ve always had an interest in writing and thought The Snapper was a good outlet to get my writing expressed. Being new to the newspaper, my goal is to get proficient in designing and improving my professional writing ability. Aside from my main editing role, I plan on starting an official Snapper podcast/audio format within the coming year. Outside of The Snapper, my main hobbies are guitar and sports.

Ava Adiletti (she/her)

Features Editor

Hi everyone! My name is Ava Adiletti and I am a junior. My major is Sports Journalism and Media Arts Production. I joined the Snapper in Fall 2022. I am a member of the women's Swimming team here at Millersville. I enjoy writing about sports, campus events, interesting Millersville news, and student activities. In my free time I love watching sports, hanging out with friends, swimming, and shopping. I am excited to be apart of such a great group of writers and students!

Breonna Dull (she/her)

Associate Features Editor

Hey, I’m Breonna, or Bree. This is my fourth year of college and third year at Millersville. I’m a geography major with a concentration in sustainability studies and a writing studies minor. This Fall is my third semester with the snapper as the associate features editor. I like being an editor because I can practice my writing skills, go to interesting events, and meet new people. I often write about local events, especially live music. Outside the snapper, I enjoy making jewelry, listening to music, and being outdoors, but I’m usually napping.

Emma Hazard (she/her)

Arts and Culture Editor

Hi! My name is Emma, and I’m a journalism major here at Millersville. I’m a sophomore, and I joined The Snapper at the start of my freshman year. I started out as a staff writer, and was promoted to Arts and Culture Editor at the end of the spring semester last year. Outside of writing for The Snapper, I dance, draw, journal, listen to music, hang out with friends, and have a radio show Year in school right here at Millersville! I also have a strong love for animation and video games- which is great because I can incorporate that love into my articles. I really enjoy being a part of the Snapper team; getting to meet so many interesting people and be a part of so many projects. The Snapper has helped me learn how to be a better journalist/ reporter, and it’s also taught me a thing or two that I could take home to my own creative writings. I truly can’t wait to see what this coming year brings!

Justin Staggers (he/him)

Sports Editor

Hello everyone! My name is Justin Staggers and I am a senior here at Millersville University. I am majoring in the fields of Marketing as well as Communications. I joined the Snapper in the Fall of 2022 as an Associate Sports Editor before becoming the head sports editor in the fall. My favorite part of being in this organization is the community of people we have. It is a very tight knit group of people pushing each other everyday to become better journalists, photographers etc. Outside of The Snapper, I enjoy playing golf in my free time and I am also a member of the club tennis team here on campus. At home I have a bunny named Jovi and a kitten named Meatball who I love both dearly. I am looking forward to continuing building my writing portfolio this semester and being a part of a great group of students.

Ben Staker (he/him)

Associate Sports Editor

Hi, I’m Ben Staker! I’m a sophomore majoring in sports journalism at Millersville. I joined The Snapper in the 2023 fall semester as a staff writer and later became an associate sports editor the same semester. The things I love most about journalism are meeting new people and getting to express my thoughts and feelings through writing. I enjoy writing about all sports and anything else that could lead to positive discussion. Outside of my work with The Snapper I enjoy watching my favorite sports teams, playing video games, and spending time with my family and friends. I’m excited to work closer with The Snapper this year and the rest of my career at Millersville!

Katelyn Auty (she/her)

Head Copy Editor & Social Media Editor

Hi, I’m Katelyn! I’m a junior majoring in Journalism with a minor in General English. This is my second year of being Head Copy Editor and my first semester as Social Media Editor. I want to do social media management and marketing as a career, so I’m thrilled to take on my new positon. My favorite part of being in The Snapper is helping our writers improve their writing skills. Outside of The Snapper, I enjoy making Spotify playlists, watching TV and movies, and crocheting. I look forward to this semester!

Deborah Phillips (she/her)

Photography Editor

Hey everyone, I’m Debbie! I’m a junior majoring in Marketing with a minor in Sociology. This past Fall, I transferred to MU and was introduced to The Snapper by a member and recently became the Photography Editor. Even though my time with The Snapper has been short, I truly am appreciative of the opportunity to get involved with other students, read amazing stories, and capture unique moments. In my free time, I enjoy binge watching shows, creating graphics, and spending time with my family. When I’m not taking pictures for The Snapper, I’m still taking pictures! You can catch me photographing or editing 24/7 because I also own a photography business (@d.galleryphotography). I love capturing anything interesting and historical and seeing it published. I am excited for what’s ahead and can’t wait to keep shooting (not literally)!

Olivia Heilemann (she/her)

Copy Editor

Hi friends! My name is Liv and I am a junior majoring in Journalism. I began working for the Snapper in fall of 2021 as a Staff Writer, became News Editor at the end of the Spring 2022 semester, and now hold the title of Copy Editor. In my free time, I like to read, watch TV, and I am currently teaching myself how to crochet. I’m also a big fan of horror movies and books, and you’ll often find me enthusing about the Conjuring movies! I am always interested in the events happening around me, and I am thankful to be in an environment with some of my best friends to guide me and help me grow as a writer. I’m excited to see what the semester brings and I can’t wait to start writing!

University (he/they)

Mascot

Hey, I’m University, the official Snapper mascot. I love the campus newspaper so much, you can spot my neck and bottom tattoos of the Snapper logo if you look closely.I provide amusement, photo opportunities, and judging glances.You can catch me on the cover of many of our issues, the magazine and all over our socials. You can often find me in the Snapper office peeking absentmindedly out the window. For those who are into astrology, I’m an Aquarius sun, Leo moon, and a Scorpio rising.

^ Full editor biographies can be found on each section's page, accessed through the main menu at the top of the page ^

Social media & business team

Kat Delaney

Social Media Coordinator

Our wonderful faculty advisor

Dr. Robert Spicer

Faculty Advisor

Dr. Robert N. Spicer, Associate Professor of Communication at Millersville University, is the faculty advisor for The Snapper. His primary area of research is in media and political culture. His dissertation, which he defended in June of 2014 at the Rutgers University School of Communication & Information, is titled The Discourses and Practices of Political Deception: From Campaigns to Cable to the Courts.

Spicer’s secondary area of research is in emerging media and philosophy of technology. His research has been published in books and journals such as Techne: Research in Philosophy and Technology and the Journal of Media Education. He also authored the book Free Speech and False Speech: Political Deception and its Legal Limits (or lack thereof) for Palgrave (April 2018).