As appearing in The Collegian

To mark the Rocky Mountain Collegian’s 125th year of publication, Fort Collins’ mayor Wade Troxell proclaimed December 2016 as Student Media Celebration Month at the regularly scheduled City Council meeting Dec. 6.

It was presented to Julia Rentsch, the Collegian’s editor in chief, and Edward Kendall, speaker pro tempore for the Associated Students of Colorado State University. The Collegian is primarily funded through student fees allocated to student media by ASCSU.

The Collegian was founded in 1891 by seven students at what was then Colorado Agricultural College. It is one of the oldest student newspapers west of the Mississippi, and it is the longest-serving student newspaper in Colorado, the proclamation states.

Mayor Troxell read the proclamation aloud, which summarizes the Collegian‘s history and the expectation that the newspaper “will continue to help inform and engage its readers in the Fort Collins community for the foreseeable future while producing top-tier journalists who bring pride to our community.”

The proclamation also recognizes some of the accolades the Collegian has received.

“Whereas, during the course of its publication, the Rocky Mountain Collegian has been ranked one of the top-three daily student newspapers by the Society of Professional Journalists and numerous accolades on the national level,” the document reads.

Following the reading, Rentsch said that it was an honor to receive the recognition on behalf of 125 years’ worth of student journalists.

“Here’s to 125 years, and maybe even 125 more,” Rentsch said.