East Lansing Info Appoints New Managing Editor: Julie Seraphinoff

With movement continuing on the plan to resume reporting for the East Lansing community in early September, East Lansing Info has now appointed a new Managing Editor: Julie Seraphinoff.

At ELi, Seraphinoff will oversee reporting, working with a team of reporters, editors and advisers to decide how to apply available resources to the task of keeping the East Lansing community informed about local government, local elections, the East Lansing Public Schools, arts and business, and more. As recommended by the specially-designated ELi Task Force – charged with developing a relaunch plan – this position will be a 20-hour-a-week position, to support long-term sustainability of the work.

Seraphinoff joins East Lansing Info (ELi) as a capstone to a long career in journalism and journalism education. She recently retired as a teacher at Haslett High School where she educated young adults about the power of the First Amendment, the importance of professional and ethical journalism, and the critical role of independent news reporting in democracy.

The ideal candidate for this position as imagined by the ELI Task Force would be someone who is a resident of East Lansing with deep roots in the community and a career in journalism. ELi also sought someone who would be capable of working with citizen journalists who maintain ELi’s high reporting standards but don’t necessarily have a background in news reporting.

Seraphinoff’s application checked all of these boxes. A resident of East Lansing’s Bailey neighborhood, Seraphinoff holds a degree in Journalism from Michigan State University along with Secondary Teaching Credential from MSU with a major in Journalism and a minor in English.

Her professional background includes work at the Lansing State Journal, California Delta Newspapers, the Contra Costa Times (in Walnut Creek, Calif.), and the Portland Review and Observerin Portland, Mich. She taught for 25 years at Haslett High School where the work she led was recognized by the Michigan Interscholastic Press Association, the Journalism Education Association, the National Scholastic Press Association and Columbia Scholastic Press Association.

In her interview for the position, Seraphinoff said she is especially drawn to the nonprofit, mission-centered approach of ELi.

“When I opted to retire from teaching journalism,” Seraphinoff wrote in her application for the position of Managing Editor, “I always said I would like to find a way to use my skills and passions to make a difference in my community, possibly with a non-profit organization. The Managing Editor position with East Lansing Info has the potential to provide a wonderful next chapter for me as a journalist.”

The Board of Directors of ELi expressed great excitement at the hiring of Seraphinoff into this position. Her work with ELi officially began this past Monday, Aug. 15.

ELi’s team is now working on rebuilding the ranks of reporters alongside rebuilding work in fundraising and outreach. Community members who are supportive of ELi are strongly encouraged to read about the relaunch and take the survey of resource support.