Raven Lirio
Copy Editor
Most mornings students prefer to drink coffee, but sophomores Brice Wilbanks and Nathaniel Lackey start sharp at 7 a.m. with a daily dose of fresh tea—that is to say the daily gossip.
“Seven@7 was a satirical e-newsletter that included seven cards of information including featured campus news, campus events and the lunch and dinner menu,” said Lackey. “Most of our content for our featured cards came from our very own Tealine which allowed for our readers to send in anonymous “tea” about different information that they heard on and around campus.”
The two students lead a team of seven people that gathered news and wrote for the well subscribed newsletter. Founded by Wilbanks and Lackey, the other members were Savannah Pratt, Kristin Moniz, Sabrina Pietron, Nolan James, and Trey Robak.
“Seven@7’s main goal was to promote campus news and information in a digestible, satirical and engaging way,” said Lackey. “Through our lighthearted content, we wanted to create a space to raise awareness for all campus clubs, organizations and programs.”
The newsletter went out every morning at 7 a.m., hence the name Seven@7. It was customized each day with a different fake, satirical position for all the writers involved, including a custom title for individual subscribers at the bottom of each letter. The bite-sized leads led many students to crave reading their short and witty bylines.
“We reached 533 total subscribers with 35 unsubs,” said Wilbanks.
Wilbanks was often seen in the Commons trying to get students to sign up for the subscription. It was completely open to students, but also faculty, staff and alumni to read the happenings on campus.
On March 13, Seven@7 sent out their last email for the semester as campus shutdowns lead most students heading home with the shift to online courses.
“Keep reading. Keep sending us your feedback. We need you, and for that we are eternally grateful to have you as a member on our team,” Seven@7 signed in their last email.
While Seven@7 ended bittersweetly right at the height of its growth, the team were proud of all their accomplishments in the short time span it lasted. They were able to launch an Instagram page (@thesevennews) and were in the process of launching a Twitter, Facebook, Tinder and Tik Tok all with the same handle with their own landing page to store all their content.
When asked about the possibility of returning after the break, Seven@7 left the answer open.
“We will see,” said Lackey. “We always take things day-by-day at Seven@7.”
