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 I tried to put a dog gif here, but mailchimp just hates me right now. =[ 

Hello everyone! Before I go into pitches, just a few housekeeping things:A. They may be a month away, but SU elections shall soon be on us! ELection season starts around reading week in February, but you should definitely think about it now and if you want to get into the elections frenzy.On a personal note, elections are super duper fun and its the time of year where you can feel like a political reporter! (ie interview political candidates, covering debates, etc.) If you're curious, just ask me for more info!B. I'd love to do a skill-building workshop for things like interview skills or lede writing, but I've been noticing that a lot of people aren't able to make it to the news meetings on Monday. If people were planning on coming by in the future, and want to see a workshop from me, message me, and I'll set something up for the following week.C. Hiring! There's still some time left but my job, as well as other positions, will be opening up for new blood in the organization. It's a great opportunity to get paid for your writing so if you're curious about that, hit me up!Alright, now for some pitches! 

1. Study: Syrian refugees face disparate experiences in private sponsorship programs. A study from the new school of urban planning at the U of A found that Syrian refugees face unique challenges, such as being abandoned if they’re being sponsored by a private program. Interview Sandeep Agrawal, the study’s author. This can either be a Q&A, or an in-depth article but you’ll have to interview another professor for it as well.

2. A chemistry professor believes that silicon could be the solution to prolonging battery life in electronics. Interview Jillian Buriak, professor in the Department of Chemistry, or Jonathan Veinot, professor of Chemistry and co-author on the study.

3. HackED is a Hackathon hosted at the University of Alberta where students will have 24 hours to code to create a project of their choice. There will be a panel of judges that will judge the projects after the 24 hours. The top teams will receive a prize. Students can compete in teams of approximately 2-4. The event will occur on January 19th - 20th. Organized by the computer engineering club, so interview them about the event

4. Albertans are getting enough sleep every night but the soundness of that sleep could be much better, according to the latest survey from the University of Alberta’s Centre for Active Living. Contact Nora Johnston, director of the centre in the Faculty of Kinesiology, Sport, and Recreation.

5. Alberta party holding event at RATT. On Jan. 16 from 5-7:30 p.m., the Alberta party candidate for Edmonton-Riverview Katherine O'Neill will be there to talk about the Alberta Party and how students can get involved. If you’re interested in this one, contact me and we can work something out. Just be aware that since this is a partisan event, covering it fairly might mean jumping through some extra hoops

6. April notes. We have an opening in our April magazine! This is a good way to get your byline in print before we wrap up the 2019-2020 publishing year. The issue’s theme is politics so if you’re interested we can work together on a pitch!