Humans of Chaffey: Maria Zaldivar
By Eve Scolari
There are many responsibilities for one to assume, and being the Editor-in-Chief of a newspaper is among the biggest. Chaffey College is home to The Breeze, a student-led newspaper. This publication has many students and faculty members working on the team, yet the Editor-in-Chief, Maria Zaldivar, is among the staff members who shoulder the majority of the work.
Zaldivar is an inspiring worker; she tirelessly works day and night to edit articles. As the Editor-in-Chief, she keeps track of publishing articles and assigning duties to the rest of the staff members.
As she is a student at Chaffey College as well, she assiduously works on assignments from the 17 units she is taking, she is a member of The Chaffey College Honors Society, as well as a Puentista and a member of an all-women book club. In the midst of the chaos in her day-to-day life, Zaldivar finds peace and tranquility in doing her best to fully live in the moment.
Raised in Rialto, California, she found herself unsatisfied with the education she received from middle school to high school, noting that it was “underwhelming and lackluster." Her escape from the schooling system was reading and writing. Completely in love with English in her earlier years, the Editor-in-Chief found herself enamored with the idea of being a journalist, resulting in her decision to double major in Journalism and Communications. If it weren’t for her elementary school’s endless nudging towards reading and writing, it could be that Maria would not be The Breeze’s inspiring Editor-in-Chief.
Her love for reading shaped her to be the person she is today: the Editor-in-Chief of a team of over 40 writers. Although it is only her first semester in charge of The Breeze, Maria has been able to guide the writers and editors with passion and kindness. Her love for journalism allows her to have patience in being in a position not many others could do.
Even now, her end goal is to be a journalist running her own personal show. The Editor-in-Chief noted that on her journey to meet that end goal, she aspires to work for Rolling Stone magazine, with a specific emphasis on musicians; shining a spotlight on their work by interviewing them on red carpets.
Maria Zaldivar pushes through the anxiety and stress that comes along with the pressure of being in charge. She noted that she is able to find rest through prayer and working on breathing exercises. In the midst of her anxieties, she is able to “invite God into moments where [she] [feels] like [she] can’t move forward,” allowing her to take time away from her position to metaphorically recharge before returning to work.
In spite of this, Zaldivar would not change any aspects of where she is. As an extrovert, she finds immense joy in working with others and providing the opportunity to give them an outlet for their writing. Not only this, but she also loves teaching the basics of journalism to the world’s next influential journalists and writers.
With her team of editors and advisors, the Editor-in-Chief is able to not feel alone when editing and making decisions. She knows she has an entire team willing to work alongside her to reach The Breeze’s goals.
Maria is a leader and a student, as well as a woman looking to enjoy her life while pursuing her passions. She finds that being an editor impacts the way she sees life on a casual basis. In the midst of endless unprofessionalism in the world, it is easy to spot grammar errors and mistakes. Despite this fact, Zaldivar noted that she doesn’t become bothered with other’s errors.
According to The Breeze’s Editor-in-Chief, journalism is power. In the end, most of the news information consumed by a person on a day-to-day basis is received through some form of magazine or newspaper. Writing is a longtime passion of hers, and she believes that “hard work and persistence [is] invaluable.” There is nothing like the feeling of wrapping up an article that took time and energy to write, and through Maria's hard work, she now stands as one of the leaders of The Breeze, an inspiring role model for so many Chaffey writers and students.