Mark Schultz is the editor of the Durham Post in North Carolina.

 Schultz developed an interest in the journalism field as he worked on the newspaper staff at his university while studying a different major.

 “I was studying animal science, but organic chemistry and livestock nutrition did me in at the same time I was enjoying my work on the paper, The Cornell Daily Sun.”

 Schultz changed his major sophomore year as his interests shifted more toward journalism.

 Outside of working on his college paper, Schultz received a degree in communications and also participated in an internship during his college years. He has a long list of other credentials prior to his becoming the editor of the Durham Post including being the news editor of an alternative weekly, a radio news reporter, a weekend anchor, a bureau chief, a night metro editor, and the metro editor.  

 Schultz says he enjoys being the editor of the Durham Post for a number of reasons.

 “It allows me to create, write, shoot pictures, plan coverage, and coach others.”

 Major influences in Schultz’s decision to pursue journalism include one of his college professors and the executive editor at the internship he participated in.

 “My college professor wrote across the top of a paper ‘had I thought of doing this for a living?’ and the executive editor at my internship said I was one of the best interns they had had.”

 Schultz says he has had a few “memorable” experiences as a journalist, including interviewing people with moving stories like a man with AIDS, a boy with autism, and an alleged battered woman who shot her husband.

 With many newspapers going fully online, many journalists are faced with the prospect of a grim future for their staff and overall print paper.

 “People aren’t willing to pay for what we do. I’m hoping my niche in local, community journalism keeps me employed as long as I want to be.”