The Pine Needle
The Pine Needle was founded in 1947. At that time, the school was known as Pembroke State College for Indians. In 1949, the school was renamed Pembroke State College. The school was opened to all qualified applicants without regard to race in 1954. It became Pembroke State University in 1969 and The University of North Carolina at Pembroke in 1996.
​
The newspaper is advised by a member of the mass communication faculty who integrates the publication into the preparation offered mass communication students for careers in newspaper and web journalism, print media, and other internet media.
​
I joined The Pine Needle in the spring of 2017 as the newspaper's social media coordinator. When my writing caught Mrs. Sandell's attention, I was also asked to be a freelance writer.
​
Most of the stories that I wrote for The Pine Needle were on campus news. The other stories were about campus sports or NASCAR. I am very passionate about racing and was referred to at times as, ''The Pine Needle's NASCAR Contributor.''
​
My stories gained a lot of attention around campus, especially with athletic communications.
I once wrote an article on the lack of school spirit and why students didn't enjoy the University's sports app called the #BraveNation app. When the app was first launched, it was lacking interactive features. At the time, the only thing that fans could do is check in at sporting events to earn points. The more points that fans accumulate, the higher they would be in the standings to win prizes. In addition, fans could also share their game day experiences on social media. After attending a few sporting events and testing out the app, I kept thinking to myself, ''this app has potential and could be a little bit better.'' The main push behind writing the story is how the app was not very engaging with my friends. I wanted to make their opinions about the app known.
​
In the article, I compared the #BraveNation app to the UNC Go Heels app. My goal in the article was to highlight ways that athletic communications could make the #BraveNation app better for fans.
One suggestion that I made for athletic communications was to include live streaming. I made this suggestion because the app was lacking something. With a live stream feature, fans could keep up with UNCP teams even when they couldn't make it to the games. After the story had been published, I recieved an email from athletic communications telling me that the new live stream feature had been added to the app. Then, I wrote a follow-up story on the new app update.
​
Another big story that I wrote was a how-to story. It was a story on how students could leave an impact on UNCP. The inspiration behind this story is that I was worried that I wouldn't leave any type of an impact on UNCP. It was something that I had on my mind for a while. Then I decided to stop worrying about it and get more involved on campus. The story highlights my college experiences and how others could have the same experiences.
​
On this page, you will find some of my popular stories and social media posts.
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
#BraveNation App Disappoints
Today is Thursday, it is around noon, and I find myself in a line 10 miles long to secure a ticket to this Saturday's football game.
​
The catch? For students to secure a ticket to football games, they must download the UNCP #BraveNation App and show it to the workers at the ticket counter.
​
Last year, the university unveiled a new app called #BraveNation that is compatible on Apple and Android devices.
Brave Nation App Updates Go Live
​
UNCP is one of a handful of NCAA Division II schools to partner with SuperFanU to launch a fan loyalty rewards app.
​
Fans can unlock rewards and exclusive offers with their points.
​
Also, students can keep track of their acumulated points and see how they measure up to their peers with a campus-wide leaderboard.
How to Leave Your Mark at UNC-Pembroke
​
Most colleges and universities have unique nicknames that are associated with their sports teams. Here at UNCP, the nickname ‘’Braves'' not only describes the athletics, but also the entire campus.
​
On campus, being a Brave isn’t just a catchy team nickname, but it's also a tradition. At UNCP, being Brave means getting outside your comfort zone, trying new things, becoming an effective leader and ultimately leaving an impact on campus that generations to come will remember and benefit from.
​
Is four years at UNCP enough time to create a legacy? For some students, leaving a legacy comes naturally. Some students have hit a game-winning home run or kicked the game winning field-goal in overtime. For others, it’s not so easy.
​
​
Despite Uncertain Future, Danica Patrick's Legacy Lives on
​
Danica Patrick, the only female driver to win an Indy Car Race and the Daytona 500 pole, will not return to Stewart-Haas Racing for the 2018 season.
​
Patrick, who has been with Stewart-Haas Racing for the past six seasons, announced via Facebook on Tuesday that she would not be back for a seventh season with the organization.
How Safe Should a Racecar Be? NASCAR Learned the Hard Way
Walking through the NASCAR Hall of Fame’s Glory Road, it’s clear there is no comparison when it comes to safety features on today’s Monster Energy Cup cars with earlier models of its predecessors.
There’s no comparison because the features aren’t there in the older models. From helmets to harnesses and fire extinguishers, these were added as NASCAR learned the hard way through history - because of injury or death.
Danica Patrick Prepares for Retirement; Replacements Ready
​
Daytona Beach, Fla.- When Danica Patrick announced her retirement from racing, it left many people wondering about the future of women in the sport, and who would replace Patrick.
That question is soon to be answered once this season starts at the Daytona International Speedway. Each year the Automobile Racing Club of America, (ARCA) and NASCAR begin each season at Daytona. Both racing series will seem a little bit different.
Bubba Wallace Makes History as Daytona Driver
​
Darrell “Bubba” Wallace Jr. is just the fourth African-American driver to ever get behind the wheel of a stock car in a NASCAR race.
At Daytona, Wallace became just the second African-American since 1971 to ever compete full-time in the series. Wallace’s career has been full of adversity, much like Wendell Scott’s, who became the first African American to start a NASCAR race.
As the Social Media Manager for The Pine Needle, I was responsible for managing the newspaper's Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts. The hardest thing I battled as the social media manager was getting more engagement on our accounts. The main reason is that we were a school newspaper, and newspapers are dying out. How did we solve the engagement problem? As an organization, we decided to go get the engagement, instead of letting it find us. Each week we decided to have an information table in the University Center. As students walked by, we would talk with them about the newspaper. Students also had the opportunity to enter contests to win Pine Needle gear. This was a huge campaign for us! We gained approximately 75 new followers on all of our social media accounts.
Below is the newspaper's Instagram feed, and links to it's Facebook and Twitter.
