Changes on design desk, National copy desk

Following is a memo from Michael Whitley, assistant managing editor, and Tim Lynch, senior copy chief over Foreign and National, on Monday, Jan. 14, 2008.

Leslie Wilkinson joins us today as Assistant Design Director for technology and nights. She comes to us from the Charlotte Observer, where she most recently led a team of experts on additions and modifications to the CCI system, and also served as news design team leader.

Leslie will work at night and complete assignments on the A, Metro and Business desks in addition to helping supervise the night design operation. She will also be the point person for communication and development with our colleagues in News Operations. Leslie has coordinated design and publication plans for five national elections, experience that will be valuable to us as we continue to cover the 2008 presidential race.

Leslie is a 1999 graduate of the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and holds a graduate certificate from UNC in Communication and Technology.

Leslie's arrival is also good news for the National copy desk.

Kym Dryer, a talented designer on the California desk for several years, is moving to National the week of Jan. 27. This is a homecoming of sorts for Kym, who began her career at The Times in 1990 on the copy desk in Orange County. In her time on the desk she proved herself to be a skilled wordsmith and fine headline writer, and National is eager to tap those skills in this busy election season. We will miss Kym on the design desk,  where she has been a consistent contributor, but she is excited about this new opportunity.

Please join us in welcoming Leslie to the paper and Kym to National.