Today is my last day as Editor-in-Chief, and I am graduating Saturday with a major in journalism and minor in political science. It took me five years, five majors, possibly five different minors – at this point I can’t remember – to figure out my ending path for college. But I have an ending path now, and I have news print to thank.

During my time in college I’ve worked at two student newspapers in the state of Illinois, and I’m going to miss the people that came along with it most. I’m using my last byline to share in my college memories with my Managing Editor Nick Bosshart because I know he won’t use his to speak on his time during the Northern Star. Those things aren’t as important to Nick as you, the readers, are.

If you read our past few front page stories, we broke some important news. I spent most of my semester developing these packages with Nick. We turned our office spaces into hard-hitting work spaces, and we met daily to go over our collective work. Nick is smart, focused and an ideal right hand leader. He thrived at leading my section editors this semester. Post-graduation, Nick will be working as a copy editor and page designer for Shaw Media. News this semester was hard, yet I couldn’t have imagined a better person to lead it with. He’ll be great at his new job.

My staff was an unbelievable force to be reckoned with. I am graduating with a few, but also leaving some behind for the Star to be placed in good hands. I had Illinois College Press Association award winning editors and ones who were academically thriving. Again I’ll brag for him, Nick was ranked 2016 Journalist of the Year by the NIU Journalism Department, and it showed when he led in the newsroom.

We accomplished enough. During my interim, we got our Twitter verified and that little blue check never felt so sweet, but arguably the sweetest victory was beating our Ads department in the annual softball game, 6-5, in seven innings. It was a 15-year deficit for the news department, but I was the chief who got to bring home the trophy for the crew.

I swear that I never knew a love for journalism before I met Northern Star kids. My editors would stay well over their office hours just to hang out on the couches. We all spent too much time together after classes and in between classes like a true family.

Though I’m crying through it, what helps me to be able to say goodbye is knowing that I am now a part of a new generation of the Northern Star – consider me alumn. Our Alumni have always been exceptional to me, and I am excited to be on other side, soon to be providing Star kids with helpful feedback, news tips and the eventual work experience.

This summer I will be interning for Congressman Randy Hultgren (R-14), and after that I’m not sure where life will take me.

As I said, I have news print to thank for helping me develop a path to graduation so with that, thank you to the Vidette at ISU for giving me my first job as a reporter and inspiring me to go into journalism. But also, thank you to the Northern Star for giving me a second home along with a family.

The values I learned at the Star were important to my growth. From communicating to university officials to engaging with the Star’s wonderful general audience, are among some experiences I have benefited from while being chief, but arguably the memories I now have with my Star family is incomparable overall while looking back.

I will miss getting to be the first to read Spenk comic strips and the last to leave the office on production nights; I will miss getting updates from Nick about the next issue’s content and problem solving between classes or even in them, but I am ready to go so that my place can be filled by Star kids who will make memories as great as I did these past four semesters.