My journey at the Northern Star has helped me grow not only as a student journalist, but also as a person. The life and work management skills that I have learned since I joined the staff at the start of my freshman year in Fall 2019 are invaluable and will stick with me as I start my career after graduation.

I started out in the opinion section as a columnist after selecting that as an interest in my application. Truth be told, I had no prior experience with column writing or any journalism at all, but I was quickly able to learn the skills I needed from my section editor Haley Galvin, managing editor Noah Thornburgh and editor-in-chief Sam Malone. They taught me how to master the fundamentals of journalism before I even decided to change my degree focus from music to communications.

What makes the Star a great organization to work for is that everyone is very supportive of what staff members are involved in outside of the job. As a freshman, I was a member of the NIU Drumline and played the bassoon in two ensembles. It was a lot to juggle as I started my tenure as the new opinion editor in just my second semester of college, but I always felt supported in every choice I made while changing my major and still keeping music in my life.

In the three school years it took me to finish my degree, I have been a columnist, opinion editor, engagement team member, newspaper paginator and sports editor. Each role presented its own set of challenges. Throughout it all, I was always willing to contribute to the Star whenever and wherever my talents were needed.

Thank you to my advisers Shelley Hendricks and Maria Krull for always matching my skills to the roles that needed them. Thank you to my fellow paginator and oldest work friend Kurt Bitting for always being there to answer my constant questions, ranging from AP style and headline formatting to identifying types of birds. Thank you to this school years’ top editors and print production team Wes Sanderson, Kierra Frazier, Brionna Belcher and Abigail Lamoreaux for making Tuesday nights fun no matter how late we had to stay to get the newspaper finished.

Next month I will start my new job as a digital news intern at ABC 7 Chicago. I will be eternally grateful for my time spent working for the Northern Star and the opportunities it has brought me.