When I first joined The Beacon my first semester freshman year, I never once imagined I would be where I am now, as a managing editor, writing a farewell column. I was just a bright-eyed young journalist, looking to pick up any pitch possible and get a byline. 

Two years later, I am somehow second in command to our editor-in-chief, I have countless bylines I’m incredibly proud of, and I’ve watched this paper move from a weekly print product to a daily online news source. I couldn’t be more proud of the work both I and my colleagues have accomplished here. 

As much as I’m grateful to this paper for giving me bylines and experience writing and editing, there’s so much more I’ve gotten out of my time here.

For one, I now have an inordinate amount of knowledge about IRS Form 990 tax forms—I could tell you in detail all about the college’s expenses and revenues from the last decade. And I know more about this school’s Title IX policies than I do about my own apartment lease. 

And, most importantly, I have formed incredible friendships with people who inspire me every day. When you spend every Monday and Wednesday night with the same people for two and a half years, you get to spend a lot of quality time together. Sometimes we’re stressed and yelling at each other about deadlines, and sometimes we’re just cracking up at jokes we would only find funny at 1:45 a.m. before we go to print. 

Ultimately, if it wasn’t for my time on The Beacon, there’s so much I wouldn’t know about this college. I love always being in the know on the news around campus, and I love that working here has given me the chance to interview members of the upper administration. The Beacon has allowed me to engage with everything going on at Emerson in a way I never would have otherwise. 

So, after two and a half years—from my time in opinion, to news, to being a managing editor, through all the nights I’ve spent crying in my dorm over deadlines and all my front page stories—after all this, all I can say is thank you.