I’ve been sitting here in front of my computer, honestly unsure how to write this. Even as someone who both started as a writer in September 2021, and ended as an Opinion Columnist in May 2025, I still don’t really know how to write articles. Not only that, but I don’t know how to say goodbye to the very first organization I joined on campus. As of me writing this article, this is also the last organization on campus I have the privilege of saying goodbye to.
Being a part of The Stute has not only shaped my college experience, but helped me to build more confidence in myself. I have held many roles within this organization; first starting as a News Writer, then becoming Assistant Layout Editor when I realized how much I missed doing layout (something I did throughout high school), joining E-board as the official Layout Editor, staying on as Secretary, and finally ending as an Opinion Columnist with my roommate, Erin McGee.
When I first got to Stevens, I knew I wanted to join the school newspaper. I had been a part of my high school’s newspaper, Smoke Signals, for four years, holding the positions of a Staff Writer, the Layout Editor, and finally, the Editor-in-Chief. But when I arrived here, I thought I’d take a step back within the newspaper, since I’d been so involved in high school. So, I joined as a Staff Writer, which eventually turned into the role of a News Writer. I focused mostly on covering shows in DeBaun, beit plays, concerts, musicals. And that’s when I realized: I missed layout… a lot.
In my sophomore year, I finally decided to dip my toe back into doing layout, where I became an assistant layout editor under Isy Ziv, and fell in love with it all over again. I officially became the Layout Editor in Spring of 2023. From experiencing so many late nights in the Stute office, eating too many packs of fruit snacks and gummy bears, and making every single person who walked into the office watch The Eras Tour, this role easily holds my favorite memories within this organization.
Ending as Secretary and then Opinion Columnist were both unexpected turns, but even after wrapping up my term as Layout Editor, I continued doing the Sports page layout up until this month. (Even though everyone who’s done layout hates this page, Sports will forever be my favorite.) Being Secretary was a great position for me, as the Weekly Newsletters allowed me to express my creativity in the same way that Layout did. And of course, writing a column with my day-one best friend made this final chapter incredibly fun and fulfilling.
All this goes to say: you may not know what tomorrow will look like. There’s a reason I’ve held so many roles in The Stute, and the fact that none of them really connect. I didn’t always know what I was doing, and my interests changed day by day. I think that fear of uncertainty is the scariest part of graduating. But the truth is, change only reinforces the things you love. I had no intention of getting back into layout when I came to college, but as I’ve learned: “you will always find your way back home.”
I know for us seniors, conversations with friends won’t look the same, and getting involved in the things we love won’t happen as easily. But those passions and relationships will only become stronger when we have fewer opportunities to engage with them, because that means we’ll have to choose them, intentionally and wholeheartedly.
Finally, to the part of this article I’ve been dreading: “Goodbye.” But I don’t know how final this goodbye is. I guess I won’t know for a while. But if The Stute has taught me anything, it’s that I’ll always find my way back to what I love.
