North Texas Daily

When I first found out in November that I would be Editor-in-Chief for spring 2018, I had everything planned out — and I mean everything. I had the perfect timeline mapped out (and color coded) in my planner. I had a set plan of what stories would be produced and published each day. I flooded my editorial board’s emails with Google Docs almost every day. I interviewed over 100 people to be on staff.

But much like life, the semester took some crazy and unusual twists and turns.

It is no surprise that a lot has happened this semester. From heart-wrenching breaking news and surprising university plans to celebrating alongside our sports teams and taking a closer look at what makes UNT students unique, every single day brought something new.

Through everything, I can say with every ounce of my being that I could not have done any of this without the staff I had. As someone who has been on the Daily since fall 2014, I can say that this staff is, without a doubt, one of the most talented, committed and hardworking staffs I have ever been a part of.

So, here’s to you — all of you.

To my editorial board: I’m sorry for all my corny jokes, unpopular food opinions (yes, peanut butter is terrible), constant wedding talk and obnoxious “The Office” references, but I am so lucky that you all were the ones who had to hear them. Each one of you worked so hard this semester, and I can honestly say I learned so much from every single one of you. Thank you for being by my side throughout this whole process. I’m going to miss working with my amazing team.

To all my writers: I’m not trying to toot my own horn, but I thought that I was a great writer whenever I was a staff writer. Reading your stories every week, however, left me in awe. Each and every one of you — whether you have written the entire semester or were only able to be on staff for a few weeks — has left my jaw dropping throughout the semester. Your story ideas, executions, ability to get inciting quotes and commitment to this paper is so inspiring, and I have no doubt you will all go on to do amazing things.

To my photographers, illustrators and videographers: I’ve never met another group of people who can make buildings or meetings look so interesting, but you all did just that. Your photos, illustrations and videos were some of the best I’ve seen at the Daily, even though your jobs were extremely difficult sometimes. Each of your willingness to take on weekly assignments and knocking them out of the park while also working together to help out your fellow staffers (even if it meant drawing an illustration with two hours notice or taking on a photo assignment the day-of) is what great journalism is all about, and I am so grateful to have known each and every one of you.

To our adviser Gary Ghioto and the Mayborn School of Journalism faculty: Thank you for the constant support, love and recognition throughout this semester. Your kind words and encouragement to my staff and me pushed us to represent the best semester of the Daily yet — in my opinion. Even though some of the remarks were a bit of tough love, sometimes the best advice is the hardest to hear, and we thank you for giving us that constructive criticism.

And finally —

To our readers: We aren’t perfect, but I thank you for giving our staff a chance. Our goal is to get a conversation going with our content — which includes editorial pieces, breaking news stories and covering certain tough things that happened during the semester. Thank you for listening, and I urge you to keep reading and commenting well into the future. Our university paper would not be possible without our readers, so thank you, no matter who you are or where you are.

Here at the Daily, we are a bunch of students trying to juggle classes, jobs, practicing journalism, doing homework, having a social life all while still trying to take care of ourselves. I know not every second of this semester was perfect, but the thing I am most proud of throughout my whole college journey was getting to be Editor-in-Chief of the North Texas Daily. Even though I graduate this month, I am so excited to see what’s next for the Daily — I have no doubt it will be amazing.

Once again, thank you so, so much.

Featured Image: Kayleigh Bywater. Photo by Kameren Hansen