I love “Gilmore Girls.” Something about its wit, its overly fast pace in a town that should be crawling and its relationships between characters has always drawn me in. In so many ways, my life looks nothing like Lorelai and Rory’s. I don’t live in a small northeastern town. I didn’t go to private school. I don’t have loaded grandparents, nor can I make effortlessly niche references at the perfect moment. 

But in many ways my life has run parallel to the Gilmore girls. I am an only child and very close with my mom. I have a very real coffee addiction. I love reading, and I am a journalist. Fortunately, that was the part of Rory’s life that I manifested (team Jess forever though).

I watched Rory navigate high school and college, eventually graduating, and I knew one day I would do the same. So here I am, about to graduate with a master’s degree in journalism. 

Now that we are at the end of the school year, I am proud to say The DePaulia was the highlight of my college and grad school career. It has been an absolute honor to lead this paper and work with the incredible journalists that make The DePaulia what it is. 

I am so grateful for everything that has come along with being a student journalist and an editor. This office has seen me at my highest highs, winning awards with my peers, and my lowest lows, crashing out over a print issue. I would not be the person or journalist that I am today without the challenges of editing over 30 stories per week or the thrills of breaking a news story before a major outlet. 

I look back on this year proud of everything we accomplished, from our first Black History Month issue and successful cannabis edition to the awards we’ve won from the Associated College Press, the Chicago Headline Club and the Illinois College Press Association. 

Journalism wouldn’t be my passion if it weren’t for the incredible instructors and colleagues I’ve had the chance to learn from. Martha Irvine was the first person who made me feel like I could have a career in journalism. Her support and encouragement has stayed with me and shaped how I approach every story. Lisa Parker introduced me to the bright lights of broadcast and made me excited about another side of the industry.

I would be miserable without my closest colleagues, Brielle Kohlbeck, Jeremy Battle, Sabrina Castle, Sofia Joseph and Jake Cox, who have all made long weekends in the office the best way to end my week. 

In a couple weeks I will get to walk in commencement with sore feet, a cap that is far too big for my head and a hood that I don’t know how to wear. But I will do so with the knowledge that I am leaving this paper in very capable hands. 

Rory Gilmore went on to report on the campaign trail with Barack Obama (and that is where I’m choosing to believe the series ended). Unfortunately, I’m graduating about 18 years too late, but I am excited for the possibilities that open up for me. Journalism is a rapidly changing industry, but I am hopeful for the future of journalism after seeing how intelligent, bright and determined my peers are. 

I will never stop being curious and wanting to learn about everything from pottery blind dating to student visas. Luckily, I am in an industry that allows me to never stop doing that. And I love it.

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