It has finally come to that time of year: finals. And with finals comes the last issue of The Wayne Stater for the spring 2015 semester.

For me, it is also my last issue as the editor of the Lifestyles pages.

I graduate in December with a degree in journalism and a music minor, so stepping down from the Stater only seemed logical in order to focus on my final semester.

But it wasn’t an easy decision.

I know that I’m going to miss these pages, as they’ve been my home for almost three years.

Doing layouts, editing stories and designing graphics have been a lot of fun and I know I’ll miss it.

I’ll also miss my colleagues, but I’m confident in the direction the paper will go next year. We’ve got some great students coming in to these pages.

The fourth floor of Humanities is an interesting place, especially since a lot of students don’t even know that it exists.

It gets hot up here. And loud. And just plain busy. I love it.

But I’m ready to move forward.

It’s been a long ride. Looking back at my first few layouts, I’m glad that I’ve learned what I have.

From covering events as a reporter to placing them on pages as an editor, it’s been wonderful.

Especially during the week of the Oct. 4, 2013 tornado. While it was the most hectic time, it was also an incredible show of leadership and teamwork. Gathering all of the content and putting together that issue was one of the most challenging and rewarding experiences of my college career.

I was so proud of the way we handled that entire issue, as well as how well-received it was by the community.

This is a unique campus. There isn’t quite the kind of community at any other college like the one that we have here.

Live it up. Use every resource this college gives you to your advantage. But most of all: have fun.

Try not to stress so gosh darn much. These are the years you will look back at with fond memories (and maybe only a little bit of horror).

Right now, my time will be filled with preparing a portfolio and making my resume the most fantastic document anyone has ever seen.

I wouldn’t have had nearly enough material to fill an entire portfolio had I not taken the position as an editor.

I’m thankful for the opportunity to make a difference at Wayne and to have the chance to learn these skills that I’ll be able to use later.

So, thank you, Wayne State, and thanks to The Wayne Stater for everything I’ve been given.

It’s been great, and I know that my stack of saved newspapers will be a talking point in the future.

This is me, signing off.

So long, Wayne Stater.

Lauren