To say the least, it’s been one crazy semester.

I had no idea what I was getting myself into when I took the throne as editor-in-chief of this award-winning newspaper. Of course, I have been down this road before in high school when my senior year, I became one of two top editors. In other words, I did not have the entire weight of the world on my shoulders; the power was split between two people.

But, here on this newspaper, the entire weight of the world is on me, and I have to say it’s been a joy, a thrill and an experience.

The hard work over the course of the semester has definitely paid off despite all the problems the staff had to deal with at the beginning of the semester.

It’s a fairly long list and several long stories, but going through those specific issue have made us a stronger staff than ever before.

We have had negative commentary and disputes from others around us, but we stood together as a group and shook it off. It took some doing, but I have to say we did it.

I have no intention of stepping down next semester. It’s like the Energizer bunny; it keeps going and going. For me, this semester was just a huge final exam.

The staff tested me, I tested the staff and outside sources tested the entire staff. There may have been times where I wanted to quit, but with a little thought and talk, I was not going to let anyone down. Being an editor takes not only practice, but also is a semester-long commitment. You cannot give up halfway through a semester. You are not only letting yourself down, but also you are letting down the rest of the staff. I was not going to do that.

As you can see, this last issue proves we, as a staff, can put together the best college newspaper in this area. We may be the second-best Division II newspaper in the state, but I think we are still best in the state.

Beyond the awards we have received, the best award ever is having a great staff. We help each other through thick and through thin. Despite the drama in the office, everything works out in the end.

Now, this is not a farewell column, but this is more than just a shout out to everyone on staff who did an excellent job over the course of the semester.

I don’t want to spend the time thanking everyone; all I can say to everyone is where would the newspaper be without a wonderful staff.

It’s going to be sad to see some of the staff go, which I wish you good luck, but those who are returning, we have a new semester and 12 new issues to put out for the campus.

Thank you for everything. Let’s keep up the good work.

As far as I know, our first issue of the fall semester comes out Sept. 1.

I hope to see everyone picking up a copy when it comes out.

I also hope you enjoy next semester’s events for the themed semester, which happens to be France.

This is Jessica MacIntosh signing off for the spring semester. J-Mac’s Corner returns in the fall.