In my opening column as editor-in-chief, I asked The Daily Illini to expand our online presence.

In August, I was sitting on a boat with my family, enjoying a calm relaxing day of fishing in northern Wisconsin. Suddenly, I received a text message with the DI’s worst nightmare regarding being prepared for breaking news: Phyllis Wise resigned as chancellor from the University.

My beagle began barking, I began rushing around the boat trying to find cell phone signal rocking all of the poles, as both of my parents stared at me with the blank look of “Who is Phyllis Wise?”

Thanks to the University for having one of the most notable years in history for breaking news, we expanded our presence by continually breaking stories online.

From coverage of Salaita to a complete overhaul in all top University administrator positions and an athletics department plagued with scandal — boy, did we have fun this year. We have been quoted by the New York Times four times.

But none of that would have happened without the hard working journalists who spend each day at the DI. Some of the best work we did was when we were all involved and working together as a team, and I think this is part of the reason why we excelled at covering breaking news this year.

While the stories we told will always stay with me, my favorite ones to tell will be the stories of us editors in the newsroom at 11 p.m, striving to create the best product possible. We have met some of their best friends at the DI, and it helps on a campus of 40,000 students to have one place you can go that’ll feel like home.

Thank you to all the editors who helped play a part in this year. It wouldn’t have been possible without you, and we learned the most about journalism from each other.

By 5 p.m. Friday, I will no longer be the editor-in-chief of The Daily Illini. Masaki Sugimoto is taking over and will continue the charge even further into this ever-so-changing industry.

I’m heading back to the trenches as a beat reporter covering UI administration. Hopefully I’ll manage to write a few good stories next year that catch your eye, but what I will miss the most is working side-by-side with all the amazing editors here at the DI.

Thank you for reading.

Megan is a junior in Media.?
[email protected]?
@MeganAsh_Jones