Nearly everyone working for The Daily Illini has a claim to fame, whether it’s earning a story on the front page, covering a Big Ten sporting event or earning one of the numerous awards received by the publications each year. Mine was getting to interview Nick Cannon on the phone.

For a preview to Cannon’s trip to campus, I had a five-minute phone conversation with him in which I made sure to ask about his wife, Mariah Carey, who was pregnant at the time. That was my first time speaking directly to a celebrity, and it was awesome.

Although I thought my reporting career had peaked after that interview my sophomore year, little did I know the most rewarding times had yet to come. In my three years on the features staff of The Daily Illini, I’ve worked alongside some of the most talented people I’ve ever met and coached reporters who I know will continue to be great journalists. I’ve profiled Paralympian, faculty member and humanitarian Jean Driscoll; written a story about how Muslim students and alumni were affected by 9/11 on its 10th anniversary; and covered the annual Engineering Open House, among others. Each story and source I met along the way has inspired me in some form that I hoped to transfer to our readers.

As the graduating Daily Illini staff looks back at our time spent on the third floor of the Illini Media building, we will look back on a publication we should forever take pride in.

When you pick up the paper, you may not realize the late nights, ethical debates and tense news conferences that go into producing a daily newspaper. But I think we would all agree it was well worth the lost sleep and stress. What will be even more memorable is writing and editing the amazing stories, planning exciting designs and working with passionate reporters.

In the five weeks since turnover, I have seen my successors begin to transform the features section into something better than it has ever been. My faith in them, and in the publication as a whole, has never been stronger. I thank everyone I have worked with and the readers who turned to the back of the A section.

As our college or undergraduate careers come to an end, it’s exciting to look forward to what the future has in store for us. While we all might miss the Quad, certain campus eateries and living within a few blocks of most of our closest friends, the next chapter is a time for Illini to put our skills and experience to work.

For those of you lucky enough to have been a part of an organization on campus, you may have learned the same values of collaboration, dedication and hard work toward a common goal. For seniors, the time has come to not only say goodbye to campus, but to organizations that have claimed our sweat and tears — sometimes literally.

I only hope everyone’s extracurricular experiences have been as valuable as mine were at The Daily Illini.

Jordan is a senior in Media. She can be reached at [email protected].