Editing is the first thing I knew I loved. Leaving high school, I cycled through career paths like a dressing-room montage, but there was nothing that really stuck. The only thing that stayed with me through all the changes was editing.

Before finding my major, getting involved in campus events or joining production-based clubs at Hofstra University, I signed up to be a staff editor for the copy editing section. At first it wasn’t much, I’d edit a couple articles a week and honestly sometimes forget I was even on their email list until the next article rolled in. It wasn’t enough. When the assistant copy chief position opened up, I knew I wanted to apply, but if you knew me sophomore year, you know that I would’ve never put myself out there for that. However, a while after scrapping my chance, I was with Madeline Sisk behind the Hofstra Intramural Fields and I told her that I wanted to apply. 

I remember it so vividly. “Meredith, we think you’re a great editor. If you apply for that position, you will get it,” Madeline said. 

That very day, I went home and submitted my application. Now I’ve been a copy chief for over a year and I’ve loved every long night, tense moment and frustrating edit. It’s all part of being in the copy editing section and I wouldn’t have it any other way. 

I know that I am leaving the copy editing section in the most capable hands that Hofstra has. Gianna Costanzo, it has been so amazing to watch you grow as a copy chief – and to grow alongside you – and I am so jazzed to see what you can do as our next editor-in-chief, I know you’ll do great things. Maddie Demko, Emily Hyman and Paula Amoroso Lomeli, you are more prepared than you know to take on this section without us next year. You are all great copy editors; have faith in what you can do. I know that you will raise Juliana Calcao and Ellen McCarville through the copy ranks the same way we did you. The five of you will make a great copy team. When I started, copy was lucky to see the door for Room 203 close before 2:30 a.m., but now, we leave before 11 p.m. almost every issue. We did that. You did that.

I have to thank Josie Racette and Nell Stultz, who taught me what copy editing was all about and allowed me to flourish and hone my editing skills as much as I have with this paper. And of course, Madeline, you’ve done so much for this paper with the copy section and as editor-in-chief, and I absolutely would not be writing this today without your confidence and friendship. Thank you copy! Thank you to all the amazing section editors who got so many copy-jargon emails from me and had to have midnight debates over one single word. It’s not for nothing, we work for an amazing paper and it’s because of every single one of you.

I used to joke that I would quit the paper before graduation so I never had to write a sad, sappy senior send-off, but here I am. I have to leave The Hofstra Chronicle office for the last time, but at least I’m going out in style … AP Style.