Dear Readers,

As my last year at Baruch College is coming to an end, I want to take this opportunity to thank The Ticker family and our readers who made my college experience incredibly fulfilling and extraordinary.

I am graduating with a bachelor’s degree in journalism and political science from Baruch, but I am also graduating from The Ticker after serving as a writer, business editor, copy chief and the managing editor in the past four years.

Journalism is not something you can learn in a lecture hall. Thanks to The Ticker and my professors, Iexperienced what it felt like to be a reporter long before I received my diploma.

Here at The Ticker, I had the opportunity to cover so many different stories that shaped my career as a journalist. I wrote for every section, and the variety of articles I wrote helped me understand what I am truly passionate about.

I started off as an arts writer. Before becoming the business editor, I had no idea I would be interested in pursuing a career in business journalism.

I used to consider business journalism to be more isolated from human experiences and stories, but I couldn’t be more wrong. As the business editor, I found ways to connect with our readers by focusing on the Baruch and CUNY community, and I have produced some of my proudest work.

I was the copy chief in a year where we were fully remote, but the dedication of our staff continued to amaze me as we never skipped production, even during highly unprecedented and scary times.

My time as the managing editor was a bit more challenging as our newspaper made the transition from the pandemic era to in-person meetings and production. Given the time-consuming nature of the in-person training and production processes, I have been incredibly proud to be a part of a team where everyone worked exceptionally hard to both learn about the printing process and teach it to the new generation of The Ticker staff at the same time.

Every position I held taught me different and equally important skills. However, I have come to understand that the most important quality we shared was understanding how to be a team player. I worked with different teams before, but it wasn’t until I started working at The Ticker that I really understood what teamwork was.

The Ticker is a big family where everyone depends on each other to have newspapers on the stands every Monday morning. Most of us had to spend hours, sometimes nights, to make it happen — all of this while going to classes, trying to keep up with homework and working at the same time. I am thankful to be surrounded by such devoted people for the last four years.

Before I conclude my letter, I need to mention one more thing — student journalism matters. At times, it is tough to get an interview or get some people to take you seriously. My biggest advice to student journalists is to remember that your work does not go unnoticed.

One of the most important things I covered for The Ticker was the student protest against the tuition hike during the CUNY Board of Trustees meeting in 2019. It was a very eventful evening that even involved public security, and if Ticker members and alumni weren’t there to report on it, the people in that room would have been the only ones who knew what happened.

Whether it is covering protests, university budget allocations, student startups or events on campus, there are endless stories to be told. As student journalists, our mission is to make sure that these stories do not go untold and thatauthorities are always held accountable.

Being a part of The Ticker meant knowing everything that was going on campus, and it gave me an incredible sense of community at a school that is infamous for lacking school spirit. I came to understand that Baruch’s school spirit can be found between the walls of the club suite instead of the classrooms — you just have to look for it.

For the last four years, I spent more hours at The Ticker office than I did at classrooms, and if I were to go back in time, I would do it again. If it wasn’t for The Ticker, I wouldn’t be where I am today.