A corner of my brain has been planning this reflection for the past four years, but when I sit down to write it, I find myself at a loss.  

How do I put eight semesters of ups and downs into one reflection? How can I possibly recount every article I’ve written here (around 145)? How do I mention every person I’ve met through The Scribe? How do I enumerate all the ways I’ve learned and grown?  

I suppose the only way to do it is the best way I know how: rating each part of my Scribe experience out of 10.  

I still remember pitching my first academic review as a freshman. I sat at a table full of older, more confident people than me and nervously threw out the idea that maybe I just take pictures of leaves and rate them. Everyone loved it, and I found my niche for the rest of college.   

Some of these are silly, and some are serious, but I mean them all.   

1. AP Style  

Theatre is spelled wrong, and the minute my termination paperwork processes, I’m going to throw about 25 Oxford commas into every paper I write. Other than that, it suited me just fine. 7/10.  

2. My desk 

Made me feel like a real grownup. Mad dusty. During freshman year, I had a cardboard house over it for a couple of weeks. 11/10.  

3. Print 

I barely made it in, and then we got rid of it. 5/10.  

4. Office snacks  

Kept me going. 12/10.  

5. Growth as a writer 

I had little journalistic experience when I started this job. I wrote some news in high school, but in a vastly different style. I had to learn how to write concisely and clearly, cutting unnecessary content, which is still a challenge for me. My time at The Scribe has shown me how to find the balance between reporting the facts and adding my personal style. 10/10.  

6. Editing  

There’s no better way to improve as a writer than to edit other people’s work. Editing taught me how to deliver feedback, preserve a writer’s voice, help people improve and look at a piece of writing critically. Going through other articles also meant recognizing my own flaws and working to make them better. 10/10.  

7. Interviewing  

Since I spent most of my time at the Ent Center, The Scribe was my main connection to the rest of campus. I learned so much about the heartbeat of this school through interviewing people, and it enriched every part of my experience at UCCS. 10/10.  

8. Leadership skills  

I wore a lot of hats during my time here, and as I sat in different parts of the editing chain, I had to learn how to support the rest of my team and ask for support when I needed it, too. This year, especially, I had to learn to step it up and be present for the writers and editors who needed my help. My experience was so much richer for it. 10/10.  

9. Laura [Eurich, our faculty advisor] 

I would have died without your feedback and support. 10/10.  

10. Friends 

This staff has had its ups and downs over the years, but the thing we all had in common was caring about The Scribe. All the time spent sitting around our center table, building publishing schedules, solving problems and coming up with weird icebreakers will live in my heart and on my resume forever. I intend to keep the friends I made here with me, and I can’t wait to see what everyone does next, in journalism or otherwise. A resounding 10/10. Thanks, all.  

Associate Editor Ellie Myers.