We have looked forward to this final stretch since our freshman year. With graduation just around the corner, time finally crept up on us. Now that it’s here, we cannot help but feel sentimental. Our past editors have always described graduation as bittersweet. As we finish laying out this last paper of the year, we too carry that same mingled feeling of relief and nostalgia.

We all remember our first oversized general chemistry lecture or news literacy class. We grew together with our classmates as we pulled all-nighters studying biology in the North Reading Room. We put in hundreds of hours at the hospital or the newsroom until the sun rose. The workload here at Stony Brook is challenging, but is why it constantly ranks as one of the best universities nationwide.

SBU is not just a school with a tough course load. We have a growing athletics program, an incredible hospital and some of the best professors in the country. You don’t have to be a sports fanatic to realize Seawolves Country is on the rise and is much better than when we started four years ago (or five for some of us). Nationally ranked teams, conference champions, Players of the Year and Cinderella stories are just part of being a Seawolf.

And it does not end there.

We are fortunate to have professors from all over the world. Many are nationally recognized, have won prestigious awards, had illustrious careers and more.

As student journalists, we witnessed some of the best moments—from covering the College World Series in 2012 to watching our campus community come together for spring concerts or great national causes—to some of the more important ones we reported to inform the campus community, helping us to pursue the very career some of us hope to achieve one day.

With every vigil we attended, as somber as they were, we also saw our fellow Seawolves come together as one community. We photographed and filmed every Roth Regatta, each year reflecting on our coverage in awe of the students’ creativity. With every Earthstock, we saw the willingness of Seawolves to learn more about their university and their world, and to work to leave it a better place.

We discovered along the way Stony Brook is a unique place, giving us the space and resources we needed to grow and evolve—not just as journalists and students, but as people. We faced projects, assignments and exams that forced us to adapt to challenging circumstances; we completed tasks and learned the required material and skills, but we were also forced to challenge ourselves and realize that we have the ability to do so much more than we previously believed.

As we come up on finals and final project due dates, everyone should find time to relax and take a deep breath. College may be tough, but in the blink of an eye, it will be over. If you are coming back in the fall, make it a point to take advantage of every possible opportunity. For the graduating seniors who are counting down to graduation, take the time to do something you did not get to during your time here. Whether it is attending that party you never had time for or trying new foods on campus: do it. You don’t want to regret it five, 10 or 20 years down the line.

As you reflect on your Stony Brook experience, we hope you find yours as fulfilling as ours was.

From all of the graduating Statesman editors leaving this amazing campus community, it has truly been an honor to bring you the news each week. Thank you for giving us the opportunity to serve and learn from you.

Sincerely,

Rebecca Anzel, Editor-in-Chief
Giselle Barkley, Arts & Entertainment Editor
Mike Daniello, Managing Editor
Joe Galotti, Sports Editor
Chelsea Katz, Assistant Arts & Entertainment Editor
Heather Khalifa, Multimedia Editor
Keith Olsen, Managing Editor