My college experience is something I will never forget. My finals are next week and I can't believe that time has flown by this fast. I remember driving up to my first day of class in my little maroon Pontiac Grand Am, driving up the ramp that crosses Wick Ave. and getting my car lost in the little parking deck my freshman year.

I walked across the bridge and was welcomed by a sea of people with maps of the campus, the best places to eat on break, and where the dorms were so I wouldn't get confused about my class buildings. Confusion was my middle name when I walked past the planetarium and biology department looking for my Journalism Ethics and Social Responsibility with a professor that slowly became my favorite, mostly because he is a browns fan.

There are so many things I am thankful for because of my University.

Dear Youngstown State,

I am writing this as a soon to be graduate. As the day draws near I can't help but thank you for what you have done for me and what I have been able to learn from you in my five years here at this amazing campus. Not only do I appreciate school more but I will never forget the friends that I have been able to make over the years. From working at the Jambar, which is my 'Jamily' and my second home, I learned the true nature of writing and Ap style. The stories that I would write for A&E were so much fun. The connections with the interviewees that I met are unforgettable and I still talk to some of them from time to time.

Speaking of sources I'm still in contact with my first publication in the Vindicator. I got to investigate the nitty gritty underworkings of the foster care system and the emancipation process of boys and girls after they reach the age of eighteen and are left couch surfing or left to the street surviving off garbage can food and scraps of food people would drop.

I learned that attending class, doing my homework, and studying for my exams is very important. I wouldn't be where I am now unless I had started taking everything serious during my junior year. I had two jobs I was working alone with an internship and 16 credit hours in classes. There were many emotional breakdowns but I never had the attempt to quit. I knew that the kids were counting on me for their voices to be heard. That year long experience of searching for someone who was willing to tell their story is one that i will never forget.

Thank you for the never-ending friendships I've made throughout the years. I hold them near and dear to my heart. For most graduates, this university will just be a memory. But for me, this is where I found who I really was.