By Melina Nicou, Op/Ed editor

Attending George Washington University

I can’t remember what it was that made me join The Courant, but for the past four years I’ve found myself sitting in the Suite for meetings after school and writing articles for the newspaper. 

One thing I do remember from my earliest days on The Courant is getting the corrections back for my first submission. What I thought was a perfect article had been returned to me with a slew of colored ink, telling me a million things I’d done wrong. As I sat at a computer to make my edits, I remember trying to shield my paper from the eyes of the older staff writers whose papers looked a lot cleaner than mine. 

Overtime, my returned submissions began to look clearer and clearer as I learned the format and expectation for my stories. I definitely did not quite understand how important it was for me to get back my first article the way that I did until I began to edit articles for others. While editing, I was happy to see the first submissions. It was easy to tell that each new staff writer had potential, and a great story to tell. Many times, the stories that the Editorial Board returned full of notes were great stories that just needed a bit of work. The Courant taught me that it’s okay to need work and more importantly, it’s okay to not be perfect. 

Now as I leave The Courant and get ready for the next chapter of my life at the George Washington University in Washington D.C., there are many people who’ve made my experience at Commack High School cherishable that I’d be remiss if I didn’t thank.

Mr. Suchopar: Thank you for always making your class exciting and fun to be a part of. You have such a gift for teaching and I am so grateful that I was able to have you to change my perspective on history. Thank you for always being so encouraging and pushing me to succeed and believe in myself.

Dr. Jeziorski: Thank you for always being patient with me and being the best extended essay mentor. Your endless reservoir of sarcastic comments make me laugh despite anything that might be going on in my life.

Finally to the Courant and Mrs. Semple: Thank you for always providing me with an environment that I feel comfortable in and the endless memories from the past four years. Thank you for providing me with a space to grow as a person and writer. 🔳