Before I introduce the last senior I have information on, I want to recognize those I do not have posts for. I offer a supportive congratulations to English majors Ricardo Worl, Rachel Wilson, Taylor Meredith, Simon Benko, Andi Kwiatkowski, Ethan Paxton, Amanda Gerard, and Rachel Rennaker.

The last senior I can personally provide information on is none other than myself. I am Maddox Byfield, an English Writing major with minors in Medieval and Early Modern Studies and Editing and Publishing. I am from Longview, Washington, where I will be returning after graduation to pursue a remote job in the editing field. I will also be pursuing testosterone hormone therapy for my transition, with the support of my family and animals back home. I enjoy reading, writing, drawing, and as most of my peers and professors know, gaming, which I do frequently with my close friends and boyfriend.
These past four years at Whitworth have yielded many great memories. I am honored to have been apart of the English department, and am glad I decided to take the step to reach out to professors and get to know them more. If not for the comfort and support they offered, I would not have been able to overcome my mental health and social transition from female to male as easily. There are also a lot of things I would not have learned, such as how to design books from start to finish thanks to Thom Caraway. That said, a favorite, cumulative, memory would have to be the relationship I had with Fred Johnson. After sitting in on a film class of his my senior year of high school, when he was still department Chair, I met Fred personally and he was the reason I came in to Whitworth declared confidently as an English major. I did not think he would remember me, but he did, and spent two years pestering me to take classes from him, which I finally obliged my junior year.
My advice is truly to take part in the community, even if that means talking to professors more than your peers sometimes. I am absolutely amazed by the community here, how supportive they have been of my struggles and changes in life, and the amount of incredible opportunities they have provided me. I do not think I would be anywhere near the person I have grown into at Whitworth if it were not for the loving community I found in this department.
This is likely my last post, so I just want to say that I am honored for the opportunity to give this community something to look at about our department. I truly hope this gets passed on to someone who cares about it, and it will not get abandoned again like it was this past year when I was not technically working on it. Thank you all for your support, I leave this with nothing but happiness as I reflect on the years.