“turtles  turtles  Eleven  or  More  some  on  the  ceiling   and  some on the floor  some  in  the  sky  and  some  on  the  ground  there  are  turtles  all     around   Turtles  in  bed  that  want  to  be  fed  the  end!”

When Anna Michalson wrote her first poem, “About Turtles,” at the age of 7, she had no idea writing would soon become a love she would never outgrow. 

“By the age of three she could have a conversation with anyone about anything, she was always a natural,” Marty Michalson, Anna’s father, said. “As soon as she learned how to write, she started writing little short poems and she would always leave me notes of encouragement, just sweet little things.”

Going through elementary school, Anna carried her passions of writing and speaking, submitting short stories and poems to competitions across the country, she said. 

“I won second place for this one in Alaska when I was in fifth grade, I got a little trophy and it was a very big deal to me,” Anna said. “I was reading Charles Dickens in fifth and sixth grade just because I had such a love for writing, language and English.”

As she excelled in all of her communications classes through elementary and middle school, Anna did the International Baccalaureate program in high school and was enrolled in the highest levels of language arts, Marty said.

When 85 kids started their high school career in the IB program, Anna was one of five or six to actually complete the program and earn her diploma, he said. Not only was she taking the highest leveled courses, but Anna was editing and revising her peer’s writing samples for them.

When it came time to leave her hometown, she knew WSU was the place for her based on her dad being a Coug alumni, the tight-knit community aspect and the presence of Greek Life, she said.

Anna started her college career by joining the Kappa Delta sorority, the sorority that has given her the friends she will carry with her for the rest of her life, she said. 

“KD has changed my life. Being a KD was the best decision I’ve ever made for myself,” Anna said. “Being in Kappa Delta was the highlight of my college career. I am sad to leave it.”

Starting as a public relations major only, Anna took Communications 300, which changed the trajectory of her college writing career, she said. 

“I immediately fell in love with AP style and writing for news,” Anna said. “That’s when I ultimately decided to pursue a degree in journalism and also apply for The Daily Evergreen.”

Anna began working for The Daily Evergreen her first semester of sophomore year, where she spent a year writing for the news section, she said. Anna enjoyed covering events, writing briefs and practicing breaking news, but she could never get away from the feature stories.

“When I got to start writing more feature stories, I really really enjoyed that the most, just hearing people’s life stories and interesting things that they’ve done,” Anna said. “That’s when I decided to switch from news over to roots, which is more community based news and features stories.”

Anna has been writing for the roots, now life, section since the beginning of her junior year, as well as being a copy editor for the Evergreen. From her experience with the Evergreen, Anna has gotten internships with magazines and secured her post-grad plans.

“I owe so much of my skills and confidence as a journalist to the Evergreen, I know for a fact that I would not be half the writer that I am today if it weren’t for the Evergreen,” Anna said. “I just think it’s really amazing to be a part of this student-run organization because it’s done so well.”

Anna is graduating in the fall of 2022 with a Bachelor in Communication and magna cum laude. She plans on moving back to Bellevue on Friday and starting a job with a staffing and recruiting agency. Ultimately, her goal is to write a fiction novel somewhere down the line and become an author, she said. 

“I’m excited, but I’m also nervous and uncomfortable. But, you have to be uncomfortable in order to grow, so I know this is going to be like a huge point of growth in my life,” Anna said. “I just want to thank my friends and family for always believing in me and being there for me, I couldn’t have gotten to this point without them, so thank you.”