As great as graduation for a college student is, it doesn’t help maintain staff levels at NIU’s 16,000-daily circulation student newspaper. This semester presents the Northern Star staff with a challenge because of a high turnover rate among its various positions.

Because of this, we are looking to add many new members to next fall’s staff and begin training them before the close of the semester. To accomplish this feat, the Star’s fall 2006 staff will host a job fair tonight from 7 to 9 p.m. in the Campus Life Building, Suite 130.

We will conduct on-the-spot interviews for those interested as well as provide introductions to current Star staff and give tours of our office. We also would like to welcome those who may not be sure if they are interested to drop by for a casual conversation with an editor or two, just to firm up any questions or concerns an individual may have.

Although we are a newspaper, we want to emphasize that other majors, not just journalism and communication majors, though preferred, are welcome to apply. The Star employs more than 200 students, specializing in news, but also advertising sales and business and accounting practices. In addition, we currently run the only student radio station in all of DeKalb County, providing a unique opportunity for those wishing to enter the field of broadcast media.

As the Star continues to look toward the future, we remind everyone what a unique opportunity newspaper experience provides — namely being the watchdog on government entities and, in the Star’s case, being able to influence what news and commentary the NIU community is exposed to. We look forward to seeing you tonight.