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Northern Star

Northern Illinois University’s student news organization since 1899

 

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The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

The Student News Site of Northern Illinois University

Northern Star

The Stevenson Retail Dining Center stands with its doors open. Stevenson’s dining needs an upgrade. (Kahlil Kambui | Northern Star)

Make Stevenson dining buffet style

By Kahlil Kambui, Opinion Columnist | March 18, 2024

The Stevenson Retail Dining Center is not up to par in comparison to other NIU dining halls. The retail style dining of Stevenson isn't as good as the other dorms and should change to a buffet style.  Stanley Collier, a first-year business major,...

A brain is surrounded by floating hearts under the words “Look Both Ways” and the topic of the week: Togetherall. Will the new mental health app NIU has partnered with, Togetherall, bring positive change? (Lucy Atkinson | Northern Star)

Look Both Ways: Togetherall

By Camilla Dziadosz and Emily Beebe | March 18, 2024

NIU has added another mental health resource to its repertoire, this time it’s a mental health app called Togetherall.  Togetherall is a mental health app that consists of self-assessments, courses and a message board for students to anonymously...

An NIU safety alert pops up on a phone with an orange and yellow gradient lockscreen. NIU should continue releasing safety alerts for every reported crime. (Daniela Barajas | Northern Star)

Send safety notifications again

By Emily Beebe, Senior Opinion Columnist | March 17, 2024

Crime, especially on college campuses, is something that people should always be informed of. NIU safety notifications should be sent out regardless of crime severity to ensure campus community safety. When NIU provides safety notifications, regardless...

The Folger Shakespeare Library’s edition of Shakespeare’s “Othello,” published June 2017, is open to Act 5 Scene 2 and includes a glossary of Old English terms featured on each page. Old English is outdated and should be abandoned in modern theater. (Lucy Atkinson | Northern Star)

Old English ineffective today

By James Bennett, Opinion Columnist | March 17, 2024

Old English is an incredibly outdated form of language academics and artists need to let fade away. The main problem with Old English is it’s overused but, paradoxically, obsolete.  Theater provides a prime example of the issues Old English presents....

Five “Just Dandy” panels depict the adventures of Dandy, the black cat. In this comic, Dandy finds himself charmed to the whims of a little creature. (Christa Kim | Northern Star)

Just Dandy: Enchanted

By Christa Kim, Cartoonist | March 7, 2024

A Supreme Court building and a voting ballot rest under the words “Look Both Ways” and the topic of the week: Trump on the primary ballot. Was the Supreme Court right to overrule Colorado’s expulsion of Trump from the state’s primary ballot? (Lucy Atkinson | Northern Star)

Look Both Ways: Trump on the primary ballot

By Camilla Dziadosz and Will Thiel | March 7, 2024

Despite facing legal challenges in Colorado and Illinois based on Section 3 of the Fourteenth Amendment – which bars anyone who has engaged in insurrection or rebellion from holding public office – Donald Trump won a Supreme Court case March 4 that...

A person in a patterned sweater and sunglasses smiles as they cast a vote. Voting is cool, and young voters deserve to have their voice counted.(Camilla Dziadosz | Northern Star)

Make your vote matter

By Camilla Dziadosz, Opinion Columnist | March 6, 2024

Elections have shifted from upholding democratic values to becoming a strategic play on human psychology. The tactics employed by politicians are manipulative and require a careful critique.  The shared desire for a better political system has become...

Rapper Killer Mike sings into a microphone on a stage. Killer Mike’s wins at the 2024 Grammys were deserved and serve as an example of why artist popularity should not be prioritized over music quality. (Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)

Judge artists by quality, not popularity

By James Bennett, Opinion Columnist | March 6, 2024

Looking at the lineup from the 2024 Grammys, Killer Mike's album “Michael” stood out as an outlier in a sea of projects from the biggest names in hip-hop. What made it an outlier was Killer Mike’s lack of popularity compared to other nominees. There...

Two figures hold the Costa Rica and Puerto Rico flags while two figures in the back ask, ¿Estamos pintados o que? which translated to English means Are we paint on the wall or what? to indicate someone is being ignored. The NIU Latino Resource Center needs to provide recognition of all Latino students – not just those with Mexican heritage – to truly be Hispanic-serving. (Christa Kim | Northern Star)

Represent all Latinos, NIU

By Santiago Montañez Bertoletti, Opinion Columnist | March 6, 2024

NIU is close to getting its Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) certification, given the large number of Latino students on campus. However, to truly be considered HSI, some aspects of the NIU Latino Resource Center need to be reviewed, especially regarding...

The Spanish, French, Mandarin, German and Japanese translations for each language surround a black heart with a white pawprint. If you could learn another language, what would it be? (Northern Star Graphic)

Poll: If you could learn a second language, what would it be?

By Alberto Briones, Opinion Columnist | March 5, 2024

Speaking another language has several benefits for college students outside the classroom. Knowing different languages has been found to boost brain function by improving memory, problem-solving and multitasking. The job market is becoming increasingly...

A personified pencil raises a fist next to a voting ballot featuring a red dog and a blue cat beneath the words: “Let’s Vote!” Voting is critical to democracy and should be mandatory in the United States. (Mary Ngo | Northern Star)

Voting should be mandatory in US

By Emily Beebe, Senior Opinion Columnist | March 5, 2024

With the 2024 election year, numerous campaigns are taking place. It’s crucial citizens go to the polls and vote. Mandated voting in the U.S. would make sure society’s voices are heard. One key principle of democracy is that the people are the...

Colorful music notes and a painted handprint rest under the words “Look Both Ways” and the topic of the week: Separating art from the artist. As consumers of art, should we separate art from the artist? (Lucy Atkinson | Northern Star)

Look Both Ways: Separating art from the artist

By Kahlil Kambui and Camilla Dziadosz | March 4, 2024

DON’T SEPARATE ART FROM THE ARTIST By: Kahlil Kambui, Opinion Columnist Separating the art from the artist is not an excuse to consume the art of people who have done or said terrible things. We need to hold them accountable and not consume their...