I’ve had people tell me that no one cares about The Northerner.

I’ve had people say that no one reads The Northerner.

I’ve had people say that no one cares about what happens on the campus of Northern Kentucky University.

That’s a lie.

I know there are students out there who want to be informed about their campus; students who care about what is going on around them. I know it because when I walk down the halls every day I see students with a folded paper stuck under an arm. Or I walk into class and see someone working on a Suduko puzzle from the Games ‘ Extras page.

I have faith in the students of this campus-students who understand the importance of a free press and the societal impact of the First Amendment rights. But does our administration?

The administration never included The Northerner in its plans for the new Student Union building. Kent Kelso, dean of students, said this is because there’s not enough space and said several other organizations weren’t offered space in the new building, including Career Development and Health and Counseling.

But why were these organizations chosen to stay behind? It’s all about priorities. My opinion is that if The Northerner were important to the majority of administrators (notice that this isn’t a blanket term; I realize that some of the administrators respect the work we do), then we would be in the new building.

It’s not a question of productivity. The Northerner staff has just returned to town from a statewide awards ceremony for college newspapers. We won 13 awards. Last year we won 15. So, in the last two years alone, The Northerner won 28 state awards. That’s an incredible number, especially if you compare it to the two years preceding those. In 2002 through 2003, The Northerner won 12 awards.

Some plans have been sketched to get The Northerner more space in the University Center, but so far nothing has been put in stone. But, being left out of the Student Union plans isn’t the only reason that I doubt the prioritizing of administrators when it comes to The Northerner.

The staff of The Northerner did some massive recruiting in the last two years, and we’re gaining more and more talented students who are (on a volunteer basis) working hard. This creates a problem for our advisor, Gayle Brown. More students equals more work, which equals more advertising and more paperwork.

Brown works hard to be the go-between for The Northerner with the administrators (along with countless hours coaching students). She recognizes the need for help with the added workload and wrote a proposal for a paid advertising manager. We’re hopeful, but it doesn’t look good.

Now, I don’t think that I’m being paranoid in saying that we’re not on the top of the priority list, especially when I see a state university like Kennesaw State University in Georgia. According to the proposal that Brown wrote, they have “an enrollment of 18,000