At the crossroads of communication and education ...

I have just seven issues left in my tenure as the Dakota Student Opinion Editor. When I first came to UND, I had no idea I'd ever be in this position. Somehow, the Dakota Student staff seemed like this cool, elite crowd that I couldn't touch. I thought there was probably some measure of talent and experience required to be part of the newspaper staff. I didn't dare walk in the office, let alone return with an application, until the middle of my sophomore year. I didn't get a call back.

The following summer, I interned at The Pierce Co. Tribune back home. I did all sorts of work, and I sort of figured things out as I went along. Having been an avid reader since childhood, I instinctually knew how a news story should sound. I found that I enjoyed writing the stories as much as I did doing the interviews. I was hooked.

I applied at The Dakota Student as soon as the first issue came out that fall with an inhouse ad calling for writers. I was pretty much hired on the spot. I loved the stories that I did, and I started to think about being an editor. In the spring, I took the chance and became the Opinion Section editor.

It's amazing how much more you know about what happens on campus when you're part of the newspaper staff. Little tidbits come our way that aren't going to become stories, but they're still interesting. We have had a broad range of people coming through our office, from those who worked on the newspaper in their college careers to The Biggest Loser's Adrienne Kortesmaki.

Being an editor also meant that I had to write the occaisional column. Columns don't run without mug shots, so my picture has appeared in the newspaper a number of times. I've been recognized from my mug shot before, and it's a strange experience for me. There's always this little voice in my head that tells me that the girl in black and white isn't really me, and no one will connect that photo to the real me. I just assume that no one reads my columns or notices my picture. It's just a shock to be recognized.

And yet this fall, I'm going to miss that recognition. As a student teacher in the high school setting, these students won't know anything about me. They won't know that I once wrote a column jokingly asking Student Government to allocate $12,000 for Kevin Federline to come to UND for an appearance. They won't know about the long hours I put in producing the newspaper that many of them will one day be reading ( and that some may even work at). I'm going to go from an editor/student among students to just another crabby old teacher among high school students. It's going to be a shock to my system, I'm sure.

I know this probably sounds a little conceited, but it's not meant to be that way. It's more like The DS has become a way of life for me. I like the fact that something so important to me is visible to the UND community. From here on out, the things I hold near and dear to me won't be so visible to my surrounding community. I'll be passionate about teaching, yes, but few people recognize that teachers have a passion for their work. More often, parents notice the grades their children receive, and that's it. My students won't care about my passion for teaching, either. Most of them will probably wish they could avoid my class altogether.

I'm at this crossroads where I'm trying to decide what I really want to do for a living. Do I want to teach? Do I want to work in the news business? I guess I'll figure it all out in December.