Many current staff members at The Lantern will bid farewell to their duties as Spring Semester concludes, and they are currently preparing to usher not only a new editor-in-chief, but a large roster of new faces that will take their seats at the editors’ desks next fall.

A majority of the current staff, which consists of 17 Lantern positions and five BuckeyeTV positions, will be handing over their responsibilities to new hires or current editors who will hold new positions.

Employment with The Lantern Media Group is typically an academic year agreement, with new staff members beginning with the Fall Semester.

Dan Caterinicchia, director of student media, is not only the faculty adviser to The Lantern, but sits on the School of Communication Publications Committee, the committee which hires the new staff.

Caterinicchia said he looks for myriad traits in potential applicants, including professionalism, curiosity, the drive to learn and the willingness to make the kinds of sacrifices that are asked of Lantern Media Group employees.

“They sacrifice their time, in some cases, they make personal sacrifices in order to put out the best newspaper, website, TV content every day and every week that we’re producing content,” he said.

Caterinicchia said he believes the incoming editors possess those traits and are up to the job.

He said new editors bringing new ideas, fresh perspectives, experience and personalities to the job is advantageous for the student-run publication.

“They basically have free reign,” he said of the new staff. “It’s their paper. It’s their TV station. It’s their website. They are encouraged to put their own stamp on it.”

Incoming staff members shadow current Lantern staff in the spring, during a roughly one-month-long training period to prepare them for fall publication.

Current campus editor, Liz Young, a third-year in journalism and economics, will take over editor-in-chief duties next fall.

She is currently training with Kristen Mitchell, current editor-in-chief, who is a fourth-year set to graduate this May with a bachelor’s degree in journalism.

Mitchell said she was proud to see the growth and achievements of The Lantern editors, while pushing the paper forward and maintaining the publication’s legacy.

She said she has confidence in Young’s ability as The Lantern editor-in-chief in the next academic year.

“I know Liz is fully capable of handling whatever gets thrown her way,” Mitchell said. “She’s a great reporter. She’s a great editor. So, I know she will do a good job pushing everyone and coming up with new, innovative ideas and things that we can focus on in the coming year.”

Young said she feels prepared to take over as editor-in-chief with not only her experience closely working with Mitchell, but with familiarity with the office, as a former Lantern reporter and assistant sports editor last spring.

The Lantern newsroom has become my home,” Young said. “The best thing about working here is not just getting to learn and soak in so much information … it’s getting to become such good friends with people who share so many of the same interests as me.”

Young said she is eager to see the new staff come into their respective roles and begin to form new working relationships in the office.

“I’m excited to see the things that they can accomplish,” she said. “And I’m excited to have the opportunity to collaborate and come up with new ways to guide the staff toward pursuing bigger stories and doing bigger and better things, which I’ve think we’ve done this past year and I think we can do again next year.”

Young plans to continue contributing to The Lantern over the summer and to further The Lantern’s collaboration with BuckeyeTV in the fall.

Mitchell said she looks forward to seeing the new editors seek the heights in the coming year.

“I think that we have a great staff coming in; I think they are all very capable,” Mitchell said. “I’m excited to see what they’re going to do. I feel very confident leaving the staff and paper in their hands because I know they’ll do a great job.”