When I became editor in chief of The Cougar, just months after the coronavirus pandemic took hold, my goal for the newspaper was to meet the moment.
I knew our responsibility as the University’s student news organization was to keep our community informed of the crisis that was disrupting our lives.
A year later, I couldn’t be more proud of the work this organization has done to accomplish that goal. From our COVID-19 tracker to our coverage of life at UH during a public health crisis, The Cougar’s staff continuously put its best foot forward for the UH community.
I am confident The Cougar will continue to do the same under the leadership of incoming editor in chief Donna Keeya, who has proven to be an incredible on-campus leader and a star of student journalism at UH.
I cannot wait to see the amazing things she and this organization will accomplish as normalcy continues to creep back into our lives over the next year.
— Jhair Romero, outgoing editor in chief
As an organization, The Cougar is a safe space for students to gain skills and has been the starting point for many journalists’ careers. For myself and many others, The Cougar has become a safe haven to discover themselves and grow personally and professionally.
As I take on the editor in chief position, my two main goals are to continuously inform the UH community over important topics and practice servant leadership to help build up the next generation of student journalists.
Journalism is the history of today and as journalists, it is our responsibility to accurately capture it for generations to come. I’m confident in this upcoming editorial board’s ability to document history in the moment and produce content that’ll be referenced for years to come.
The Cougar has taught me so much about my craft and I’m very grateful to give back to others in the same way. I especially would like to thank McKenzie Misiaszek, Autumn Rendall, Michael Slaten and Jhair A. Romero for helping me get here.
Here’s to another year of storytelling.
— Donna Keeya, incoming editor in chief