Forty years later, UHCL’s student-run newspaper continues to inform, educate and engage
On this day 40 years ago, a group of students published the comeback issue of The UHCLidian. Ever since, students from various backgrounds and degree programs worked to inform, educate and engage the UHCL community.
Looking back, it’s amazing to see how a student-run newspaper covered major events in history and brought the human element to stories such as Hurricane Harvey.
For decades, the student-run newspaper at UHCL has strived to call attention to the struggles students, faculty and staff face, while also being a platform to provide facts, solutions, entertainment and humor.
Having been with The Signal for the last three years, I’ve been able to witness the paper become fully online, expand social media coverage and transition to new processes. Now, as editor-in-chief, I am leading a team of students who are dedicated to not just maintaining the paper’s core mission but also making our vision a reality.
Our tagline, “Your Voice, Your Community, Your Signal,” is one I came up with at the start of summer. It embodies what I believe the paper’s vision should be, which is a platform for the UHCL community to inform, educate and engage one another.
Being part of this 40-year milestone has helped us to see the lasting impact this paper has had on the university. It reestablishes not only why we do what we do but also how our work can make a difference.
On a personal note, I want to shout out the paper’s current advisers — Taleen Washington and Lindsay Humphrey. Their guidance, experience and thought-provoking questions have helped provide each new crop of student staff the confidence and ability to do the work even when it’s daunting.
Working for The Signal has changed my life beyond just building up my skills. It has allowed me the opportunity to become more confident and sure of who I am as a person.
Thank you to the decades of student staffers who came before us and helped establish the platform we are today. Thank you to the current staffers whose hard work does not go unnoticed and who are keeping the paper’s mission alive. Finally, thank you to the future staffers who I’m sure will continue to evolve the paper and maintain its vision.
Also published on Medium.
