As summer comes to an end and the fall semester begins, The Tulane Hullabaloo has been hard at work in the basement of the Lavin-Bernick Center for University Life preparing to tell the community’s stories for its 118th year. 

The Hullabaloo promises to be the eyes and ears of the Tulane University community, and our mission is to ensure that everyone in our community has a voice and feels acknowledged. As a person of color, one of my goals as Editor-In-Chief is to continue our work highlighting marginalized voices in our community. 

The Hullabaloo also strives to be a watchdog for what occurs in the community. We accomplished this objective last year through our coverage of Hurricane Ida, sexual assault on campus, the university’s campus health crisis and the tornado that struck Arabi and the Lower Ninth Ward amongst many other stories. 

I was born and raised in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, and I take great pride in my identity as a Louisianan. Honoring my roots, I fully immerse myself in our content’s connection with our location. I recognize the importance of local issues, and how issues here in New Orleans and in Louisiana differ greatly from those elsewhere. 

As a local paper, we have a responsibility to represent the community and do it justice. If we hope to embody our motto as the eyes and ears of the Tulane community, we need to turn to the people who know this community best and can speak about its unique character: native Louisianans. 

I joined The Hullabaloo as a sportswriter in the fall of my freshman year and I immediately fell in love with the work and dedicated staff. Over the past three years, The Hullabaloo has become the most important part of my college experience. Initially, it was a place I came to create content that I am passionate about. Since then, it has become a community that I love and care about deeply.

This year, we look forward to improving and expanding our digital presence, diversifying our coverage and providing factual and accessible coverage. All the while, we aim to highlight the voices of marginalized students and hold people in positions of power accountable. 

My goal is for The Hullabaloo to be one of the premier student-run newspapers in the country, and although I am both proud and excited to lead this organization as its Editor-in-Chief, none of this would be possible without our amazing staff. 

Our managing board was selected in the spring, and this group of intelligent and driven individuals has worked tirelessly over the summer to bring relevant content to you. I am honored to lead The Hullabaloo with Gabi Liebeler as managing editor, Lenny Draper as chief copy editor, Will Embree as production manager, Billie Wyler as digital director, Luke Wilson as senior business manager and Holly Haney as personnel director. 

We also have a phenomenal team of about two dozen board members who will strive to lead their sections with integrity.

We invite any student who is interested in contributing to The Hullabaloo, or any community member who is curious about our work, to visit our office in room G06 on the garden level of the LBC.