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About my experience

I have been writing for a newspaper since 2020 at a variety of publications. During the pandemic, I started a virtual internship while in high school writing for The Borgen Project, a non-profit seeking to end global poverty where I wrote research-based articles about international affairs and global poverty. I then started at my high school newspaper, The Hebron Hawkeye, in fall of 2020 where I published numerous news and culture stories. After graduating high school, I began college at Texas State University, where I began pursuing internship opportunities and reporting on the local community in San Marcos, Texas. I interned in Washington, D.C. for a two-month with a local newspaper, The Well News, where I reported on U.S. Supreme Court decisions and national legal issues. Since 2022, I have also worked as an election data stringer for the Associated Press Elections Division. In fall of 2023, I began reporting for The University Star, the school newspaper at Texas State, previously as a Life and Arts Contributor, and later as a News Reporter where I cover now local politics and business. Currently, I am interning with Community Impact, where I cover hyper-local news in the Austin area.

Community Impact •

San Marcos, Hays CISDs report rise in alternative school placements after pandemic, vaping law

House Bill 114, which took effect Sept. 1, 2023, mandates that students found in possession of electronic cigarettes be sent to disciplinary alternative education program, or DAEP, facilities. (Courtesy Adobe Stock)

House Bill 114, which took effect Sept. 1, 2023, mandates that students found in possession of electronic cigarettes be sent to disciplinary alternative education program, or DAEP, facilities. (Courtesy Adobe Stock)
The University Star •

City council continues discussion on Cape’s Dam, approves feasability study

A new feasibility study for Cape’s Dam is moving forward, reigniting long-standing tension over the structure’s future.
Cape’s Dam, built over 150 years ago to power a watermill, has been the center of public debate for more than a decade after it sustained damage during floods in 2013 and 2015.
After the dam was damaged, its future remained uncertain as city leaders and community members spent the next decade weighing different options, leaving the structure largely untouched, except for addres...
The University Star •

City council votes to approve downtown housing complex

The San Marcos City Council voted 6-1 to approve two conditional use permit requests at its April 15 meeting for a proposed seven-story student housing complex across from the downtown H-E-B.
The permits, submitted by Illinois-based developer Next Chapter Properties, allow the building to exceed the current five-story height limit and officially designate the project as purpose-built student housing, which is housing designed, marketed or used specifically by college students.
The Planning and Z...
The University Star •

City council to vote on new student housing complex

At its April 15 meeting, the San Marcos City Council will hold a public hearing on a proposed seven-story student housing apartment complex across from the downtown H-E-B after the San Marcos Planning and Zoning Commission voted to deny the project on March 25.
On March 25, the commission denied two conditional use permits (CUPs) requested by the developer: one to increase the building’s height from five to seven stories and another to allow for purpose-built student housing, which is housing de...
Community Impact •

New Braunfels-area MUD proposals grow

While only a few Comal County voters will have the opportunity to vote on municipal utility district-related ballot items in the May 3 election, the decisions made will impact future residents who move into the district boundaries.

This includes Comal County MUD No. 5—a new 621-acre district north of New Braunfels. If approved, these entities would join a growing number of MUDs rapidly reshaping development in the county.

An extraterritorial jurisdiction is an unincorporated area located outside a city's boundaries. Special purpose districts like MUDs are used within an ETJ to create developments and provide utilities for residents in the area.
The University Star •

Teen’s death at Cape’s Dam ruled accidental drowning

San Marcos officials ruled on March 21 the death of 17-year-old Ross Webb Jr. as an accidental drowning, according to the case report released in a March 26 public records request. 
Ross Webb Jr. died on Nov. 9, 2024, after getting trapped underwater for approximately two minutes near Cape’s Dam in the San Marcos River, according to the report.
Ross Webb Jr. became “stuck on something under the water” while swimming near river rapids and did not return to the surface, the police report stated....
The University Star •

Alamito, Cibolo halls residents face unresolved electrical issues

Students at Alamito and Cibolo Halls quickly began reporting numerous maintenance issues, such as malfunctioning outlets and recurring elevator outages, after fall move-in. 
According to records obtained by The Star in a public information request (PIR), the first outlet outage was reported on Aug. 7, with similar outages occurring during move-in week starting Aug. 17. 
As of March 7, at least 2,580 total maintenance requests were filed for Alamito and Cibolo Halls, according to the PIRs. Since...
The University Star •

City council discusses new license plate reader technology, approves city contracts

At its Feb. 4 meeting, San Marcos City Council voted 5-2 to postpone approval of installing 19 additional license plate reader cameras until the council reviews its usage policy in June.
If approved, the resolution would allow San Marcos Police Department (SMPD) to have 33 total Flock Safety cameras operating in San Marcos, with 14 cameras already in use, according to SMPD Chief Stan Standridge.
Flock cameras are a network of license plate reading (LPR) cameras that “offer real-time altering and...
The University Star •

Sights & Sounds festival scales back for 2024

The Sights & Sounds of Christmas festival, traditionally held over eight days across two weeks, will be condensed to a single day for the 2024 season.
Since 1987, the Sights & Sounds of Christmas festival has drawn locals and visitors from across Central Texas with live music, carnival rides and a variety of food vendors. However, Elva Zdeb, president of the board of directors, said the carnival vendor responsible for the rides announced they would not operate this year, prompting the board to p...
The University Star •

Hays County property tax increase to impact rent

Hays County residents could see rising rent prices following the commissioners court’s decision to increase property taxes by nearly 14% on Sept. 17.
The Hays County Commissioners Court raised the property tax rate from $0.3075 to $0.35 per $100 of valuation, effective in October. While the new rate is in effect, payments are not yet due, prompting apartment complexes to adjust in advance.
Property taxes are fees paid by property owners based on the determined value of their property. While coll...
The University Star •

San Marcos City Council votes to reverse Tantra live music decibel limit

San Marcos City Council voted 7-0 on Tuesday to modify the conditional use permit (CUP) application for Tantra, a local coffee shop and live music venue located in downtown San Marcos, reinstating the original decibel limits of Tantra’s previous permit.
On Sept. 24, the San Marcos Planning and Zoning Commission voted 9-0 to approve Tantra’s CUP three-year permit renewal, including a condition that would limit all outdoor live music to no more than 60 decibels.
However, Tantra’s previous permit a...
The University Star •

The Davenport discontinues ‘A Brunch of Drag,’ sparks community concerns

Once a month, A Brunch of Drag brought the San Marcos queer community together at The Davenport. On Sept. 22, the event held its final show before the venue shut it down.
Eileen Dover, drag artist and performer, hosted A Brunch of Drag every fourth Sunday of each month for the past two years at The Davenport on South Guadalupe Street. She said the last show, which celebrated the event’s two-year anniversary, was sold out, which typically consisted of 125 to 150 people.
A typical Brunch of Drag s...
The University Star •

San Marcos community holds memorial to honor Israeli victims of October 7

San Marcos community members and Texas State students held a memorial on Oct. 14 at the Price Community Center to stand in solidarity with the people of Israel and honor those who died on Oct. 7, 2023.
The memorial service hosted Sagi Gabay, a survivor of the Hamas attack at the Nova music festival, to share his experience of escaping the attack.
“Faces of October 7th,” the group that brought Gabay to San Marcos works to bring survivors to different cities and college campuses across North Ameri...
The University Star •

RAs speak out against media policy

Editor’s note: the current Resident Assistant (RA) in this story has requested to stay anonymous as they still work for the Department of Housing and Residential Life and do not want to risk losing their job.
Current and former RAs are speaking out against the Department of Housing and Residential Life’s (DHRL) media policy, arguing it restricts their First Amendment rights of free speech and expression.
As of Sept. 9, 22 RAs were once again required to live with freshmen roommates due to overcr...
The University Star •

Overcrowding at Texas State requires some RAs to share rooms with freshmen

Due to Texas State’s record-breaking freshman class and a lack of on-campus housing, some Resident Assistants (RA) are now required to live with a student roommate if needed based on availability.
At the start of the fall semester, there were 52 freshmen living with their RAs as their roommates on campus. As of Sept. 9, that number now sits at 22 students, according to Bill Mattera, Director of Housing and Residential Life (DHRL).
Mattera said the department plans to relocate all freshmen living...
The University Star •

City council approves McLain Project

Mariah Price, an English graduate student, learned she would potentially lose her housing at Lindsey Oaks on April 14 from a note left on her door by the Tenant Advocacy Group (TAG) due to a city council vote taking place two days later.
“I don’t think any of [the tenants] knew until [the April 16 San Marcos City Council meeting],” Price said. “Any kind of notice would have been useful.”
San Marcos City Council voted 6-1 on April 16 to approve amendments regarding the McLain Project, a proposed...
The University Star •

Local businesses approach to taking on Winter Break

From coffee shops to small boutiques, local businesses in San Marcos are navigating the unique challenges of being located in a college town by preparing for less college students over winter break.
Kevin Kotara, Texas State alumni and manager of Sundance Record Lagoon, said while college students are the store’s largest shopping demographic, the recent growth of San Marcos and the loyalty of the local population helps to support the business over the break.
“Retail businesses anywhere have ups...
The University Star •

Hays County Commissioners Court approves fiscal year 2025 budget, raises property taxes

The Hays County Commissioners Court voted 5-0 on Sept. 17 to approve the budget for fiscal year 2025, with an increase in property taxes and a decrease in the overall budget amount.
The budget totaled nearly $356 million, consisting of approximately $224 million toward maintenance and operations funding and $88 million toward construction and infrastructure funds.
Additionally, the budget also directed $44 million toward debt funding as Hays County currently rests a total outstanding debt nearin...
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