Meet the 2026-2027 Editorial Board
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Learn about the editors who help bring this paper together
By THE EDITORIAL BOARD — opinion@theaggie.org
The California Aggie is the official student-run newspaper for the UC Davis community. Without a journalism major or program at UC Davis, The Aggie is the best opportunity for students to gain hands-on experience reporting for a newspaper, as well as contributing photos, graphics, videos and layout designs.
Each week, The Aggie publishes an in-print edition of our paper, as well as daily articles and content on our website. The Aggie has seven desks, each run by different editors that provide unique content for our paper. Our Editorial Board writes and publishes opinion pieces on a variety of topics twice a week to share student opinions on local and global issues. Before we jump into our regular schedule, here’s a quick introduction for each member of The Aggie’s 2026-27 Editorial Board.
Zoey Mortazavi, Editor-in-Chief
I fell into student-led journalism during my second year of high school because it seemed like an obvious choice. I’ve always loved writing and believe that journalism has the power to inform the public, but I didn’t at all expect to fall in love with the process of writing and editing the way that I did. I love the collaboration and the fast-paced nature of journalism — I love being able to shed light on the truth and highlight the people that make communities special. For the last two years as the features editor for The Aggie, I have gotten to know and love the communities and niches that make up Davis’ campus. We have a unique and diverse student body that deserves to be showcased and celebrated, and I hope to spend this next year continuing to do exactly that.
This year as Editor-in-Chief, my love for journalism at the collegiate level has continued to grow, as has my love for Davis. My priority as EIC is first and foremost keeping the student body informed; I also hope The Aggie can help students to discover organizations and communities that they feel aligned with along the way. I encourage students and community members alike to reach out to me at editor@theaggie.org with any questions, concerns or suggestions for our coverage as the year goes on.
Beyond my own experience in it, journalism is a rapidly changing field; my background in it has driven me to constantly observe its patterns, and I constantly find myself looking for connections between history, modern politics and the journalistic field. I admire the journalists all over the world who have used their reporting to continue informing the world about injustices and remind all of us who and what we should constantly be fighting for: honesty, transparency, equality and education, among so many other things. College journalism offers a truly unique opportunity for students to engage with issues ranging from on-campus to international, using our education to fuel the pieces that we put out.
Being an editor for three out of my four years at Davis has allowed me to grow as both a mentor and as a person; I have worked with incredibly intelligent students and staff, and I am proud to be able to cover the very best that our college town has to offer. I hope this year serves as another opportunity for growth, cultural celebration and collaboration; I’m very grateful to The Aggie for allowing me to both celebrate and help inform my community.
Molly Thompson, Managing Editor
I stepped onto the news scene at the beginning of my freshman year here at UC Davis when I sent in an application to every desk at The Aggie that I felt qualified for. I started writing opinion articles and quickly fell in love with journalism beyond what I’d experienced from purely a reader’s perspective.
Since then, my appreciation, admiration and passion has only grown. I started taking classes to improve my writing and understanding of news, and I had the incredible opportunity to join Dr. Amber Boydstun (Chair of the UC Davis Department of Political Science) in her research on the relationship between news and politics.
I study both political science and communications — the combination of which has taught me how integral journalism is to society as a whole, especially in our modern political atmosphere. My two years writing for the opinion desk and year serving as opinion editor have further proved the value of proper reporting, and I intend to continue to pursue and uphold that value as managing editor.
Without newspapers — without writers — our community, our livelihoods and our democracy are at stake. Allowing people to have a space to share their voices and to acquire unobscured information is at the very core of our society, and I am honored to be a part of the incredible team here at The Aggie that upholds the journalistic center here at UC Davis.
Beyond that, my time at The Aggie so far has given me a sense of purpose, camaraderie and growth that I have yet to experience in any other field. Writing and editing have taught me so many invaluable lessons and allowed me to grow as an individual and as an academic beyond what I ever envisioned for myself. I’ve always loved writing as an art, as a pastime and as a creative outlet, and The Aggie has allowed me to transform that passion into something meaningful.
Vince Basada, Campus News Editor
I started writing in journalism in high school and have been hooked ever since. I love having a hand in creating the headlines and stories that inform those around me, and I’ve had the good fortune of working alongside passionate, dedicated individuals who have pushed me to be a better reporter and journalist.
I joined The Aggie in fall quarter of my first year and have stuck around. As a staff writer, I covered everything from new academic majors to labor protests, but I cut my teeth covering student government. I became The Aggie’s de facto ASUCD reporter, and have since had the pleasure of training others to take on the same beat. Since spring 2025, I’ve been editor of the Campus News Desk, though I still try to find the chance to file a few stories each quarter.
In my work outside of this paper, I write about business, entrepreneurship and agriculture. My work has appeared in The Sacramento Bee, The North Bay Business Journal and a few other places. Check me out on Muckrack if you’re interested. When I’m not in the newsroom, you can find me at the movies watching a trashy action flick or listening to a comedy podcast at the gym.
Hannah Osborn, City News Editor
When I transferred to UC Davis last year, I expected my time here would pass quietly, tucked away in the library reading medieval tomes. Instead, I became part of the world of student journalism. Spare time between classes became opportunities to interview, weekends were spent periodically checking if articles were ready to edit and every Thursday morning was spent scouring the newspaper for what made it to print.
I joined The California Aggie as a copy reader and arts & culture writer, and am honored to join the City News Desk this year. It has been an invaluable experience to take part in the making of The Aggie: I will never forget the wonderful people I’ve had the pleasure of speaking with, becoming connected with the City of Davis and the university through my work at the newspaper.
More than anything, I am grateful for the chance to participate in something larger than myself. As much as The Aggie has helped me, I hope I can give back tenfold through providing transparent and honest journalism to the Davis community. I feel a sense of responsibility to our readership in a time where news and information are increasingly seen as fabulations from a distant source. The power of local journalism like The Aggie is the ability to be a visible and trusted presence in the community, and it is my goal as an editor to continue this legacy of reporting for the people of Davis.
Nevaeh Karraker, Opinion Editor
When I first joined The Aggie my freshman year, my original intention was to simply maintain this spark I had for literature —- both reading and writing — since it has always been prominent in my life. Yet, as a chemical engineering major, this aspect seemed, unfortunately, transient. That mindset swiftly altered as I plunged into journalism and met adept reporters who emanated this deep drive and joy.
Passions are abundant and shift into a mosaic; I’m grateful that The Aggie taught me we certainly don’t have to limit ourselves to just one. I’m honored to take on the new role of the Opinion Editor for this academic year after serving as a columnist and assistant editor — it’s truly surreal. Even more so am I indebted to the community here who continuously challenge me to flourish as a journalist and person. One of the things I value the most about this newspaper is how every author’s voice is authentically preserved across all desks, and it’s a merit I aim to uphold with the same aptitude as the previous editor. So, if you’re interested in hot-takes, philosophy or political stances, then keep on reading.
Laila Azhar, Features Editor
When working on my first-ever article for The Aggie — a profile of the Davis chapter of Food Not Bombs — I paced around in circles for several minutes before mustering up the courage to approach the team for an interview. It was fall quarter of my freshman year, and I had just joined The Aggie as a writer for the features desk. I’ve always enjoyed reading — my most prized possession is a signed copy of “Trick Mirror” by The New Yorker staff writer Jia Tolentino — but working for The Aggie was my first time formally trying my hand at writing.
Growing from a nervous freshman into someone who feels at home reporting and writing articles has been one of the highlights of my college experience. I’m so excited to be stepping into the role of features editor this year and working with writers to bring you human-interest stories from across campus and the city.
Davis is such a vibrant town. One of the greatest gifts of working at The Aggie has been getting to know the community around me and hearing stories I may otherwise have never encountered. I’ve been lucky enough to meet, interview and write about some of the incredible people who make Davis what it is, from local artists and activists to UC Davis professors and students. The people here are creative, passionate and endlessly interesting, and I encourage anyone looking for a glimpse into the wonderful world of Davis, California to pick up a copy of The Aggie each week and read about them.
Julie Huang, Arts and Culture Editor
When I joined the California Aggie in the last quarter of my freshman year, I wasn’t sure what to expect, but it seemed straightforward enough. Write an article every week, go to editing sessions and drop the Oxford comma (one of the first AP style tidbits I ever picked up). I had been a part of a journalistic publication in high school and thought I was familiar with the routine and the responsibility of it all. As I would come to learn, the Aggie is so much more than that— it’s a world of its own, sprung into existence through the efforts of its tireless community— and I am so grateful to get to be a part of this experience.
Writing never happens in a vacuum (even if isolation is sometimes necessary for it to happen at all). Consciously or not, it is always informed by the world that it comes into. What I love about journalistic writing is that it not only takes this into account, but seeks to inform the world in return, explicitly and wholeheartedly acknowledging the pivotal relationship between works of writing and real-life happenings. I am always humbled and inspired by the devotion and dedication shown by my fellow journalists at the Aggie to the perennial mission of preserving transparency, truth and humanity, which in my opinion is no easy feat at any time, but perhaps especially crucial in the current climate.
Stepping off my soapbox, I also want to mention how much fun I’ve had writing all my stories, because of the depth and breadth of topics I’ve been able to cover (from student opinions on Taylor Swift’s newest album to the latest exhibition on display at the Manetti Shrem). I’ve been able to speak to so many knowledgeable and passionate people, learn so much and make wonderful friends. Now, in my last year with the Aggie, I hope to channel all the joy and fulfillment that it’s given me into my work as Arts editor and serve this paper, its community and the greater journalistic community to the best of my ability.
Danielle Wirnowski, Sports Editor
I knew I loved writing, after all I am an English major, but writing in AP style for articles is pretty different from MLA writing for essays. I was a bit nervous even applying to be a writer, and yet it was my roommate who convinced me to apply and thank goodness she did.
When I started writing for The Aggie winter quarter of my sophomore year, I thought that it would be a simple side position. Little did I know, I would fall in love with journalism and search for more ways to be involved in the Aggie.
It’s hard to believe that it was just over a year and a half ago that I was being interviewed to be a volunteer writer, hoping to be placed at the Sports Desk. I distinctly remember going on and on about my childhood surrounded by sports: my brother’s game and practices, going to San Jose Giants and Sharks games, and lastly mentioning my own experience playing tennis and swimming. And yet, with all that experience I had, I still had so much to learn about how to write articles for any sport I could find.
As I start my final year at the Aggie serving as the Sports Editor, I feel the same way I did when I first started: excited, anxious, semi-confident and ready to apply everything I know. And yet, with the experience I have gained over the past year and a half as a writer and assistant editor, I know that I still have things to learn. And I genuinely cannot wait. My elementary school engrained the idea of being a “life-long learner,” and at the time, I had no idea how that would apply to me. The Aggie has shown me what being a life-longer learner means outside of the classroom.
Naren Krishna Jegan, Science Editor
I'm going to be honest, I used to really hate writing. My experiences writing in middle and high school consisted of writing mandatory essays on books made by old guys who probably got paid to write the most boring slop possible (at least, that's what I believe it to be). What I really loved was teaching science (hence being a biochemistry major). Having a series of teachers who were horrible communicators, I owed it to myself to fix that problem and make learning science fun, not a burden. I started in high school publishing my own physics textbook and serving as a physics and chemistry teaching assistant; this pushed me to take teaching and writing science more seriously in a way that I felt people would enjoy and understand.
When I came to UC Davis, I thought that it would be fun to fuse my love for teaching and sharing science by working for The Aggie. I joined my first quarter of freshman year; two years later and after many stories where I've hardcore nerded out with some of the top scientists and engineers, I now serve as the Science and Technology Desk Editor. Science and technology are crucial to our everyday lives; my duty is to highlight the voices and discoveries that are often left unrecognized.
It's crazy to believe how much this organization has helped me grow as a scientist, writer and communicator; I owe it all to my former Desk Editor Katie Hellman, Editors-in-Chief Chris Ponce and Alyssa Crevoiserat alongside the scores of others behind the scenes for their hard work in making this paper flourish. To this day, I still can’t comprehend the mass efforts required by every person in this organization to deliver one of the most impactful products weekly while balancing coursework and other extracurriculars.
My goal as the Science and Technology Desk Editor is to report on recent news from the UC Davis campus and UC system and teach readers at least one new thing in a more understandable way. Whether it’s chemistry, botany or computer science, you’ll always be sure to learn something new in each of our weekly articles.