As graduation quickly approaches, so does my time in the role as The Crescent’s Editor-in-Chief, so I wanted to take the time to reflect on The Crescent’s impact on my four years at Tulane. Shortly after starting at Tulane, I joined The Crescent during my freshman year. In my senior year of high school, I was the Editor-in-Chief of my school newspaper and I knew I wanted to be involved in a student publication in college as well. 
I distinctly remember attending the club fair as a nervous college freshman and stumbling upon The Crescent’s table, giddily signing my name on the sign-up sheet. I started at The Crescent as a writer for the Common Ground section, writing about current political events, and in my sophomore year, I became Section Editor for the Fashion & Beauty Section. My junior year I held the position of Assistant Editor-in-Chief, and in my senior year I became Editor-in-Chief!
My engagement with The Crescent over the past four years has greatly shaped my Tulane experience. The Crescent gave me a creative outlet beyond my academic routine of attending classes and spending hours in the library. Collaborating with fellow students and engaging with their exceptional work has been both rewarding and fascinating. Writing is a genuine passion of mine, and the opportunity to appreciate the impressive work of talented students by editing and publishing their articles has been a memorable experience. Involvement in student organizations has always been a priority of my college life, and getting to lead The Crescent has been an honor and a truly treasured aspect of my college experience.
Our writers have produced wonderful pieces this year that I have been so excited to publish and want to take the time to highlight. I also revamped our Graphic Design team this year by recruiting new members who have created outstanding designs for cover images for various articles.
The Fashion & Beauty Section is our highest-producing section, and the pieces written this year were nothing short of excellent. Natalie Bonfiglio explored food’s unique role in fashion and beauty campaigns in Food x Fashion. Lila Kline covered Paris Fashion Week’s hottest looks in her article Fashion’s Playground: Reimagining Style at Paris Fashion Week ’25. We also had a variety of beauty articles covering the hottest beauty trends: The Lip Combo Craze by Olivia Marujo and The Stockholm Blowout: Step-by-Step by Hailey Marano will teach you how to achieve the perfect hair and makeup look. In February, the 59th Super Bowl took place in New Orleans and Kendrick Lamar’s halftime performance sparked much talk over his fashion choice, as detailed in Lila’s article, The Bootcut Jeans Takeover of Kendrick Lamar’s 2025 Super Bowl Performance. Additionally, Olivia Marujo highlighted current fashion trends in A Pinterest Board Deep Dive and reflected on past trends through her mom in Back to the ‘90s: My Mom’s Style in Her Own Words.
In Common Ground, Evelyn Young expressed her opinions on the relationship between Tulane students and their neighbors in her piece, Orleans Parish: The Tension Between Tulanians and Locals. Ella Cecil’s piece, Transforming Crisis into Change, recaps the lasting effects of Hurricane Katrina and connects it to promoting environmental justice through Tulane’s pre-professional environmental fraternity, Epsilon Eta. In Entertainment, Evelyn followed the TikTok ban developments in her article The TikTok Ban Rollercoaster, and Jordan Mayer-Brownfeld’s article, Fall in Love with the Book Recommendations for Every Iconic Romance Trope, led me to create a long list of books I want to read this summer.
In NOLA 360, writer Alexis Cohen delved into New Orleans’ iconic food scene with numerous pieces covering restaurant reviews, guides, and recommendations. Her article Biscuits, Bowls, and Brews: Your Guide to the Best Brunch in NOLA gives a detailed rundown of some must-visit brunch spots near Tulane. Alexis also reviewed a new up-and-coming restaurant started by a Tulane student in her article, Jia Chinese Kitchen: Fast, Fresh, and Flavorful. Charlotte Wilson planned the perfect day outside of the “Tulane bubble” in her article, A Day in the Marigny and the Bywater: A Neighborhood Guide, and Izzie Kates gave some awesome recs for uptown workout spots in Work Out your Workout: A Guide to Uptown’s Workout Studios.
In College Life, we had a variety of articles about studying abroad, which is always a hot topic amongst Tulane students. Hannah Levy imparted her wisdom on studying abroad in her article, Abroad Do’s and Don’ts: Navigating the Study Abroad Experience. Lilly Kaufmann discussed her experience studying abroad during her first semester of college and the transition back to Tulane as a Spring Scholar in her article, Spring Scholars: First Semester Abroad and Transitioning to Tulane. Lastly, in Sex and the Crescent City, Sarah Scott gets real about the online dating scene in her article The Game of Dating Apps.
This year had some fantastic articles, and I am so proud of the hard work our writers, graphic design team, and social media team put in! I am so lucky to have been able to manage and lead this year’s group of writers, and I cannot wait to see what the future holds for The Crescent’s success!
If you are interested in pursuing journalism as a career, The Crescent is the perfect way to gain experience and to beef up your resume. However, you don’t have to be a journalism or English major to join The Crescent (I personally am in the business school). The Crescent can be for anyone who wants to creatively share their ideas and contribute to an entirely student-run publication!
About Julia Haas
Julia is the Editor-in-Chief of The Crescent Magazine. She is currently a senior double majoring in Marketing and Management and pursuing a Masters in Accounting. In her free time she enjoys reading romance novels, FaceTiming her dogs at home, and trying new restaurants in NOLA to post on her food blog.
Julia is the Editor-in-Chief of The Crescent Magazine. She is currently a senior double majoring in Marketing and Management and pursuing a Masters in Accounting. In her free time she enjoys reading romance novels, FaceTiming her dogs at home, and trying new restaurants in NOLA to post on her food blog.
