Zephyrus’s dedicated and fearless leader, Urva Jha, will be concluding her four years at Edina High School in May. After climbing through the ranks of Zephyrus, from staff writer all the way to editor-in-chief, the pubs room will certainly feel like it’s missing something without Urva’s presence.
Urva’s love for the publication comes primarily from the community it provides. “I’ve met some of my closest friends in [Zephyrus,] and I’ve made these connections with these people I never would have otherwise,” she said. “I don’t think I would be who I am right now without meeting the people that I have in the program, without talking to people for interviews, and without all these experiences.”
Specifically, she’ll miss her Zephyrus romance. “Meredith Nemerov is the Zeph love of my life. She’s proposing on Thursday,” Urva said. “But I think [Celeste Eckstein] has to be my Zephyrus crush. I just get butterflies.”
As editor-in-chief, Urva hopes she has made Zephyrus a better place. “I wanted to establish good leadership structures, and I think we did,” she said. “That’s something I’m very proud of.” That’s not to say that there weren’t some missteps, however. “There were some character-building moments for sure. I went to the Target Center [to cover a dance competition], and my name wasn’t on the list. They wouldn’t let me in, and I was terrified, and so I called Troy Stein like seven times… Bad idea. Would not recommend,” she said.
When she wasn’t in the pubs room “harassing Amborn,” Urva spent her time at EHS as an Edina Robotics kid, photographer, and UMTYMP student. As for her plans for the future, she will be attending the University of Minnesota as a computer science major, though she also hopes to dabble in physics and math.
While Zephyrus is sure to miss Urva, there’s no need to fear; Urva still plans on visiting. “Oh yeah, I have been a super senior for 47 years, actually,” she said. “I’ve been on staff since we changed the name to Zephyrus. That was me.”
This piece was originally published in Zephyrus’ print edition on May 24, 2024
