Urva Jha, editor-in-chief

May 27, 2024

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

Leave a Comment

About the Contributors

Valerie Schmitt, Staff Writer

Valerie Schmitt (she/her) is a sophomore going into her second year as a writer on Zephyrus. If you happen upon her while she’s outside of the prison walls of EHS, it’s a safe bet to assume she’s procrastinating on her homework, talking to her dog, or making another Spotify playlist she won’t listen to. Alternatively, you can find her cursing the AP Euro readings and playing Tetris instead of listening to lectures. To distract her, this year’s hyperfixations are Lost (2004), the politics of national circuit debate, and improving her WPM typing speed. She’s excited for a new year of Zephyrus and suggesting op-eds about burning down Smith College (please give my sister back).

Olivia Wegmann-Krider, Photography Editor

Olivia (She/Her) is happy to return to Zephyrus as the new Photography Editor! She enjoys taking pictures, playing tennis, spending time with her friends, and reading books. Her favorite foods include strawberries, oats, and watermelon sour patch kids, but she likes to peruse the aisles of Lunds & Byerlys in in her free time looking for new things to try. Whenever her life is feeling monotonous, she buys another water bottle, but still manages to be dehydrated most of the time. She spent her summer visiting Europe and now her dream is to study abroad in Spain one day-- for now, you can find her paddle boarding at her cabin pretending she is on a beach in Barcelona.

Comments (0)

Zephyrus welcomes and encourages our readers to engage in our content through substantive, respectful exchanges. To ensure our comments meet these standards, Zephyrus reviews all comments before publication and does not allow comments which contain profanity, vulgarity, racial slurs, or personal attacks. Any comments that violate these standards will be removed.

Share your thoughts...

All Edina Zephyrus Picks Reader Picks Sort: Newest