The first Cougar edition at the University of Houston: Oct. 5, 1934. Read about the beginnings of the Cougar on its 75th Anniversary Web site.
Student Publications is home to two of the University’s oldest traditions: The Daily Cougar student newspaper and the Houstonian yearbook. Both have been published continuously since 1934.
In our department, students are responsible for the day-to-day operation of The Daily Cougar, the Houstonian and Transitions magazine, with support from five professional UH staff members. The department also receives oversight from the Student Publications Committee, which elects the student editors who lead the newspaper and yearbook. Student Publications is not directly affiliated with the School of Communication.
Student Publications, which falls under the Division of Student Affairs, has five units: Editorial, Advertising, Business Office, Production, and the Houstonian yearbook.
Our mission is to provide accurate and relevant news and information to students, faculty and staff in a timely and accurate fashion as frequently as possible. We also encourage editorial focus upon the complex university community and its impact on students, faculty, staff and other groups, including the general public. Student Publications will continue to focus on the ever-changing demographics and activities of our diverse campus population.
Further, our mission is to foster an open and objective environment among Student Publications staff members that provides a public forum for viewpoints and opinion; to teach that a news medium is a conduit for free speech and the clarification of public issues and ideas. Finally, our mission is to work with students in a learning environment where the canons and ethics of journalism are practical issues.
No other campus organization is as closely tied to the University’s history as Student Publications. Its story can be traced to the first issue of The Cougar printed for the Houston Junior College on April 6, 1928. As the official student newspaper for the University, however, its first issue came out on Oct. 5, 1934. The Cougar became The Daily Cougar in 1965.
Like the newspaper, the Houstonian yearbook has been publishing since the University's founding. In the 1960s, it became financially independent from the university, and to this day is paid for by advertising revenue and book purchases.
For a complete history of the paper and yearbook, check out our 75th Anniversary Web site.
