by Kaelynd Brouillette ’29 on November 20, 2025

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Opinion

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On Nov. 16, 1935, the very first edition of the Providence College newspaper we all know and love, The Cowl, was published. As I reflect on the 90th anniversary of The Cowl, I have come to recognize how remarkable it  is for a student-run newspaper to survive and thrive for nine decades. I believe that student-run newspapers are incredibly important to college campuses, as they act as living timelines of an institution’s political, cultural, and social evolution. The Cowl’s monumental milestone is not just an anniversary for Providence College, but also a reminder of the enduring role student-led journalism plays across campuses nationwide. Student newspapers do matter. Across the country, campus publications serve as watchdogs, historians, and cultural critics all at once. At various schools and higher education institutions across the country, student reporters have exposed financial mismanagement, challenged administrative decisions, and brought national attention to issues that otherwise might have been ignored. These papers, including The Cowl, show  that student journalism is often seen as one of the most active democratic institutions a campus has. 

In an era where universities so carefully manage their public identities, college newspapers remain an example of the few places where open dissent can still be aired for the public. For example, in The Cowl edition published on April 25, 2024, a collective of students, staff, alumni, and faculty wrote an article directed towards Father Sicard O.P. ’78, ’82G, calling out hypocrisy and systematic oppression towards members of the LGBTQ+ community on campus. Anonymous letters to the editor, such as the one mentioned above, allow for members of our college community to express concerns and critique campus culture in ways official university messaging never could. Student newspapers remain mostly independent from administration, giving them the power to report on issues that could otherwise remain buried in bureaucracy, such as violations of student rights, system-wide oppression as mentioned above, Title IX mishandlings, and failures in mental health services. In fact, The Cowl reported on almost all of the aforementioned issues here at PC. University newspapers can also be a training ground for civic engagement, as student journalism teaches investigation, healthy skepticism, fact-checking, and public communication, which are all foundations of a functioning democratic campus and nation. Many major journalists, politicians, and public thinkers started their careers in college newspapers, learning the responsibility of correctly informing a community and gaining experience in cultivating political awareness. Even for students who do not have any prior journalism experience, such as myself, participation in a student-run newspaper can cultivate a deeper understanding of how institutions work, as well as many important skills, such as research, writing, and critical thinking, that will benefit them in all aspects of life. Ultimately, the role of student newspapers goes far beyond reporting news, as they preserve the integrity of campus life by ensuring truth, accountability, and that student voices never disappear behind the walls of institutions. 

Yet, while student newspapers play a critical role, their existence is far from assured. Student publications face mounting challenges that threaten the very work they do, including  budget cuts, the rise of digital media, and censorship by administration. For example, the Indiana University student newspaper, the Indiana Daily Student, is facing challenges from its administration that led to its staff advisor being fired for refusing his superior’s request to censor the paper. The University also attempted to cancel the physical printing of the paper, sparking a First Amendment lawsuit against the University. The increasing pressure from university administrations, who sometimes attempt to limit key reporting or show control over publishing decisions, as well as many other struggles college newspapers face, has made it progressively more difficult to operate with the influence they once had. Despite these pressures, student journalists continue to do the work anyway, often unpaid, unrecognized, and at odds with institutional comfort. College newspapers persist not because it is easy, but because students believe their campus deserves honesty, reflection, and important discourse to raise awareness about issues and create a necessary change. The fact that The Cowl has endured for 90 years is a testament to PC’s history, but also to the countless students who refused to let the publication fade, even in moments when support was limited or interest waned. 

So, as we celebrate this important Cowl milestone, it is worth imagining where The Cowl might be 90 years from now. Perhaps it will exist entirely in digital form, with the words of students never reaching paper, or maybe the demand for print will continue, and maybe even grow. Perhaps journalism will look entirely different than how it does now, shaped by technologies we have not even conceived yet. Nonetheless, if The Cowl retains the spirit that has carried it through nearly a century, the idea that students deserve a platform that is truly their own, then its future will remain hopeful, even in an uncertain media landscape. And perhaps, that is the real legacy of student journalism: despite the challenges, despite the shifts and pressures, it endures, because students insist on telling the truth about the place they call home.

by Olivia Gleason '26 and Sarah McCall '26 on November 20, 2025

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News

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With Insights from its First Female EIC

Sunday, Nov. 16 marked 90 years of Providence College’s student-run newspaper, The Cowl. Since 1935, students have come together to provide campus, local, and global news to the PC community. The Cowl plays an integral part in understanding the College’s history as it has documented important milestones and events ranging from the opening of the Ben Mondor Center for Nursing and Health Sciences, to the admission of women at PC, to coverage of the Friars’ football team. While social media and the internet have drastically altered the way college students consume news and media, The Cowl has remained a fundamental part of campus life. Whether it be through submissions of Letters to the Editor, picking up a copy of the most recent edition at any corner of campus, or even posts related to the newspaper on YikYak, the PC community still sees The Cowl’s impact and purpose as it strives to provide a platform for student voices and a space for its members to delve into the dynamic world of journalism. 

As we reflected on The Cowl’s history in preparation for this week’s anniversary edition, we knew that the discussion of its history and significance would be greatly enriched by insights from its first-ever female editor-in-chief, Kendra Bogosian-Marasco ’87. Currently a Title IX advocate and formerly the director of field education at PC, Bogosian-Marasco made Cowl history in the ’86–’87 academic year when she challenged the status quo of the male-dominated publication to become its leader. Her experience in this position provides a glimpse into both how The Cowl has changed and, in many ways, how it has stayed the same in its general mission. We asked Bogosian-Marasco what it was like to come onto the scene as The Cowl’s first female EIC, to which she revealed that it “was the first time in my life that I experienced what being a woman in our society (at the time) meant in an institution that had only had women as part of its student community for 25 years.” Bogosian-Marasco had to jump hurdles of past social norms at the College, including having to “go through multiple ‘interviews’ with administrators” that her predecessors—male EICs—did not. Her perseverance, despite pushback and doubt, allowed her to pave the way for future women of The Cowl, forever changing its power and richness. To get a sense of what marked her time at The Cowl—and to also highlight historic moments for both the publication and PC—we asked Bogosian-Marasco if there was a pivotal moment that stood out to her during her tenure as EIC. Without hesitation, Bogosian-Marasco said, “This is an easy one. . . I was editor-in-chief for the 1986–1987 academic year. Our basketball team had a tremendous season that year and went to the Final Four; Billy Donovan ’87 became a household name.”

Coverage of such success for Friars basketball was undoubtedly thrilling for The Cowl. Its documentation of this historic season continues to serve as a reminder of the power student journalism has to define the collective memory of the College, and the great responsibility the publication carries as the storyteller of such monumental moments.

As we have all seen, technology has altered the way we interact with both the world and media. The same is true in media and news production. Our writing, editing, and publishing practices now are much different than they were throughout The Cowl’s history. For example, Bogosian-Marasco reflected on a major technological advancement during her career with The Cowl: “During my four-year involvement with The Cowl, we acquired word processors and were thrilled to be able to electronically type our articles. They’d be printed out, pasted onto mark-up boards for layout, and then we’d take those layouts off-site (to a local newspaper in Warwick) to be printed.” This 90-year anniversary calls for the recognition of all of the changes and people who have made The Cowl what it is today. It is not just the late nights on Wednesdays or the tireless work by the editorial board that keep The Cowl running. It is also 90 years of adaptation to keep up with technological advancements and a rapidly changing world.

In many ways, the archives of The Cowl serve as a collective PC time capsule, providing direct insight into student voices of the past and their reactions to the defining moments of their time. This history, however, is more often than not overshadowed, simply by the nature of the fact that our newspaper has stayed true to its original mission of covering current events. As such, for this 90th anniversary edition of The Cowl, we have decided to feature pieces of past editions (as well as publish our usual articles covering issues of today) to give glimpses into this history and to commemorate the work of every member of The Cowl, both past and present, that has shaped our student publication into what it is today. We hope you enjoy this step back in time as we seek to uphold the strong legacy of The Cowl. As Bogosian-Marasco told us, “Please continue to write—and to consume—newspapers throughout your lives. Never compromise integrity in your coverage and always seek out Veritas,” and it is our hope that this issue, and every issue after, does just that.