Texas Managing Editors is thrilled to announce two talented student journalists selected for our prestigious Buster Haas Memorial Internship program for summer 2026.
For decades, Buster Haas internships have paired promising young journalists with newsrooms across Texas, offering students hands-on experience, mentorship, and a launchpad for their careers. This summer, our interns will be bringing their skills, curiosity, and passion for storytelling to two of the state’s premier metro news organizations: the San Antonio Express-News and the Austin American-Statesman.
Please join us in celebrating this year’s awardees:
Alyssa Aguilar – San Antonio Express-News
School
University of Texas at Arlington, Class of 2029
Bio
A UT-Arlington sophomore, Alyssa is honing her journalism skills as a staff writer for The Arlington Sentinel News, a campus publication launched in 2022 to serve news desert communities in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex and to provide journalism students with experience in community journalism. Alyssa said she enjoys producing multimedia news packages — including digital storytelling and feature stories — that highlight diversity and underrepresentation. A first-generation college student, Alyssa said she is grateful for the support of her family and teachers “who influenced my life and believed in me.”
“Through the Buster Haas program, I can learn from experienced journalists,” Alyssa said. “I want to create stories that show communities — especially those like mine — how they can make an impact, stay ethically informed, and discover people or places that influence their day-to-day lives.”
Kumba Jagne – Austin American-Statesman
School
Hofstra University (Hempstead, N.Y.), Class of 2027
Bio
Kumba, a graduate of Glenn High School in Leander, said she’s thrilled to be working at her hometown paper this summer. At The Hofstra Chronicle, a student publication, Kumba is the multimedia editor and a staff writer. She’s also a photographer and serves as the social media manager for the campus Queer and Trans People of Color Coalition. Kumba previously interned at the Long Island Herald, where she said, “I learned the most important job of a community journalist is to convince people that their lives are worth coverage.”
“The Buster Haas internship would allow me to continue my efforts to cover stories while thinking of the underrepresented,” Kumba said. “I wrote in my college essay that I wanted to tell the stories of underrepresented communities. I am grateful for every day I get to do that.”
Continuing a legacy of excellence
TME’s internships aim to increase the number of journalists from marginalized communities or those historically underrepresented in media, including first-generation college students.
“The Austin American-Statesman is proud to be a host newspaper this summer and looks forward to Kumba’s fresh perspectives on the way we cover local news in Central Texas,” Statesman Editor-in-Chief Courtney Sebesta said.
The program honors the memory of the longtime Dallas Morning News editor R.E. “Buster” Haas, who was deeply committed to mentoring the next generation of Texas journalists.
“We are incredibly proud to continue Haas’ legacy by supporting these exceptional students,” said Andy Alford, TME’s president. “The Statesman and the Express-News are fantastic training grounds, and we know these interns will make a meaningful impact in their newsrooms this summer.”
Sebesta, who also serves on the board of TME, said the program “has a long tradition of identifying promising young Texas journalists and providing support and guidance toward a lifelong career in the field.”
JJ Velasquez, the audience managing editor at the San Antonio Express-News, knows firsthand how impactful the experience can be.
“My Buster Haas internship was the kindling my young journalism career needed to truly ignite,” said Velasquez, the TME board’s secretary. “I gained valuable experience working at The Daily Sentinel in Nacogdoches. I was able not only to strengthen my portfolio of clips but also immerse myself in the culture of the newsroom. I am not sure I could have sustained my now-17-year career without this pivotal program — it certainly would have been much harder to get started.”
Keep an eye out for Kumba’s and Alyssa’s bylines over the next few months. For more updates on TME programs, fellowships, and annual awards, follow us here or on Facebook.