He would burst into the newsroom like a veritable force of nature, with a leading edge of wisecracks and corny jokes. He would exit as quickly as he entered, leaving behind a flood of nicknames and one liners that kept us laughing.

This year, the Texas Tech University System marks its 25th anniversary. And there’s perhaps no more fitting way to commemorate two and half decades of growth, partnership and success than by announcing the latest addition to our system.

We have all experienced the disruption that the COVID-19 pandemic forced on every aspect of our lives. Today, I’d like to focus on one of the silver linings.

Long before treaties and compacts divvied up the landscapes and the watersheds of the Southwest, the Chihuahuan Desert functioned as a single, cohesive landscape set against one of the most majestic backdrops you’ll find anywhere on earth.

There’s a common assumption that, given the time and proper resources, new teachers will grow into their roles over the first few years of their careers.

As small-business owners, we know about the highs and lows of creating a business. Because it’s not just a business. It’s something we love, something we built from an idea, and it’s an opportunity to invest in our community and ourselves.

Like many El Paso nurses today, I graduated from the Hunt School of Nursing at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso. From the start, the education that student nurses receive at the school is rooted in compassionate care – putting the patient at the forefront of every decision.

At a time of rapid commercial and residential development at the city’s outer edges, we have seen how El Pasoans continue to champion the value of preserving open spaces.

Two years ago, an employee asked if she could work from home on Fridays due to child care constraints. I told her no. She disappointedly understood with no questions about the refusal.

Editor’s note: This is a continuation of the discussion of the financial crisis, global developments and the COVID-19 pandemic as they change the long-term direction of our economy. The column is by David B. Prilliman, who is a principal with Professional Investment Counsel Inc. in El Paso.

The much-anticipated opening of the Hunt School of Dental Medicine at Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center El Paso has created quite the buzz among El Paso college students who dream of going into dentistry, myself included.

I lost my mother in November to COVID-19. The night before she passed-away, my two sisters and my brother visited her. I implored them to wear a face mask. We didn’t know that she was COVID-positive, but I suspected she might be. We later learned that she had COVID-19. My sisters wore a face…

Imagine if someone called your people, “drug dealers, criminals and rapists.”

Serving on the Public Service Board, I learned a lot! Notably, it takes water to make power and power to make water. The electric company and the water utility – for better or worse – are co-dependent. El Paso Electric is one of El Paso Water’s large customers, and likewise El Paso Water is …

A Downtown law firm and a handful of arena supporters are misleading Downtown property owners, and the public, regarding an El Paso County effort to support redevelopment efforts in our community through a proposed federal Downtown Historic District.

Last week, a historic winter storm swept across Texas, piling on snow, plunging several cities into record-breaking low temperatures and disrupting utility service. For many of those living in the Lone Star State, this has meant being without essential utilities in addition to freezing tempe…

When El Paso struggles, it struggles together. There is a sense of commonality here, a unity of purpose. Rather than belie our differences, it defines them. One could not claim any community is perfect, yet there is something about this place. We come together when any of us face a challenge.

Despite the pandemic’s brutal impact on Downtown El Paso businesses, the continued work on the WestStar Tower has been a beacon of hope during it all, and in the coming months this project will be completed. The project has already reshaped our skyline, and will soon bring additional employe…