“An institution that should always fight for progress and reform, never tolerate injustice or corruption, always fight demagogues of all parties, never belong to any party, always oppose privileged classes and public plunderers, never lack sympathy with the poor, always remain devoted to the public welfare, never be satisfied with merely printing news, always be drastically independent, never be afraid to attack wrong, whether by predatory plutocracy or predatory poverty.”

Joseph Pulitzer, publisher of the New York World, wrote these words when he took over the paper in 1883, and they appeared daily on the paper’s editorial page.

These are also words that hang in the Minnesota Daily’s editorials and opinions department.

This week is my last paper as the editorials and opinions editor with the Minnesota Daily, and I hope my work at the Daily over the past three years has in some way lived up to Pulitzer’s view of good journalism.

During my time leading the paper’s editorial board and opinions department, we’ve covered the University of Minnesota’s biggest challenges, triumphs and downfalls, such as administrative bloat, colossal development and troubling trends in tuition and financial aid. We also endorsed local, state and University leaders, despite many newspapers failing to do so.

Through this work, the board has garnered two Society of Professional Journalists Mark of Excellence awards, and our columnists and cartoonists continue to receive acclaim regionally and nationally.

But most importantly, we’ve started vital conversations, surfaced necessary issues and kept University and local leaders accountable for their actions.

I leave confident in where the Daily’s board will go because I know Pulitzer’s sentiment will continue in its next leader. Thank you for reading.