Cal Mergendahl (they/she) is an opinion columnist at the Daily and a first year graduate student in the chemistry PhD program. Before coming down to the Cities, they graduated from U of M Morris in spring of 2022, where they served, among other things, as a staff writer for the University Register, station manager of KUMM Radio, and student representative to the Board of Regents. Their interests as an opinion columnist include university administration, political activism and the mess that results when those two things collide. Outside of my work at the Daily, they are a proud member of the Graduate Labor Union – United Electrical and an avid music lover.