We are in a period of transition with our beloved Exponent. We’ve got two important staff members, Layout and Digital Media Editor Sami Hoppert, and Editor-in-Chief Mackenna Moralez, graduating this December. As the faculty advisor to the Exponent, I feel it is my duty to give you, the readers, an update on where we’re at and where we’re going.

As the Exponent adviser, I will be working much more closely with the staff as our editorial roles transition. This is not my paper: this is a student newspaper that is for the students, thus it necessarily has to be written and produced by the students. My role is that of a facilitator/supervisor and I am committed to helping our staff develop their ideas and support the editorial decisions that they make. I only ask that you, the students, faculty and other readers, support us in our efforts to improve and grow our newspaper.

Journalism as a professional field is in the midst of transformation, and the rise of social media and web content has changed the way we as readers and users take in this content. We have more and more access to information while the numbers of print newspapers, readers and advertisers keep diminishing. Now, more than ever, it is important that we all recommit to the goals of the fourth estate. We have a responsibility to support good journalism and to that end, we at the Exponent are steadfast in our belief that writing and reporting are fundamental to a functioning university and government.

And on behalf of all of the Exponent staff, I want to thank Sami and Mackenna for all of their hard work. You will be missed on production nights.