As Scott Cowen prepares to step down as the university’s 14th president on July 1, The Hullabaloo staff would like to congratulate him on a 16-year presidency and the legacy that he leaves behind. Hurricane Katrina marked Cowen’s presidency, as he became an instrumental part of Tulane’s recovery and growth after the storm.

TIME Magazine named Cowen one of the top 10 university presidents in the country in 2009. He has received a long list of other awards and honors including the 2009 Carnegie Corporation Academic Leadership Award, election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and membership on President Barack Obama’s White House Council for Community Solutions.

Tulane’s national standing and its overall quality are now at an all-time high after Cowen and his administrators’ efforts to build the school beyond where it once was. He has left a mark on the university through the introduction of the two-tier service-learning requirement and also on the city through the Cowen Institute for Public Education Initiatives, which seeks to reform the public education system. In his time as president, Cowen led fundraising efforts that amounted in nearly $1.2-1.3 billion for the university.

The Hullabaloo thanks President Cowen for his service to the university and wishes him well in his future endeavors.