Each autumn, the Yale Daily News undergoes a rite of passage. Like the news itself, the people who report it daily to the Yale community are dynamic and evolving.

Today, the Managing Board of 2003 — the 25 editors whose names appear on the left — take the helm of the News for the first time.

Like our predecessors of the past 123 years, we must chart the course of the News, employing methods proven by years of experience, and invoking new ideas to help the Yale community weather the winds of change.

With a labor relations conflict building toward a potentially explosive conclusion and the specter of war hovering over the nation, the Managing Board of 2003 inherits the News at a time of nearly unprecedented uncertainty at home and abroad.

All Yale students are struggling to comprehend the events that continue to shatter our assumptions about the world and about the University. As student journalists, we are called to go one step further. We must serve as a guide for Yale and for the community during these times that we ourselves struggle to comprehend.

The events on the horizon demand that we make a speedy leap into journalistic maturity, that we arrive immediately at sharp focus on our single overriding goal — providing timely, insightful and balanced coverage of Yale and New Haven.

We define this coverage not only as breaking news, but also as reporting the impact of news events on Yale students and New Haven residents. To do this, we will strive to provide consistent and objective analysis pieces and features that enhance and explain the news.

At the same time, we must broaden our sights internally, providing insight into communities that have too long gone neglected. Accordingly, we hope to transform the News into an institution that opens both its arms and its pages to students of all backgrounds and interests.

Ultimately, the success of this paper can be measured by the impact it has on its readers, especially those in the Yale and New Haven community. With that in mind, we view the editorials page as a forum open for discussion, and we welcome the submission of letters and columns that advance dialogue on important issues. On our end, we will strive to present timely and researched editorials that stimulate discussion and engage our readers.

At the same time as we take on this daunting charge, we must not neglect campus life. To this end, we will expand our coverage of sports and of the arts, using creative photography and design to enhance the words we write about these visually captivating facets of our campus.

At some points in its history, the News has had nothing more pressing than a senior prom to occupy its front page. On other occasions, its columns have been filled with lists of those who gave their lives for their country.

We are a generation that has never conceived of itself as historically significant.

We no longer have that luxury.