As Chancellor Kent Syverud prepares to deliver his State of the University address Tuesday afternoon, The Daily Orange Editorial Board recognizes its responsibility to deliver informed opinions regarding the administration’s policies as they affect the university community.

The SU administration is in the process of developing and implementing its Fast Forward initiative, which will guide the academic, financial and infrastructural directions of the university for decades to come. The D.O., which became independent from SU in 1971, values its storied 114-year history of covering the greater SU community, and strives to continue presenting informed coverage as the university moves ahead with its major initiatives.

Because The D.O. does not receive any financial support from the university, the editorial board can freely critique the SU administration’s actions and policies. The goal of the editorial board is to generate productive conversations about issues affecting the greater SU community. Our editorials are aimed at unity through a transparent flow of information, and to support that goal we are always open to topic pitches from the university and surrounding communities.

The editorial board is composed of seven of the organization’s primary editors — including the editor-in-chief, managing editor, news editor, feature editor, sports editor, presentation director and digital editor — along with four members of the current and former staffs. Applications to join the editorial board are open to all current and former staffers in an effort to diversify the voices and perspectives featured on the board.

The editorial editor, who manages The D.O.’s Opinion section, chooses discussion topics based on news value and relevance to the university community. When a viable topic arises, the board meets for a roundtable discussion. The editorial editor does not offer their own opinion, but condenses the primary points of the conversation into the editorial, which is published regularly in the paper and on The D.O.’s website.

While the editorial board values its platform to deliver its opinions, we acknowledge this platform is limited in that the diversity of the board — and The D.O. itself — is not representative of the diverse identities that comprise the greater SU community. To that end, we want you, the reader, to share your ideas with us, engage with us and challenge us. We understand the opportunity to speak up and have your voice heard is a privilege, which is why we encourage input and pitches for topics of discussion from all pockets of the greater Syracuse community.

To submit a topic of discussion for the editorial board, please email [email protected]. We also welcome letters to the editor to be published in The D.O.’s print edition and on dailyorange.com. Letters should also be submitted to [email protected]. The letter to the editor policy can be found on page 2 and at dailyorange.com/about.

The D.O. also invites members of the SU community to share their experiences with bias and hate crimes through its partnership with ProPublica’s Documenting Hate project, which aims to track down those untold stories. Visit dailyorange.com to learn more.

And if you’re an SU or SUNY-ESF student interested in being part of the conversation, we encourage you to apply to join the D.O. Opinion section as a columnist. We value the range of perspectives we’ve received from the student body, and we hope to continue representing those beliefs on behalf of the greater Syracuse community.

The Daily Orange Editorial Board serves as the voice of the organization and aims to contribute the perspectives of students to discussions that concern Syracuse University and the greater Syracuse community. The editorial board’s stances are determined by a majority of its members.

Published on January 16, 2018 at 12:39 am