In the caffeine-addled early hours of March 11, 2013, The Gazelle launched its first issue. Very quickly, there were big expectations. In the 30 issues that have followed, members of our global community have put their time, energy, opinions, designs and narratives into making The Gazelle what it has become. We came up with the idea for an anniversary issue as a way to look back at some of our favorite moments and articles from the past year and to celebrate our collective journey.

But this trip has not been without its challenges. Despite our best efforts, we have made mistakes, mixed up names and even let slip the occasional Oxford comma. Sometimes these gaffes are remedied with a quick correction note beneath the article. Other times, these errors have regretfully caused greater harm.

On November 10, The Gazelle published a video titled “Travel Report: Sights and Sounds.” It was a 4-minute compilation of different clips taken by our staff over fall break in a variety of locations. We included the cities of Jerusalem and Bethlehem and labeled them with the corresponding countries of Israel and Palestinian Territory, respectively. These labels were inaccurate. We apologize for this error and the tension it may have caused in our community. This was never our intention. We regret any pain or confusion that our decision to publish this video may have caused.

Moving forward, we will continue to do our best. We pledge our Saturdays and our sleep to providing student-driven, student-produced news with the highest standards of integrity and professionalism. Because we care so deeply about this community and the people who make it what it is, we vow to constantly improve, issue by issue, while remaining aware of our representative role at NYUAD and the responsibility it entails. We are committed to moving forward together.

The Gazelle is an accessible space where everyone has a voice. We are a platform for you to comment, criticize and investigate the topics that matter to our community. The Gazelle is yours — bring your discussions here.

On our first anniversary, we step into our second year filled not just with pride at how far we have come, but also filled with humility for how much we have to learn.

Above all, the anniversary issue is our way of saying thanks.

To the writers who have penned their experiences, documented critical changes around our campus and presented their opinions, thank you. To the editors, past and present, who have offered their Saturdays, sleep, study abroad’s and occasionally their sanity, thank you. To the designers, illustrators, filmmakers and web team who came together to help us convey our stories, thank you. To the social media gurus who taught us how to tweet, we are #blessed, thank you. And to the readers who have followed our growth through this past year, sharing our articles and providing invaluable comments and criticisms, thank you. We’ve come a long way in such a short time thanks to you.