Mike Kirby has been named editor of The Sun Chronicle, Publisher Oreste P. D'Arconte announced.

Kirby, 47, of North Attleboro, is being promoted from managing editor and succeeds Ned Bristol who is retiring at the end of the year after 32 years at the newspaper.

Kirby has been with The Sun Chronicle for 25 years.

``Mike Kirby is a first-rate newsman and newsroom leader,'' D'Arconte said. ``He has the skills -- both journalistic and managerial -- to further The Sun Chronicle's community newspaper mission.''

Kirby has chosen three staff members for his leadership team. They are: * Craig Borges, 41, of Providence, as assistant managing editor for news.

* Dave Laferriere, 46, of Attleboro, as assistant managing editor for visuals and systems.

* Ken Ross, 45, of Norwood, as assistant managing editor for features.

The managing editor position is not being filled at this time.

D'Arconte also announced Betsy Shea-Taylor has been named associate Opinion edi tor. She is continuing as editor of the Living Well section. Rick Foster, a longtime member of the editorial staff, will take Bristol's position on The Sun Chronicle's editorial board.

Shea-Taylor will work with Mark Flanagan, who is Opinion Page editor as well as an assistant managing editor. Her appointment was made earlier this fall.

Bristol announced his retirement internally in September, and transition plans have been under way since then, D'Arconte said.

Kirby takes over as editor Jan. 1 and the new assistant managing editor appointments are effective then, as well.

``We're planning some exciting changes for our readers, and I believe Craig, Ken and Dave will be just the people to help lead the news staff in this new era,'' Kirby said.

Bristol, 58, joined The Sun Chronicle in 1972 after working at the Providence Journal and the Morning Herald of Hagerstown, Md. He held various reporting and editing positions at The Sun Chronicle before being named managing editor in 1983 and editor in 1998. He also served as chairman of the editorial committee of the New England Newspaper Association for seven years and is a member of the board of directors of the Attleboro YMCA.

``I'm looking forward to slowing down some, and also pursuing independent writing and editing projects,'' Bristol said.

``Ned Bristol is going out on top,'' said D'Arconte, noting the New England Newspaper Association named The Sun Chronicle the 2004 Newspaper of Year in its circulation category.

Bristol said he was ``pleased and proud'' Kirby and the three other editors were chosen for new leadership roles in the newsroom.

``The Sun Chronicle is recognized as one of the best community dailies in New England, and these four editors are a major reason why,'' Bristol said. ``They are all veteran journalists, dedicated to their craft and the public service that this newspaper strives to provide. I'm confident they will take The Sun Chronicle to a higher level.''

``I've worked with Ned for the past 32 years and I know he will be missed,'' said D'Arconte. ``But I'm confident that Mike and his team can handle the momentous challenges ahead.''

Mike Kirby

Kirby began working at The Sun Chronicle as a part-time sports reporter in 1978 and joined the staff full time as a news reporter in 1980 after graduating from Emerson College in Boston. He covered various municipal, police and general assignment beats before being named local news editor in 1986 and assistant managing editor in 1987. He became managing editor in 1998.

He has won a dozen journalism awards, including a first place for investigative reporting and another first place for column writing. He was the Sunday editor when The Sun Chronicle won Sunday Newspaper of the Year in 1994 and the managing editor when the New England Newspaper Association named The Sun Chronicle Newspaper of the Year two of the last four years.

Kirby can often be found on local basketball courts as a referee in high school, youth and recreation leagues. He also umpires for local youth baseball leagues and served as a coach for youth baseball, basketball and soccer leagues.

Kirby is a member of the board of directors of Old Colony Habitat for Humanity and a member of the pastoral council of St. Mark's Church in North Attleboro, where he is also a eucharistic minister and a minister to the sick.

He served on the board of directors of VersaCare for 11 years and for seven years on the board of managers for the North Attleboro branch of the Hockomock Area YMCA.

Kirby and his wife Carol, a dental hygenist, have two sons, David, 19, and Matthew, 17.

Craig Borges

Craig Borges has been assignment editor of The Sun Chronicle since 1999. A native of Fall River, he received his bachelor's degree in journalism from Northeastern University in Boston.

He joined The Sun Chronicle in 1997, working as weekend editor before being named assignment editor, where he coordinates local and area news coverage.

He worked as a reporter at The Newport Daily News in Newport, R.I., and later as a copy editor at The Boston Herald before becoming a reporter at The Taunton Daily Gazette. He later served as city editor of The Daily Gazette.

Borges' interest in the Balkans led him and Sun Chronicle Photo Editor Keith Nordstrom on assignment to the Kosovo and Macedonia provinces of the former Yugoslavia in May 2001. They spent time with Attleboro-area NATO peacekeepers, reporting on their effort to bring peace to the war-ravaged region.

Borges' wife, Patricia Figueroa, is Iberian and Latin-American Studies librarian at Brown University.

Dave Laferriere

Laferriere has been graphics editor of The Sun Chronicle since 2000, responsible for the look of the newspaper, page design and local graphics, maps and illustrations. He is also the newsroom's liaison with the systems department on software and other computer issues.

Laferriere was the front page designer and information graphics specialist at the Boston Herald from 1997 to 2000 and was a page designer and graphics specialist at the Brockton Enterprise from 1989 to 1997.

He had a previous stint at The Sun Chronicle from 1981 to 1989, when he worked in the editorial and advertising departments following his graduation from the Rhode Island School of Design in 1980.

He and his wife Deb, a medical technician, have two sons, Evan, 7, and Kenny, 5.

Ken Ross

Ken Ross joined The Sun Chronicle in October of 1992 as an editor for area towns, later became editor of the Sunday paper and currently is features editor.

He is directly responsible for producing the Weekender entertainment guide as well as the Sunday Trends section and Friday Freestyle page.

Prior to joining The Sun Chronicle, Ross worked as a reporter and editor for United Press International bureaus in Springfield, Providence and Boston.

He grew up in Amherst and has a bachelor's degree in journalism and English literature from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst.

Ross and his wife, Mary, a technical writer, are the parents of Julianne, 13, and Brendan, 10. Ross is a literacy volunteer and coaches youth baseball.