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(11/29/11 11:00pm)
Upon their introduction in September 2007, the University promoted the four-year residential colleges on the grounds that they would unite undergraduates from all four classes in vibrant and cohesive communities. Following the long-established model of other universities, most notably Yale, the University financed new renovations to dormitories and residential college facilities, appointed staff members to oversee student programming and redoubled the institutional emphasis on intra-college spirit and camaraderie. As this paper reported at the time, such changes sought to increase social, cultural, intellectual, recreational and civic participation not only among newly integrated upperclassmen but also within the college communities overall.
(11/27/11 11:00pm)
In 2009, Princeton University introduced the Bridge Year Program, allowing incoming freshmen to spend a year abroad volunteering prior to starting their academic careers. This experience adds depth to their scholarship and surely markedly increases the maturity and international awareness of Princeton students. Unfortunately, the current Bridge Year Program is limited to incoming freshmen. Opening up the Bridge Year Program or instituting a comparable program for rising sophomores, juniors and seniors would expand the tested benefit to the whole campus, making a huge leap in Princeton’s dedication to “the service of all nations.”
(11/22/11 11:00pm)
The opening scene of “A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving” says it all. After convincing Charlie Brown that kicking a football is a Thanksgiving tradition, Lucy pulls away the pigskin at the last second, and poor Charlie ends up on his back. Standing over her prone friend, she questions him, “Isn’t it peculiar, Charlie Brown, how some traditions just slowly fade away?” Sadly, some don’t.
(11/20/11 11:00pm)
Today, students begin voting for their representatives to the Undergraduate Student Government, including, among others, the USG president and vice president. Three candidates are running for president: Catherine Ettman ’13, Bruce Easop ’13 and Shikha Uberoi ’13. Two candidates are running for vice president: Merik Mulcahy ’13 and Stephen Stolzenberg ’13. Though all of the candidates have much to offer the student body, the Editorial Board endorses Ettman for president and Mulcahy for vice president.
(11/17/11 11:00pm)
Despite princeton’s recognized commitment to nationally accepted standards and rules regulating the conduct of research, The University has recently displayed an indefensible neglect of animal rights in its research on primates. As the Daily Princetonian reported on Wednesday, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the body responsible for monitoring research upon animals, cited the University for 11 violations in 2011 and six violations in 2010. Furthermore, as was reported earlier this semester, the University was given the second-worst Research Misconduct Score in the Ivy League by the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine. Princeton’s violations range from procedural inconsistencies to more substantive complaints, including the failure to provide sufficient water or anesthesia to research animals. The University ought to undertake a concerted effort to immediately address these violations, as they are both morally reprehensible and an anathema to Princeton’s tradition of excellence in research.
(11/15/11 11:00pm)
In the fiscal year that ended on June 30, 2011, Princeton University reported a 21.9 percent annual return on its investments, valued at $17.1 billion. The growth was in the top percentile of over 400 institutions reporting to the Trust Universe Comparison Service. These numbers demonstrate healthy finances for the University: A steady growth of endowment investments allows the University to fund study abroad programs, research opportunities and large initiatives such as the no-loan financial aid program. However, we release relatively little information about how we invest our endowment. In fact, a recent College Sustainability Report Card survey grades Princeton’s endowment transparency a D — one of the worst in the country. While information on endowment holdings is made available to trustees and senior administrators, we provide no information to the broader school community or the general public unlike the majority of our peer institutions.
(11/13/11 11:00pm)
As of 2010, six of the eight Ivy League universities offer undergraduate single concentrations in linguistics. Princeton, however, is not among them, even though we do offer a certificate program in linguistics, and undergraduates commonly create independent concentrations in the subject. The Editorial Board feels that this gap in our academic offerings must be filled in order to provide the most enriching intellectual environment for our students and to continue to attract the highest caliber of prospective students.
(11/10/11 11:00pm)
The Editorial Board has praised the University in the past for its financial aid policy. This praise is well earned. Giving full, no-loan financial aid to every student whose family’s income is under $60,000 has been groundbreaking. This has undoubtedly made Princeton a very attractive choice for thousands of students. Further, it has granted Princeton graduates greater freedom in choosing a variety of less-remunerative postgraduate fields free from the often crushing pressures of student debt. The policy is a triumph not only for the University’s stated goal of economic diversity, but also for national social mobility.
(11/08/11 11:00pm)
This Friday, the collective undergraduate class governments will host the Orange and Black Ball, a dance with live music that will be open to the entire student body. As reported on Tuesday in the ‘Prince,’ a similar event had been held — though not by the class governments — with widespread popularity from the late 1920s through the late 1960s; this week’s ball is an attempt to recapture the success of the earlier tradition. Some, however, have suggested that the Orange and Black Ball is unlikely to be particularly enjoyable for students who attend. We disagree; though we certainly acknowledge that — as with almost any event held on campus — it is unlikely that no improvements whatsoever could be made to the event as currently planned, we believe that pessimism about the event, at least at this stage, is unwarranted, and we support the class governments’ decision to hold the ball.
(11/06/11 11:00pm)
Tomorrow, Nov. 8th, two candidates will face off in the election for mayor of Princeton Borough: Yina Moore ’79, the Democrat, and Jill Jachera, the Republican. Princeton students constitute 40 percent of the residents in the Borough, and tomorrow’s election is a chance for students to make a meaningful difference in local politics; as such, we encourage all registered students to vote. Furthermore, we endorse Jill Jachera in the race.
(10/23/11 10:00pm)
While midterm week is an academically challenging time for all Princeton students, it is usually particularly stressful for freshmen. The uncertainty that results from their inexperience with college academics only serves to supplement the high levels of stress that all students feel at this point in the semester. Furthermore, unlike upperclassmen, freshmen lack previous semesters of Princeton courses that might serve as preparation for their current work. The University therefore ought to implement a shadow-grading system in its assessment of academic performance during the fall of freshman year. Under this system, professors would privately inform students of the grade they received in the class, but that grade would not be publicly available on transcripts and would not affect students’ grade point averages. The only public reflection of the work done in the fall of freshman year would be a pass or fail marking.
(10/16/11 10:00pm)
Although the McCosh Health Center is open 24 hours a day, 7 days a week for students who require inpatient care or emergency services, the window of time in which students can schedule appointments to meet with a physician or practitioner concerning illnesses less severe than urgent is rather narrower. The Health Center offers close to 50 hours a week during which students may set up appointments via phone call. However, the particular 50 hours offered tend to fall at times inconvenient for a student schedule, which is unfortunate given that McCosh’s services are aimed primarily at students. Consequently, we urge the University to adjust them.
(10/13/11 10:00pm)
A commonly quoted disadvantage of going to school in Princeton is the fact that it is not located in a city. Interest in political activism, professional performances and the arts among students on campus is greater than the level of existing opportunities around town. At the same time, the punishing costs — in terms of both transportation and time — discourage many students from leaving.
(10/11/11 10:00pm)
As was reported earlier this week in the ‘Prince,’ the long waitlists for the three current food co-ops recently led two members of the Class of 2013 to petition for the creation of a fourth co-op that might house students currently unable to participate in one during their upperclass years. Unfortunately, the University refused to grant the students’ request, citing various logistical issues that might arise in assembling the resources to create a new co-op. While we acknowledge that the creation of a co-op requires clearing many hurdles, we believe rising demand and the unique benefits offered by co-ops require that the University prioritize the creation of an additional co-op. There may be some difficulties involved in adding a fourth co-op, but the University ought to make a serious effort to surmount them.
(10/09/11 10:00pm)
International study is among the most valuable experiences that can form part of a collegiate undergraduate education. Living and learning in a foreign country exposes students to divergent ways of thinking and living, providing an education in cultural diversity — an end closely connected to the core ideals of a modern liberal arts education — and thereby a new perspective from which one may better reflect upon and evaluate one’s own presuppositions, values and beliefs. It is both unsurprising and commendable, then, that the University, through the Office of International Programs, devotes considerable resources to encouraging and supporting those who seek to study abroad.
(10/06/11 10:00pm)
As the november election approaches, and as the 2012 presidential election looms in the near future, the University should begin to evaluate the way elections currently work for Princeton students. Voting is a vital part of our American democracy and Princeton students should be informed about their responsibility and the process of voting. Because many students are not eligible to vote until after they have started school at Princeton, the University should make an effort to inform students about the voter registration process and to work with election officials to establish a centrally located election site on campus at which all Princeton students can vote.
(10/04/11 10:00pm)
It has been over a year since the University implemented the gender-neutral housing pilot program, which permits upperclassmen residing in Spelman Halls to live with members of the opposite sex. By all indications the program has been a success; now, it is time for the University to continue its expansion process. As we have argued in the past, a gender-neutral option should be extended to all upperclassman housing.
(10/02/11 10:00pm)
Most Princeton students are all too familiar with late-night study sessions. The experience is often less than ideal, an exercise in last-minute cramming or rushing to reach a page limit. Often, however, late-night studying is made more unpleasant than it needs to be by the difficulty of finding comfortable places to study, particularly for upperclassmen. To help rectify this problem, Princeton should increase the number of study rooms in upperclass dorms and install more vending machines around campus.
(09/29/11 10:00pm)
Over the summer, all members of the incoming freshman class receive a letter offering the chance to participate in one of two pre-orientation programs: Outdoor Action or Community Action. Around 60 percent of the incoming class then choose to enroll in OA, while a smaller group of around 150 students choose to sign up for CA. Recently, the University has begun looking into reforming this pre-orientation program, considering ways to encourage all freshmen to arrive on campus early and entertaining the possibility of new pre-orientation activities. As long as they are properly implemented, we encourage the University to pursue these two objectives.
(09/27/11 10:00pm)
One of the hallmarks of a Princeton education is the preceptorial system. Loosely based on the British tutorial system, precepts were introduced by President Woodrow Wilson in 1905 and have since then sought to generate lively discussion and debate over the material covered in larger lecture classes. However, while these sections certainly allow for more conversation and interaction with faculty members or teaching assistants, many students still seek a more intimate and discussion-based classroom experience that can only be achieved in seminar. Indeed, the University recognizes and endorses seminars through its Freshman Seminar Program, which seeks to allow underclassmen the opportunity to interact closely with senior faculty members, explore the material in greater depth and participate in discussions more tailored and interesting than those of a normal precept.