“Class Council will provide a full refund” read the expected email I received the next afternoon, along with the 39 other forgotten freshmen, whose days of preparation, weeks of anticipation and hours of travel culminated in a spectacular view, from the pier, on a clear, New Jersey night, of our class cruise setting sail for the New York harbor.

For the past month, photographs of students have been plastered all over campus, from light poles to residential colleges. These photographs are part of the “What I Be” initiative, pioneered by Steve Rosenfield. However, unlike most photo shoots, this one requires participants to bare their most uncomfortable insecurities to the public. The exposition of these sensitive issues, ranging from weight to depression, enables members of the community to realize they are not alone — we are all suffering from insecurities and various self-esteem issues. Just because we don’t talk about it doesn’t mean that it isn’t real.

The University recognizes the importance of offering housing to support graduate students and help generate community. For that purpose, Princeton is proud of and committed to maintaining a residential community that fosters social and intellectual interactions. A key tenet of the Campus Plan of 2008 was for the University to continue to house a majority of its graduate students –  hence the commitment to house approximately 70 percent of enrolled graduate students. This goal has been a long-standing target for Princeton that far exceeds those of our peers.