University Confers Alumni Day Honors upon Baker, Sarett

Over 2,000 Princeton alumni returned to Old Nassau Saturday for the universities annual Alumni Day gathering in Jadwin Gym.

The university conferred a number of honors upon alumni and undergraduates, including the Woodrow Wilson award—the universities most prestigious alumni honor—upon James Baker III '52, chief of staff and assistant to President Reagan.

The Wilson prize is given annually to that alumnus who best distinguishes himself "in the nation's service."

In accepting the Wilson award, Baker praised Princeton and the Marines—in which he served two years as a lieutenant—as "the two institutions which have most shaped my adult life."

He challenged his audience to think deeply about Oliver Wendell Holmes' question, "which direction should America take?"

Baker said that meeting this challenge—which he said influenced him at the time of his graduation—is becoming more difficult today because of the growing complexity of governing the nation.

"It is more difficult to work in the nation's service today than it was in Woodrow Wilson's day," Baker said.

He mentioned the need for a strong presidency as a means of overcoming the apparent decline in America's strength.

"You simply cannot have a strong country and at the same time a weak chief executive, "Baker said. Reagan's chief of staff also fondly reminisced about his days as a Princeton undergraduate; "There isn't a week that goes by that I wouldn't trade Pennsylvania Avenue for Prospect Street."

Baker said that the "healthy respect for the importance of interpersonal communication" has been an invaluable asset during his years in the nation's service.