Growing up Princeton

Like so many Princeton students, Anne Braveman '03 has a class banner on her wall. A closer look, however, shows that it is no average banner. Boasting "Class of 1972," the banner belonged to Anne's father — Peter Braveman '72 — who gave it to his daughter before she left for school.

For as long as Anne can remember, Princeton has been a part of her life, beginning with the reunions she attended with her father when she was a little girl.

"I guess the first time I really became aware [of Princeton] was at the second reunion of my dad's," she said. "I was in second grade and I can remember taking part in the P-rade . . . I had a special costume."

But her exposure to Princeton culture extended beyond loud orange and black blazers and stuffed tigers.

Her father kept in touch with his Princeton roommates, closest friends and even his thesis adviser — Professor William Howarth, still an active member of the English department. Yet Anne was only vaguely aware that the University was a possibility for her own education.

But it grew closer to college application time, Anne said she started seeing the University in a new light. While attending another of her father's reunions as a sophomore in high school, "I began to think of this as somewhere I might like to end up," she said.

And Anne's family's ties, not only to the University but also to the town of Princeton, seemed to make her collegiate destination inevitable.

Anne's great grandparents, in one of the first Jewish families to live in Princeton, owned a jewelry and watch repair store on Nassau Street and were influential in starting up the Jewish community, Anne said. Her grandfather, who grew up in Princeton, went to school at 185 Nassau St., the building that now houses the University's theater, dance and creative writing programs.

Despite those links to the town and University, Anne said her father never intentionally put pressure on her to come to Princeton.

"I really appreciated . . . that during the whole application process, there was never any pressure from my dad to go to Princeton," she said. "After I'd been here . . . I was totally in love with Princeton, and [my dad] said, 'I knew that you would figure that out, but I wanted you to find it out on your own.' "

Trevor Smith '03 had a similar experience. Though he is a fourth generation legacy — his great-grandfather was Class of 1913, his grandfather 1931 and his mother 1973 — his family was careful not to pressure him in his college decision.

"I don't really recall hearing much about Princeton growing up. My mom would mention it occasionally, but I didn't really pay attention," he said. "She didn't want to push Princeton because she didn't want me to feel like I was letting down my family if I decided not to come."

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Trevor said he visited the University the summer before his senior year in high school and loved it. He said he didn't fully understand his family's ties to the University until he was a freshman.

"I didn't really realize [the connection] until I got here, and then thought, 'Oh, there's a poster of my mom,' " Trevor said.

Trevor's mother — then Marjory Gengler — was a member of Princeton's first co-ed class and the captain of an undefeated women's tennis team. "She was really the first good female athlete," he said.

A member of the University's varsity tennis team, Trevor has followed in his mother's footsteps. Similarly, Anne shares some of her father's college interests. Like her father, Anne is an English major and an undergraduate representative for the department.

Both Anne and Trevor said they believe their familial links to the University have enriched their experiences here.

"I take a lot of pride knowing that my family has been going here for almost 100 years and that I'm carrying on the tradition," Trevor said.

Anne said she appreciates Princeton as part of her family's history.

"I think because I was raised knowing this was a special school at a special place, my time here has another sentimental meaning too," Anne said. "It's a great idea that I helped work on a senior thesis last year [in a room at 185 Nassau] where my grandfather learned to play kickball."

Anne has a sister in the eighth grade who talks about her desire to attend Princeton — an aspiration Anne takes credit for. Anne also has hopes her children will consider attending the University.

"I can definitely see myself coming back to Reunions and having them be a part of that," she said, adding that, like her father, she will not pressure her future children to choose Princeton. "It's a great place, but it's not for everyone."

Trevor, who has two siblings who have already chosen other universities closer to their South Carolina home, said he doubts his younger sister, a freshman in high school, will come to Princeton.

"She'll probably stick to the South. Coming up here is kind of a leap of faith," he said. "I'd be proud to be responsible for a fifth generation student, but I think that's getting a little ahead of myself."