Students, faculty join to honor Dean Fred after his last 'YES!'

Dean Fred. Dean of Deans. The "Yes!" man.

During his 15 years as dean of admission, Fred Hargadon has achieved a healthy archive of nicknames from colleagues and the students he has admitted. No matter what they call him, however, most know him as the man who unofficially owns the trademark to the word "Yes!"

Expressed in a number of ways, students at yesterday's ceremony to honor Hargadon thanked him for not only accepting them but for shaping the character of Princeton.

"Every student at Princeton owes you an amazing debt for your simple yes," football and track star Cameron Atkinson '03 said to Hargadon during the presentation of the Department of Athletics award.

The ceremony, which featured speakers, awards by student organizations and a concluding speech by Hargadon took place on the south lawn of Frist Campus Center. After an opening address by President Tilghman and USG vice president Jacqui Perlman '05, the athletics department and the Performing Arts Council both gave him a lifetime pass to sporting and arts events on campus and thanked him for his attendance over the years.

"Hargadon has brought focus to the arts through the students he has admitted, he played a role in the Tiger Tickets program and is a consummate patron," Performing Arts Council award presenter Kathy Lee '03 said. In 1988, when Hargadon first arrived, there were five arts clubs in existence. The number has since grown to over 20 groups, Lee added.

According to the presenters, the lifetime passes were given in recognition of his commitment to student activities and in hopes of ensuring his presence at future events.

Students were not the only group to express their gratitude to Hargadon — a group of professors compiled a collection of works for the dean. The professors were excited to be part of the collection because they all realized the impact Hargadon has had on their work here, former USG vice president and presenter of the works Sonya Mirbagheri '04 explained. "Their [the professors'] experiences were completely shaped by the students Dean Hargadon selected," Mirbagheri said.

The presentation of honors by students was followed by a reprise of a classic Triangle skit that featured Hargadon. When asked by the club if he would participate in next year's pre-frosh performance for the Class of 2007 for a final encore, Hargadon agreed.

Next, Dean of the College Nancy Malkiel presented an overview of Hargadon's accomplishments as Dean of Admission by first translating his contribution into statistics and numbers. Hargadon has read 207,109 applications and has signed "Yes!" 27,768 times, Malkiel said.

Malkiel concluded her speech by presenting Hargadon with 700 letters, the first batch of thank you notes by students he has accepted over the years.

Hargadon himself spoke last, expressing his gratitude to the University. Calling his job "the most interesting job in the University," Hargadon explained that he will miss saying "Yes!" and interacting with the student body and his colleagues. Looking back on the years, Hargadon explained after the ceremony that his greatest accomplishment was making the admission process more personable.

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To fight the Princeton stereotype as "a big, snotty, intellectual institution," Hargadon said he strove to work on a personal level, by emphasizing one-on-one interaction and answering every email directly. When asked what he will miss about Princeton, Hargadon explained it was this personal experience — "the daily crossing of paths with students and faculty."

President Tilghman seconded that. On a personal level, she said "the thing I'll miss the most is having him at athletic events with me, but hopefully with the lifetime passes, I'll see him there."

However, as Hargadon explained, retirement does not mean the campus has seen the last of the "Yes!" man.

"I want to go see the guest lecturers and I plan on having time to do some more learning here, maybe write a book," Hargadon said. Regardless of what Hargadon pursues in retirement, he assured that the lifetime passes will be put to good use.