Princeton in transition

"Just wait till you see Whitman, Elinor, it's gorgeous."

"The building is so huge; it's like trying to navigate through a maze."

"The dining hall is so good! No really, it's SO good!"

Now, reflecting back on the year, it is clear that, starting with the opening of Whitman College, this year has been marked by significant changes across the Princeton campus. Undoubtedly, Princeton changes every year. Seniors graduate and freshmen enter, establishing a new dynamic of personalities and interests; professors retire; the USG pursues a different agenda. But it seems that this year, particularly, the University has made giant strides forward in reshaping the campus' physical and ideological framework.

Indeed, Princeton's sixth residential college dazzled the undergraduate student body in those first few weeks of school. As the first Collegiate Gothic building complex to be constructed at Princeton in more than 50 years, Whitman is an incredible architectural feat. Furthermore, along with the newly renovated Rocky-Mathey dining hall, the Whitman dining hall has remained consistently packed all year, as students from all of the residential colleges are drawn there by its attractive setup and wide array of well-prepared food choices.

After nearly 25 years of two-year residential colleges, Whitman's introduction also marked a singular turning point in the residential and social structure of Princeton by providing its students the option of remaining within the college for four years. Mathey has also been converted into a four-year college, and Butler is scheduled to follow suit in fall 2009.

Princeton changed for non-Princetonians, too. For the first time in nearly 30 years, the University did not allow students to apply early decision. Believing that the early decision process "advantages the advantaged," Princeton's Admission Office assessed 21,369 applications early this spring and admitted 1,976 students in early April, a record low 9.25 percent. The abolition of early decision will certainly impact the face of the Princeton student body. Students who might otherwise have chosen to apply early to Princeton may crave the security of early admission and decide to apply to other top schools. Furthermore, theoretically, the single application deadline will encourage talented students from a wider range of socioeconomic backgrounds to apply, so it is likely that Princeton may see an increase in the percentage of students needing financial aid in future years.

In the Frist Campus Center this year, the former Healthy Eating Lab was remodeled into an expanded C-Store and just last week, "Witherspoon's" cafe and ice cream shop opened in the former C-Store location. Just beyond campus, Nassau Street underwent some remodeling as well. In mid-November, Labyrinth Books opened at 122 Nassau St., replacing Micawber as both the local bookstore and the site for student textbook purchases. At the same time, a brand-new U-Store, fully stocked with Princeton sweatshirts, baseball caps, shot glasses and other paraphernalia, opened just next door.

The arrival of juicycampus.com into the lives of many Princeton students sent shockwaves through campus. Many students continue to grapple with how to react to the website and its malicious content. Most students seem to feel that the existence of an open and anonymous forum for gossip and personal defamation is toxic to university life, but the names and "juicy" stories swirling around the website simultaneously play upon a perverse curiosity inherent in human nature. Fortunately, multiple tactics have been developed over the past few months as means to combat JuicyCampus, including posting long excerpts from novels to slow down the website, the creation of the "Own What You Think" petition and the "Love Wall" outside of Frist. Such efforts have received significant media attention, with camera crews from CBS News' "60 Minutes" and Current TV visiting campus over the past several weeks.

My personal favorite change to Princeton this year has been the introduction of the Tuesday afternoon Farmers' Market in Firestone Plaza. For four weeks in the fall and again for six weeks this spring, farmers and other small businesses sold an array of foods, including apple cider, vegetables, fresh fish, cheese, bread, coffee and vegan cookies. The farmers' market is an initiative of Greening Princeton, a student organization devoted to promoting environmentally sustainable practices around campus. The market serves several unique roles on campus: It creates a bond between the University and the Princeton community, supports local vendors, has a positive environmental impact and provides a central place for students, professors and residents alike to congregate over fresh, delicious food. On a recent Tuesday afternoon, I met a few friends in the sun-streaked plaza for lunch. After perusing the tents, we made our purchases and had a picnic on the lush green lawn in front of Nassau Hall. It was one of those idyllic, spring afternoons that made me acutely conscious of how lucky I am to be a part of this place and how quickly another year is drawing to a close.