‘Spirit of Princeton’ prize awarded to eight students

Last Friday, eight students received notification that they had won the Spirit of Princeton Award, which honors undergraduates whose contributions to the University have had a positive influence on campus and in the community.

Anna Almore ’08, Katy Andersen ’08, Karen Bailey ’08, Andy Chen ’09, Josh Loehrer ’08, Sian Ofaolain ’08, Agatha Offorjebe ’09 and Meaghan Petersack ’08 will be honored at a dinner on May 9, at which they will receive a certificate and book prize. The eight winners were selected from a pool of 90 nominees.

Almore, a former U-Councilor, is the co-coordinator of the Leadership and Mentoring Program, where she has worked to change the way mentors are paired with their students. She also founded Ignite, a program that brings economically disadvantaged students to the University to spark their interest in obtaining a college education.

“I’m just really humbled and honored to be with such an impressive group,” Almore said.

Andersen, a former president of Greening Princeton and Greening Dining, founded and co-directs the Princeton Farmers’ Market and started a student group focused on the Slow Food movement. She just received a Fulbright Scholarship to continue to study sustainable agriculture and cheese production in Italy next year.

“The farmers’ market is probably the most rewarding thing that I’ve worked on on campus,” Andersen said. “I would hope that that was the reason behind the selection.”

Bailey, an intern for the Carl A. Fields Center, started the “It Happens Here” campaign, which encourages students and faculty to think about socioeconomic dynamics on campus. She is a member of the Black Arts Company, the Princeton Association of Black Women, the Black Student Union and the Black History Month Committee. She is also a mentor in the Big Brothers/Sisters program.

Chen is the founder and co-manager of the Student Design Agency, which sponsored a national design conference this spring. He also helped with the opening of the 4B Holder Media Center in Rockefeller College. Chen teaches free yoga classes in Whitman, is a Princetonian Idol winner and an organizer of and performer in Butler College Open Mic Nights.

“It’s actually surprising and flattering in a way,” Chen said about winning. “I don’t particularly think of what I do as traditional public service.”

Loehrer was both program coordinator and a leader for Community Action (CA) and project coordinator of the Big Brothers/Sisters program. He also organized the Reflections on Service panel discussion for freshman orientation. A former club soccer president and a member of Greening Princeton, Loehrer served in Butler as an RCA, a peer adviser and a member of its college council.

Ofaolain was the president and a moderator of Sustained Dialogue for three years. She revitalized the organization, created six dialogue groups and hosted the Sustained Dialogue Campus Network Annual conference in 2006. She is the co-founder of the Union of Multiracial and Multicultural Students and is also a member of the Princeton Justice Project.

“I’m very excited to have what I’ve been working on for four years be recognized,” Ofaolain said. “It’s an honor to be recognized amongst my peers that I think are doing great things.”

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Offorjebe was a walk-on for the varsity track and field team, but she has since earned All-Ivy and All-American titles and serves on the Varsity Student Athlete Advisory Council. She worked with University Health Services to create the Princeton University Student-Athlete Wellness Leadership Institute. She is a Sexual Health Advisor and was also on the Butler College Council and will be an RCA in Butler in the fall.

Petersack, secretary for the Class of 2008, is a senior member of the Pace Council for Civic Values. A CA leader, she also organized the first annual Reflections of Service panel for freshman orientation week. She ran the American Red Cross blood drives on campus. After graduation, she will work for Teach for America.

“My involvement in various student groups has led me to meeting some really incredible people who have embodied for me the Spirit of Princeton,” Petersack said in an e-mail. “I feel really honored to know that I have embodied that spirit for others.”