Eight members of Class of 2010 win Spirit of Princeton award

The award, sponsored by the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students, was established in 1995 to acknowledge students whose efforts often go unnoticed. It recognizes involvement in student organizations, athletics, community service, religious life, residential life and the arts.

Amjad, an electrical engineering major from Rawalpindi, Pakistan, has raised awareness of Pakistani identity, arts and culture by founding the student group Pehchaan. He also started the celebration of the Chaand Raat and Basant Mela Kite Flying festivals on campus.

“I wanted to give something back that would benefit people in the Princeton community by providing something that they weren’t necessarily exposed to,” Amjad said.

Gulland, a Wilson School major, said his main contribution has come as the ROTC battalion commander for Tiger Battalion, which helps prepare students from Princeton, the College of New Jersey and Rider University for the U.S. Army. He is also involved in an organization that assists veterans considering running for public office.

Kiernan has held leadership positions for eight organizations on campus, spearheading community service efforts for the USG, the Pace Council for Civic Values, Forbes College and Tower Club. She also leads the Prospect Alliance for Community Action and a varsity athletes charity initiative, and she worked with the USG to obtain funding for the Inter-Action program that brought 100 student volunteers to Trenton over Intersession. She is also a member of the track and field team and co-captain of the varsity cross-country team, earning First and Second Team All-Ivy honors and an Academic All-American distinction. Kiernan is also a former associate editor for news for The Daily Princetonian.

Kiernan, a sociology major, praised the student body’s involvement. “There are so many talented and involved people on this campus, but I’ve been lucky enough to get involved in the different aspects,” she said.

Newbury said that she has been inspired by her brother, who has Down Syndrome. The psychology major started the Down Syndrome Conference, which is now an annual event, as a sophomore.

“Over the past four years, Princeton has provided me with so much, and it is an honor to know I have been able to contribute to the University as well,” Newbury said.

Like Kiernan, Plummer has been a successful member of the varsity track and field team, earning four Ivy League championship titles. He also served as co-president of the Black Men’s Awareness Group, treasurer of the Black Student Union, treasurer of the Princeton chapter of the NAACP, a Butler College residential college adviser and an intern at the Fields Center.

But Plummer, who is majoring in economics, said his biggest contribution came from outside his activities.

“A smile and a happy personality goes a long way,” he said.

Sprankling, an English major, said his role as drum major of the Princeton University Band has been his biggest contribution to the community. He also was active in Forbes College, serving as intramural chair and academic peer adviser and writing for the InnFormer newsletter. A leader, first-aid instructor and freshman trip coordinator for Outdoor Action and a member of the Princetoniana Committee, Sprankling said he has been impressed by students for “making the most of their time here in one way or another.”

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Like Amjad, Rahmani, a comparative literature major from Kent, Ohio, is highly involved in the University’s Muslim community. As president of the Muslim Students Association, Rahmani worked to create a supportive environment for Muslim students through the annual Fast-a-Thon and creating an alumni community group. As co-convenor of the Religious Life Council, Rahmani studied religious pluralism in India and presented at the World Parliament of Religions in Melbourne, Australia.

Rodriguez, an architecture major, has been a leader of the LGBT community on campus, interning at the LGBT Center and serving as a facilitator of the Class of 2011 weekly support group, Pride Alliance publicity chair and LGBT peer educator. He has organized Awareness Week, Pride Week, the Love=Love Valentine’s Day Program and Queer Articulations. Rodriguez is also an Orange Key tour guide, a Wilson College RCA and a dancer for Ballet Folklorico.

“The LGBT community is growing and becoming far more diverse, becoming more comfortable in their own skin,” he said. “We have a lot of institutional support here at Princeton, and I think it’s only going to get better.”