• Updates to No Communication Orders 
• An argument in favor of adding a religion minor
• An analysis of Princeton's faculty hiring in the past year

Today’s Briefing:

NCO FAQs updated to reflect policy change following FIRE, ADL letter to Eisgruber: Following a Jan. 25 letter by the free speech group Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) calling for an update to the University’s NCO policy, the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page for the NCO policy was updated a day later to reflect a December 2023 change in NCO policy in response to “concerns expressed by community members.” The new change to NCOs is the addition of Temporary NCOs where, “[in] an emergent situation, such as where there has been a significant interpersonal conflict or altercation, a dean may issue a temporary No Communication Order for a short period of time.”  FIRE and ADL responded positively after the updated FAQ page was released, with FIRE telling to the ‘Prince,’ that “the new policy makes the important changes [they] asked for. Eisgruber gets a punch on his walking-the-free-speech-talk loyalty card.”

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OPINION | Princeton should add a religion minor

Columnist Anna Ferris argues that Princeton should add a religion minor, pointing to the interdisciplinary nature of studying religion and the broader interest in religion courses among undergraduates. Religion as an academic study is “a unique amalgamation of ethics, philosophy, English, comparative literature, and history”, with a deeply-embedded history at Princeton. Ferris notes that in the status quo, students who are interested in the academic study of faith and other subjects are forced to choose when they declare in sophomore year since only hyperspecialized religion-related minors and certificates exist. Ferris contends that introducing a religion minor would give students a structured academic path with departmental guidance and resources. 

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At your leisure

• PODCAST: Listen to this week’s special episode of Daybreak, The Daily Princetonian’s daily news podcast.

DATA | Behind the numbers of Princeton faculty hiring

On Jan. 31, Princeton’s Board of Trustees announced the approval of six new faculty appointments, with three out of six appointees belonging to a field within natural sciences. The Daily Princetonian’s Data team analyzed faculty appointments over the past year, finding that most appointments have been assistant professors, which is an entry-level, tenure-track professorship position. Moreover, the Data team found that while engineering students outnumber humanities students by a 2 to 1 ratio, more humanities professors have been appointed than in engineering. Social science faculty appointment was the highest of any field, doubling that of engineering. The School of Public and International Affairs had the most faculty appointed out of all departments. 

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