On academic standards and mental health
Last month, a reporter from The Daily Princetonian asked for my views about the relationship between academic rigor and mental health.
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Last month, a reporter from The Daily Princetonian asked for my views about the relationship between academic rigor and mental health.
Spring of 2022 was a semester of loosening restrictions: The University-wide mask mandate was lifted and classes were held in person. As the semester kicked off, students “signed a petition requesting remote options for teaching and learning throughout the full spring semester.”
I believe that The Daily Princetonian is an incredible organization. On any given week, we publish important opinions, powerful reflections, critical news coverage, and special projects like the Frosh Survey. Students, faculty, staff, and alumni constitute our readership. For all of the impact and great journalism the ‘Prince’ has produced, it is glaringly un-diverse.
Did you hear the news? Apparently, “true political diversity and debate at the Tory is all but dead,” or so says Shane Patrick ’24 in a column published in The Princeton Tory last month. Patrick argued that the organization has become obsessed with two issues — “free speech and Israel.” Though Patrick’s assertion that Catholic students are severely underrepresented in the Tory and repelled by the organization’s focus on free speech and Israel politics is unwarranted, he isn’t wrong to point out the single-mindedness and tunnel vision of conservative groups on campus.
I was surprised to see the widespread adoption of the apps Sidechat and Fizz — marketed as social hubs for college students — across Princeton’s campus over the course of the semester since we have no delusions in the modern day that social media is beneficial for our mental health. While it’s understandable that students can’t tear themselves away from established platforms, given today’s level of distrust of social media companies and emphasis on mental health, I assumed the adoption of new, untested competitors for student attention would be a non-starter. Instead, I was surprised to find people I know actively using the apps on a daily basis, with the platforms themselves awash with student-produced content. I’ve watched this unfold for nearly an entire semester, and there has still been no campus reckoning with exposing ourselves in this new way: while people are talking on these apps, no one is talking about these apps.
Princeton recently announced its new Learning and Education Through Service (LENS) initiative, which “will allow all undergraduates to spend a summer focused on service and social impact work that engages with communities beyond campus.” LENS will work in coordination with the Center for Career Development and the Pace Center for Civic Engagement to connect students with the University’s existing service internship opportunities.
Currently, it’s impossible to walk around campus without encountering one of the over eleven ongoing construction projects in the area — such as the University Art Museum, the demolition of First College, renovations near Frist Campus Center, and an overhaul of Whitman College’s heating system. While some construction is necessary to campus infrastructure and development, the scale and number of the projects have transformed Princeton into an active construction zone. Altogether, the current state of campus creates a sense of administrative deprioritization of student comfort and wellbeing.
Content Warning: The following column contains mention of antisemitism.
On Oct. 20, 1970, in the pages of The Daily Princetonian, a columnist called on their fellow students to use the “two-week recess” (what we now know as fall break) to campaign against “Nixon Republicans” and protest the Vietnam War. The columnist explained that “apathy is the attitude of the moment,” even among those students who do oppose the war.
“I think high aspiration environments are consistent with mental health,” University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 told The Daily Princetonian last week. “I don’t see any evidence that academic laxness or academic mediocrity would somehow be better from the standpoint of mental health.” This seems like a major gaffe by a university president. But the truth is, Eisgruber stands by every word in that sentence. It’s a philosophy he’s articulated many times.
Grades are by far one of the most stressful parts of college life — all of the quizzes, papers, exams, and projects consuming and occupying students’ time and energy. The cycle of taking classes and taking in course material just to complete requirements, get good grades, and get one step closer to graduating is exhausting, which is why the concept of Princeton’s freshman seminars sounds so intriguing. According to the University, these freshman seminars are meant to allow first-year students the opportunity to explore concepts they hadn’t learned about before and expand upon their knowledge. However, without automatically making freshman seminars pass/D/fail (PDF) classes, the intended purpose of freshman seminars is negated.
The following is a guest contribution and reflects the author’s views alone. For information on how to submit an article to the Opinion Section, click here.
In 1945, with enrollment up almost 50 percent since the pre-war era, the Class of 1915 committed to building a new dormitory. Because materials and labor were in short supply, costs ballooned. The quarry of Princeton stone had just been exhausted, so most of the walls were cheaper red brick. The building’s ornament included only a few pieces of trim, projecting dormers, and rounded archways. It was dubbed the “Poor man’s Gothic.” Somehow, even under difficult conditions, a building meant to house a burgeoning campus population was saddled with the legacy of the Gothic buildings on campus.
Nothing has disappointed me more than Princeton’s recent architectural failures. New College West and Yeh look terrible: They are dull, rectangular, and prison-like. And as columnist Julianna Lee recently argued, the yet-to-be-built Hobson College is poised to continue this mistaken trend. Princeton’s new architectural style — if one can even call it style — represents a cultural and architectural decline at Princeton.
In the Hawaiian language, there exists a fundamental proverb: i kaʻōlelo nō ke ola, i ka ʻōlelo nō ka make. “In the language there is life, in the language there is death.”
In 1984, I graduated near the top of my class from Thomas Jefferson High School in San Antonio, Texas. I had an SAT of 1190 (above the 80th percentile at the time) and a solid GPA. I applied and got into University of California Berkeley, beginning there in the fall of 1984. Then I nearly failed out. My first-semester grades hovered around the C to C- range.
After completing my final day of midterms, I found myself hurriedly packing and rushing to Wawa to embark on my Princeton-sponsored fall break trip. Despite being exhausted from exams, I was filled with anticipation about the journey that lay ahead: I was going to Senegal. After a long 24 hours and two flights, we finally arrived in Dakar, Senegal’s capital. Stepping out of Aéroport International Blaise Diagne, it truly started to sink in. I was in Senegal. Home. My parents were born and raised here, before they decided to immigrate to the United States. I had not been to Senegal since I was eight years old, and so the little recollections I had of the country were fuzzy and blurred together. But here I was, returning over a decade later, through Princeton’s support.
Living in New College West, I dread my 8:30 a.m. math lecture. Not only is it hard to get out of bed so early, but more importantly, walking up the hills of the Princeton campus to get to Fine Hall is a daunting task for a sleepy person. However, my experience is nothing compared to those who experience physical disabilities. I am not disabled.
Princeton is the school of Ralph Nader ’55 (magna cum laude; Phi Beta Kappa) — famous rebel, muckraker, progressive, and activist, right? Well, not really.
This coming Tuesday, Nov. 8, a grand ritual of American democracy will play out: the midterm elections. At stake, primarily, is the partisan balance of the U.S. Senate and U.S. House of Representatives — and thus the direction of federal legislation. Yet, more is on the line. Besides control of Congress, governorships and mayoralities are also up for grabs, as are seats in state legislatures and on courts, county commissions, city councils, and school boards. In these offices and beyond, the fate of matters impacting all Americans, ranging from the economy to the environment, will be determined.