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Columns

A man wearing a face mask looks down, slightly behind a woman wearing a face mask.

The decision-makers who govern our Princeton lives – both Eisgruber and the Board of Trustees – are disconnected from the student body and don’t show a real interest in our most pressing problems, making it difficult to solve them. 

The decision-makers who govern our Princeton lives – both Eisgruber and the Board of Trustees – are disconnected from the student body and don’t show a real interest in our most pressing problems, making it difficult to solve them. 


Photo of interior of a library. Shows scattered chairs (blue and red) on a blue rug, with the wooden walls, bookshelves, and stained-glass windows in the background.

Princetonians must invest in the marketplace of ideas

"If students start by situating free expression in a liberal context, individual engagement would restore and enliven the marketplace of ideas on campus, enabling a fuller appreciation for the dynamic, invigorating, and fundamentally democratic nature of campus discourse."

"If students start by situating free expression in a liberal context, individual engagement would restore and enliven the marketplace of ideas on campus, enabling a fuller appreciation for the dynamic, invigorating, and fundamentally democratic nature of campus discourse."

OPINION | September 17

Photo of Nassau Hall, during the day, covered in ivy, from the back.

Affirmative action’s shortcomings

“Different experiences may lead to different perspectives; even similar experiences may lead to different perspectives. The lives and perspectives of underrepresented minorities vary greatly, and it’s essential not to make assumptions about them.”

"Different experiences may lead to different perspectives; even similar experiences may lead to different perspectives. The lives and perspectives of underrepresented minorities vary greatly, and it's essential not to make assumptions about them."

OPINION | September 15

A bee is sitting on a purple flower on campus.

As Princeton remakes itself, incorporate native plants

“By creating and explaining its vision for an interconnected landscape of gardens filled with food for pollinators and habitat for insects, the University can inspire students, faculty, staff or anyone visiting campus to consider what they can do to create a better habitat for their local fauna.”

“By creating and explaining its vision for an interconnected landscape of gardens filled with food for pollinators and habitat for insects, the University can inspire students, faculty, staff or anyone visiting campus to consider what they can do to create a better habitat for their local fauna.”

OPINION | September 13

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A photo of the arch between Dickinson Hall and the University Chapel: a high stone double gothic arch with a blue sky behind.

Humanities courses can solve Princeton's civic service problem

"When students do not take courses in the humanities, they miss out on studying works which ask how to determine what it means to be good, and why you should pursue the good. In a climate in which students don’t have the basic ability of interrogating these questions, how could a university expect its students to go forth and creatively serve their nation and humanity at large? Service cannot be reduced to post-graduation careers, but it can be predicted from the quality and type of an education itself."

"When students do not take courses in the humanities, they miss out on studying works which ask how to determine what it means to be good, and why you should pursue the good. In a climate in which students don’t have the basic ability of interrogating these questions, how could a university expect its students to go forth and creatively serve their nation and humanity at large? Service cannot be reduced to post-graduation careers, but it can be predicted from the quality and type of an education itself."

OPINION | September 10

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The disgraceful legacy of legacy admissions

“While not explicitly affiliated with identity, legacy admissions, since their inception, have been successfully crafted to exclude minorities — first on the basis of religion, then on the basis of race — and should thus be abolished in our nation’s universities.”

“While not explicitly affiliated with identity, legacy admissions, since their inception, have been successfully crafted to exclude minorities — first on the basis of religion, then on the basis of race — and should thus be abolished in our nation’s universities.”

OPINION | August 23

White building with modernist spires with corner profile on clear blue day next to a red brick building.

Princeton alumni seek status, not service

“It is troubling to see little to no action by the University to push for alumni outcomes favoring service, not individualistic financial gain. The administration should develop a comprehensive system that strongly encourages alumni to seek careers that are beneficial to humanity.”

"It is troubling to see little to no action by the University to push for alumni outcomes favoring service, not individualistic financial gain. The administration should develop a comprehensive system that strongly encourages alumni to seek careers that are beneficial to humanity."

OPINION | August 23

White building with modernist spires with corner profile on clear blue day next to a red brick building.

Princeton should not grant diplomas to insurrectionists

“Giberson’s behavior clearly implies that he believes in lies and is willing to violently act on them, violating Princeton’s code of conduct and demonstrating that he does not understand Princeton’s emphasis on principled civic engagement. Because of this, the University should not have awarded Larry Giberson a diploma.”

“Giberson’s behavior clearly implies that he believes in lies and is willing to violently act on them, violating Princeton’s code of conduct and demonstrating that he does not understand Princeton’s emphasis on principled civic engagement. Because of this, the University should not have awarded Larry Giberson a diploma.”

OPINION | August 9

Morrison Hall

Elite universities are not the great equalizers of society

“As Emma Green proposed in her 2020 interview with President Eisgruber ’83, ‘an investment in the elite few is ultimately a less robust vision of justice.’ But this does not make Princeton’s existence, nor its goal of using education to achieve new intellectual and humane heights, unimportant or unattainable.”

“As Emma Green proposed in her 2020 interview with President Eisgruber ’83, ‘an investment in the elite few is ultimately a less robust vision of justice.’ But this does not make Princeton’s existence, nor its goal of using education to achieve new intellectual and humane heights, unimportant or unattainable.”

OPINION | July 26

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Class-based affirmative action is not as forward thinking as Princeton’s progressives promise

“Though noble in its cause, class-based affirmative action is an insufficient means of achieving racial diversity. It will not be effective in maintaining racial diversity on campus. And further, it cannot take American racism writ large seriously.”

“Though noble in its cause, class-based affirmative action is an insufficient means of achieving racial diversity. It will not be effective in maintaining racial diversity on campus. And further, it cannot take American racism writ large seriously.”

OPINION | July 13