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NJ reaps $2 billion excess in tuition savings plan assets

NJ reaps $2 billion excess in tuition savings plan assets

New Jersey's rapidly appreciating college savings plans will not have a significant effect on instate students' financial aid from the University.Robin Moscato, director of undergraduate financial aid, said that, "from the financial aid point of view, the amount that the family has in these events is simply like any other parent asset.

NEWS | 11/27/2007

International students to get winter grant

International students on financial aid will receive an allowance to defray winter break expenses, Undergraduate Financial Aid Director Robin Moscato confirmed yesterday.Beginning this year, undergraduate aid recipients who do not live in North America will receive $400 to cover the cost of food or travel during the holiday season.The allowance is "intended to help cover your food expenses if you remain on campus, or defray travel costs if you choose to go away during the break," Moscato said in an email to students receiving the allowance.

NEWS | 11/27/2007

Stem cell findings change debate

Though the issue of embryonic stem cell research has been one of the most contentious political topics in recent years, a landmark discovery may finally bring an end to the debate.In two separate studies published last week, researchers from Kyoto University and the University of Wisconsin ? led by Shinya Yamanaka and James Thomson, respectively ? announced that they had successfully reprogrammed normal human skin cells to act like embryonic stem cells."I think it's probably the most important finding in biology in 10 years," molecular biology and Wilson School professor Lee Silver said.The findings may render moot the ethical debate over the use of embryonic stem cells for research.

NEWS | 11/27/2007

Two clubs see charges withdrawn

Princeton Borough dropped charges against the presidents of Cloister Inn and Cottage Club on Monday, ending more than a month of tension since they were charged with serving alcohol to a minor and maintaining a nuisance.In hearings Monday, Borough judge Russell Annich dismissed charges against Cloister's Savannah Sachs '08 and Cottage's Vince Ley '08.

NEWS | 11/27/2007

Candidates jockey for votes as race kicks off

With four days to go until online polls open Sunday for USG elections, candidates are shifting their campaigns into high gear."I spent maybe 20 hours on my website," USG vice president Josh Weinstein '09, who is running for USG president, said.

NEWS | 11/27/2007

Reporter says war based on false info

The war in Iraq is "unique in the annals of American intelligence" because its rationale was based on information from a lone, untrustworthy refugee nicknamed "Curveball," Los Angeles Times reporter Bob Drogin said yesterday in a lecture in Dodds Auditorium.A Pulitzer Prize winner who covers national security, Drogin described the events leading up to America's declaration of war on Iraq and argued that the intelligence backing it up was flimsy and questionable.

NEWS | 11/26/2007

UMCP gets $6 million donation from pharma company

Plans to relocate and expand the University Medical Center at Princeton (UMCP) took a sizable step forward last week after Bristol-Myers Squibb made a multimillion dollar donation to build a new community clinic.The pharmaceutical giant announced plans to give $6 million over four years to improve community health in the Princeton area, where the company maintains a major research center."Bristol-Myers Squibb has a significant presence in Princeton, New Jersey, and we're very committed to improving the communities where our employees live," Becky Taylor, a company spokeswoman, said.The new clinic, which will be positioned on the grounds of the relocated UMCP in Plainsboro, N.J., will replace an existing clinic on Witherspoon Street in Princeton.

NEWS | 11/26/2007

Students gather to plan peaceful future

While many students left campus last weekend to celebrate Thanksgiving, the University hosted 38 young people determined to help troubled regions of the world and bring about a more peaceful future.The gathering was the annual Thanksgiving conference of the American delegation of Seeds of Peace, a 14-year-old organization that brings together young adults from conflict-ridden areas of the globe to talk with each other in an effort to move toward a less war-torn world.

NEWS | 11/26/2007

The gift of twisted quips

Donald Rumsfeld '54 resigned from his post as Secretary of Defense more than a year ago and returned to private life and has stayed quiet, even as voices around him have become quite loud.He stepped down last November just after the 2006 elections but, other than the speech he gave that day, Rumsfeld said nothing.In September, Stanford's Hoover Institution announced plans to give Rumsfeld a one-year visiting fellowship.

NEWS | 11/26/2007

Carpenter '08 serenades NYC

David Carpenter '08 filled Carnegie Hall with his rich viola music last night in his solo debut at the storied concert hall, and the audience responded by filling the hall with rich applause.About 35 students made the trip to New York to watch the performance.

NEWS | 11/26/2007

USG requests more laundry funding

The USG is urging the University Priorities Committee to add tens of thousands of dollars to next year's facilities budget for improvements to campus laundry.USG president Rob Biederman '08 and Undergraduate Life Committee chair Lauren Barnett '08 requested the money for improved laundry services in a letter to University Provost Christopher Eisgruber '83 and the undergraduate members of the Priorities Committee (PriCom).In all, they are asking for $68,000, "the needed funds to repair broken machines and to service new washers and dryers that are scheduled to be added," the letter from Biederman and Barnett said.Laundry in undergraduate dorms is free, unlike at urban schools like Harvard or George Washington University, and so there is no market pressure for improved service.

NEWS | 11/25/2007

Two juniors vie for USG presidency

USG vice president Josh Weinstein '09 and U-Council chair Sarah Langberg '09 will face off in the race for USG president next month.Students will also choose other USG officers in the elections, including the new USG vice president ? a race that is particularly competitive this year, with four candidates running.

NEWS | 11/25/2007

'Twas the night after Thanksgiving

Festive Christmas lights now brighten the tree in Palmer Square. Members of the community gathered around to admire the holiday decorations.

NEWS | 11/25/2007

RIAA threatens to sue four undergrads

Four Princeton undergraduates are among the hundreds of college students facing a new wave of legal action from the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), which on Nov.

NEWS | 11/25/2007

Student visits to Counseling Services on the rise

As the nationwide demand for campus mental health services continues to rise, McCosh Health Center is working to cope with the increasing number of students who arrive at the University on medication or with counseling needs.The demand for counseling has risen nationwide since the early 1990s, when universities began collecting empirical data about mental health on campuses.

NEWS | 11/25/2007

Real estate developer sues foundations, U.'s

The University is among the institutions being sued by a Massachusetts real estate developer for usury ? the plaintiff alleging that the University's endowment supported activities that violate loan sharking laws ? Bloomberg News reported last week.The University, as well as Harvard and Yale, three other colleges and two foundations face the suit filed by Fred Fahey, a developer who borrowed money to finance the construction of a golf course community and was charged an interest rate of 42 percent by Realty Financial Partners, a firm in which the defendants invested.Fahey wants the loans declared illegal and is seeking $20 million in damages, citing a Massachusetts law forbidding loans that charge more than 20 percent annual interest unless a notice is filed every two years with the state attorney general.

NEWS | 11/25/2007

Deficit will not stop projects

Borough Council members spent most of their biweekly meeting last night discussing strategy for their negotiations with Nassau HKT, the company responsible for developing the area near the Princeton Public Library.Most of the meeting was held in secret session, but during the open part of the session, the council examined Borough crime statistics for September, University-related alcohol incidents and a $60,000 high-tech payment system for the Library's parking garage.Borough Administrator Robert Bruschi presented budget statistics for the third quarter of 2007 and revealed that the Borough is likely to run a deficit this year.The Council also approved funds to repair walkways in Marquand Park and passed an ordinance requiring property owners to apply for permits before paving over large areas of their property.Police Chief Anthony Federico reported a "sharp increase in alcohol-related cases coinciding with the start of the school year at the University." The alcohol-related cases mentioned by Federico included six students taken to the University Medical Center at Princeton and an intoxicated female student found inside Edwards Hall who "could not remember from where she obtained the alcohol."There were 27 cases of theft in the Borough, including the robbery of a motor vehicle.

NEWS | 11/20/2007

N.J. politics briefs

Former Gov. Kean '57 endorses McCainFormer New Jersey governor Tom Kean '57 has endorsed Sen.

NEWS | 11/20/2007

Attitudes and perspectives

The 'Prince' surveyed the undergraduate community about their attitudes and perspectives regarding the newly announced revisions to the University alcohol policy. The results follow. 1.

NEWS | 11/20/2007

Policy lacks clarity, new survey finds

Though the University's revised alcohol policy has sparked campus debate and spurred complaints from students about the heightened crackdown on drinking violations, two-thirds of undergraduates don't fully understand the new procedures, according to an informal survey conducted over the last week by The Daily Princetonian.Despite students' uncertainty as to what the revised policy entails, 63 percent said they either completely or mostly disagreed with the changes.

NEWS | 11/20/2007

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