News

Volunteers switch roles, experience life in poverty

"Welcome to Realville," Angela Degraff said to a crowd of about 50 people Saturday morning.They were gathered in the Whig Hall Senate Chamber for "Realville," a poverty simulation complete with paper money, "stores" and a "jail" stocked with handcuffs.Intended to give the participants firsthand knowledge of what it's like to be poor, the Community Action Poverty Simulation was cosponsored by the Student Volunteers Council (SVC) and the Crisis Ministry of Princeton and Trenton.Though the event was targeted at young volunteers, people from eight to 70 years old were given a chance to experience a life more like the ones of the people they help.Participants were assigned to family units with one to six members and given a limited budget to survive on in Realville.

Group calls for hands-on work

Thirteen students who cleared debris from evacuated homes in New Orleans over Intersession issued a public challenge to politicians on Mardi Gras, asking elected officials to get their hands dirty as well."Come down to New Orleans and do more than bear witness," the statement said, addressing any politician either occupying or planning to occupy a public post in the United States.

U. awards Holland, Mackey top honor

On Feb. 12, Lester Mackey '07 received an email from Dean of Undergraduate Students Kathleen Deignan instructing him to come immediately to her office.

D-bar reopens after eight months

University graduate students and undergraduates over 21 years old crowded into the D-Bar last Thursday night to celebrate the reopening of the club.

An undergraduate's venture into the depths of the graduate social scene

For weeks, whispers have been echoing in the halls of Firestone: "The D-Bar is opening again; are you coming?" Thursday night's grand opening proved that the answer must have been a resounding "Yes!"As I pulled on my most comfortable shoes (for the long walk over, of course), I prepared myself for a role I had never played before: The Sketchy Undergrad.

In flying color

Jewish students connect with Israel

Correction appendedThis past summer, Alex Ruda '08, Brian Extein '08 and Sarabeth Sanders '09 traversed the desert, slept in Bedouin tents and hung out with soldiers.Rather than undergoing a desert boot camp, however, the three students were traveling through Israel on a 10-day tour organized by Taglit-birthright Israel-Hillel.

Weird science loses its home

Nestled in the austere depths of the E-Quad, a laboratory decorated vibrantly with new-age posters, experimental apparatus and stuffed animals welcomed visitors into its quirky, old-fashioned atmosphere for 28 years.Until Tuesday, that is.

Is English still enough?

For each Chinese-speaking westerner, East Asian Studies professor Perry Link said, there are thousands of English-speaking Chinese."That leaves the question," Link said, "why do westerners learn Chinese?"Though English is spoken virtually everywhere ? Link called it "a hegemonic language" ? it is not always enough, a fact that students and academic institutions are quickly coming to terms with.Enrollment in Chinese and Arabic classes at Princeton has skyrocketed in the last decade, as political and commercial interests in East Asia and the Middle East intensify.

Fifth Grade Confidential

Note: Due to head injuries sustained during the NBA All-Star Weekend, today's weather column will not be seen.

Frank '80: U., clubs are too linked

Sally Frank '80, who spent 13 years in court fighting to force the then all-male Ivy Club, Tiger Inn and Cottage Club to admit women, praised the advent of the four-year colleges yesterday but said the University continues to send mixed signals about the clubs.Now an attorney and professor of law at Drake University, Frank filed her suit during her junior year after her attempts to join Ivy, Tiger Inn and Cottage all failed.

State of the art

Three students of Seattle artist and Humanities Council visiting fellow Vannessa Tran work in 185 Nassau yesterday at the last of three painting workshops offered by Tran this week.

Confident bridge team heads to championship

Four Princeton students will travel to Nashville, Tenn. to compete as finalists in the Collegiate Team Championship bridge tournament.Princeton bridge team members Dana Berkowitz '07, David Lin '07, Alex Lishkov '09 and Jonathan Ullman '08 are set to face teams from Stanford, UCLA and Queen's University in Kingston, Ont.Last week, teams from 26 colleges competed in the preliminary stages of the tournament through an online round-robin competition.

Walking the world, despite prosthetic limb

At first glance, James Ashenhurst '08, seems like any other busy Princeton student ? hanging out with friends, leading LGBT peer educator discussions and traveling around Europe.It's no wonder some of his peers were shocked to find out midway through freshman year that he has a prosthetic leg."I met many of my best friends during pants weather," he said.

'Undercover' story upsets Bicker clubs

An "undercover" story about the eating clubs published yesterday in a New York newspaper has attracted criticism from some students for what they say is its unfair and sensationalistic portrayal of the Street.The article, published in the online edition of the New York Observer, described several of the selective eating clubs as elitist and insular.

USG and public safety to loan bicycles

In an effort to ease transportation woes and curb the number of abandoned bicycles, the USG is planning to scatter orange bikes across campus.A collaboration between the USG and Public Safety, the USG Bicycle Initiative aims to charge students an annual fee of $3 for unlimited access to bikes stationed around campus.

Former employee alleges racism

A former executive director of Princeton-in-Africa is suing the program, alleging racial discrimination and defamation on the part of the organization and two of its board members.The complaint, filed by Angela Coleman '92, claims that she was removed from her job in December without cause and that two of the organization's board members, Rev.

Smokin' study break

Students gather in the Center for Jewish Life to relax, smoke hookah and get information about the Birthright trip to Israel.

In search of words: Students study abroad

After her freshman year, as many of her classmates headed home for their first summer as college students, Sloan Pavsner '08 was gearing up for a very different experience: two months in China at Princeton-in-Beijing (PiB).Studying Chinese was something of an accident for Pavsner.

On fire tonight

Charles Jones sautees bananas foster for students in a decorated and festive Wu Dining Hall in celebration of Mardi Gras.