The Daily Princetonian: February 9, 2023

University enforces PEV policy during fire inspections

By Elisabeth Stewart Assistant News Editor

Residents of Joline Hall and Dod Hall expressed discomfort following alleged personal electric vehicle (PEV) searches that occurred during routine fire safety inspections last Tuesday. This comes five days after the new policy banning the operation, charging, and storage of electric vehicles went into effect.

In an email to The Daily Princetonian, University spokesperson Michael Hotchkiss wrote that “following the revised PEV policy, effective Jan. 25, 2024, housing inspectors will now tag and remove PEVs if discovered during routine inspections.” As of the time of pub-

lication, this change has not been added to either the fire inspection policy or the PEV policy. The Fire Inspection policy does, however, mention that “Motorized vehicles (motor-bikes, mopeds, motorcycles and scooters) with fuel tanks may not be stored or parked in or near a dormitory.”

“As with other items that have been confiscated as a violation of University policy, students may claim PEVs for repossession at the end of the semester,” Hotchkiss wrote.

According to the Housing Operations email from Sept. 8th, fire inspections in residential buildings are “unscheduled and unannounced.” Hotchkiss wrote that all

rooms are inspected at least three times every year to “ensure compliance with University and municipal/ state fire safety regulations.”

Luke Cho ’27, a resident of Joline Hall, said that he and his roommates did not have PEVs in their dorm, but fire safety officers “tagged and reported” scooters of other residents in his entryway around 10 a.m.

Tuesday morning.

“They just kind of took a glance around, and in particular, they looked in this area behind my bed,” Cho told the ‘Prince.’ “When they did it, just like as an aside, they said, and I quote, ‘Oh, yeah, we’re just checking if there are scooters behind there.’”

Men’s basketball drops second game in a row to Yale before bouncing back against Brown

By Hayk Yengibaryan & JP Ohl Associate Sports Editor & Sports Writer

New Haven, Conn. (CT) — After a historic start to the season, things have started to cool down for the Tigers (16–3 overall, 4–2 Ivy League). Opposing crowds have given Princeton a tough time on the road. This proved to be the case once again on Friday evening when, despite a strong first half performance from the Tigers, the Yale (15–6, 6–0) crowd propelled its squad to a 70–64 win.

Three-point shooting made the difference in the first half. The Tigers shot an impressive 60 percent from beyond the arc while Yale hit only three of its 11 first half attempts. In the second half, it was a different story. The Yale defense held Princeton scoreless for over a four minute stretch, shot 55 percent from the field, and limited sophomore guard Xaivian Lee to just seven points.

“Our offense today was probably a B, maybe B-, but defensively we were really good,” Bulldogs head coach James Jones told The Daily Princetonian postgame.

The last time both sides met was during the 2023 Ivy Madness Final. Despite sweeping the Tigers in the 2022-23 regular season, the Bulldogs fell short when it mattered most. The Tigers went on to represent the Ivy League in the NCAA tournament and make it to the Sweet 16.

“100 percent,” Yale guard Bez Mbeng replied when asked if the team had marked this game on their calendars. “We wanted to treat this like any other game, but we definitely had some extra motivation coming into today.”

Mbeng — the reigning Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year — was the primary defender on Princeton star Xaivian Lee.

“He’s obviously really tough,” Lee added. “Great defender. It was fun going at it, and I’m excited to play him again.”

Jones had nothing but praise for Mbeng. “He does a great job at making it hard. We try to stay

See BASKETBALL page 16

Medical examiner releases cause of death for Sophia Jones ’27

By Annie Rupertus Head News Editor

Content Warning: The following article includes mention of student death and suicide.

University Counseling services are available at 609-258-3141, and the Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24/7 at 988 or +1 (800) 273-TALK (8255). A Crisis Text Line is also available in the United States; text HOME to 741741. Students can contact residential college staff and the Office of Religious Life for other support and resources.

The Office of the Medical Examiner for Mercer County has ruled the death of first-year undergraduate Sophia Jones ’27 a suicide, according to an autopsy report shared with The Daily Princetonian. Jones passed away on campus Nov. 29.

Jones is the fifth Princeton student to have taken their own life in the past three years.

“Our entire community is impacted by this tragedy and our hearts are heavy. We share our deepest condolences with Sophia’s family and friends,” Vice President for Campus Life W. Rochelle Calhoun wrote in an email to students Nov. 30.

A dedicated ballet dancer and student, Jones was a prospective molecular biology major in Yeh College.

In December, when her parents were asked what they wanted Jones to be most remembered by, her father, Ben Jones ’95, highlighted “her joy and the joy she took in helping others.” Her mother, Juliet Sorensen ’95, told the ‘Prince,’ “her incandescent spirit.”

“You knew when she was in the room with you,” her father noted. “And the room was warmer and

” 1995 ETHNIC STUDIES SIT IN: PROMISES PARTIALLY KEPT?

richer for her presence.”

Born in Chicago on Feb. 20, 2005, Sophia Jones finished high school in Flekke, Norway and trained as a dancer throughout her childhood and into her time at Princeton. She danced in four pieces in November as a member of Princeton University Ballet (PUB).

“Sophia was a treasured member of our company and we are all grateful to have known her,” read a Dec. 2 statement from PUB, shared online and with the ‘Prince.’ “She had a contagious joy that impacted everyone around her and her spirit was unfaltering — from late night rehearsals to long days backstage she never ceased to exercise humor, kindness, and warmth and inspired us all as both a talented dancer and cherished friend.”

“She was a really easy person to talk to,” Jones’s friend and roommate Riley O’Hare ’27 told the ‘Prince’ in December. “She was

a great listener. She was great at striking up a conversation with anyone.”

In addition to her parents, Jones is survived by her younger brother Hugh, and her younger sister Thea.

In Calhoun’s Nov. 30 email sharing the news of Jones’s passing, she invited community members to a gathering that evening to “gather, reflect, and support one another.”

In a written comment to the ‘Prince,’ Assistant Vice President for Communications Michael Hotchkiss referred the ‘Prince’ to resources outlined in the Nov. 30 email and in a Dec. 6 article published by the University.

Annie Rupertus is a head News editor at the ‘Prince.’

VITUS LARRIEU / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN Electric scooter found in fire inspection.

As NJ Transit set to increase fares by 15 percent on July 1, an expert and an advocacy group weigh in

By Olivia Sanchez Associate News Editor

On Jan. 24, New Jersey Transit (NJ Transit) proposed a 15 percent fare increase starting July 1, which will be indefinitely followed by annual 3 percent fare increases thereafter. According to NJ Transit’s announcement of the proposal, the fare increase is an effort to close the $106.6 million bud-

get deficit.

NJ Transit invited transit customers to 10 public hearings in 10 New Jersey counties from March 4 through 8. Following the public commentary period, the NJ Transit Board of Directors will consider the proposal.

The last price increase occurred in 2015 and raised fares by 9 percent. Although public hearings were held, the proposal passed in its original form. The Daily Princetonian spoke with a

U. AFFAIRS

nonprofit focused on transportation advocacy and an urban studies expert, who explained the causes and consequences of the fare increase.

In an interview with the ’Prince’, Nedia Morsy, the Director of Strategic Projects for Make the Road NJ expressed the organization’s opposition to the proposal and their ongoing work to prevent the fare increase since they learned about it one year ago.

Make the Road NJ works to support working-class, Latino communities in Passaic, Perth Amboy and Elizabeth, which Morsy described as “heavily transit-reliant places.” According to Morsy, the organization previously canvassed on Princeton’s campus to protest the fare increases.

“Our members use the bus and train for everything: work, to visit each other, and to find work, which I think folks often forget,” she told the ‘Prince.’

In conjunction with the New Jersey budget coalition For the Many NJ, Make the Road NJ led a campaign calling on the state to extend the corporate business tax, which expired on Dec. 31, 2023. The tax, which brought in approximately $1 billion in revenue each year, was passed in 2019. Morsy and other opponents of the fare

hikes believe the corporate business tax could have provided NJ Transit the necessary revenue to make up for the budget shortfall without raising prices.

“There is no plan in sight to fund transit, so these fare hikes and continued service cuts are a part of a conversation that our members — working-class people, [Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC)] people — have been rallying around for a very long time,” Morsy said.

In an interview with the ‘Prince,’ Aaron Shkuda, the Project Manager of the Princeton-Mellon Initiative in Architecture, Urbanism, and the Humanities explained the potential reasons behind the NJ Transit fare increase, including people increasingly working-from-home and a decrease in federal funding after the COVID-19 pandemic as the most likely causes. In the proposal announcement, NJ Transit stated that current ridership is at just 80 percent of pre-pandemic levels.

“New Jersey Transit is designed to essentially get people to office centers in Midtown, or perhaps lower Manhattan at nine o’clock and then take them home at five o’clock. With that not happening for as many workers as much anymore, there are serious

funding challenges,” Shkuda said.

Shkuda further explained that the deficit occurred because very few public transit agencies are profitable and most are subsidized by their governments. He continued that NJ Transit does not receive a set amount of New Jersey tax revenue, but funding varies on a yearly basis, which can leave the organization with a budget gap.

NJ Transit did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“Those agencies are not running a profit. They’re all heavily subsidized by the government. We do a very, very poor job of that in New Jersey and in the country as a whole,” he said.

Shkuda added that the price increase is not significant enough to impact University classes that travel to New York using NJ Transit.

Morsy told the ‘Prince’ she is worried there is a lack of subsidizing that results in what she called “a tax on the working poor” and believes there is “really powerful commentary to be made about who rides the bus, and who doesn’t care about who rides the bus.”

Olivia Sanchez is an associate News editor for the ‘Prince.’

Narcan, fentanyl test strips now available through UHS

By Meghana Veldhuis Assitant News Editor

Content Warning: The following article includes mention of student death.

University Counseling services are available at 609-258-3141, and the Suicide Prevention Lifeline is available 24/7 at 988 or +1 (800) 273-TALK (8255). A Crisis Text Line is also available in the United States; text HOME to 741741. Students can contact residential college staff and the Office of Religious Life for other support and resources.

McCosh Health Center has begun offering fentanyl test strips and the opioid overdose reversal drug Nar-

can for students, according to a Jan. 30 email from University Health Services (UHS). These overdose prevention tools are now available for anyone 24/7 inside the McCosh vestibule. Previously, students could sign up to have Narcan and fentanyl test kits delivered to their Frist mailbox.

The effects of the nationwide opioid epidemic have touched the Princeton community following the tragic passing of graduate student Maura Coursey in January 2023. Coursey passed away off-campus from an accidental overdose of synthetic opioids.

It is unclear whether or not the University policy was enacted in

response to Coursey’s passing. Kathy Wagner, the associate director of Health Promotion and Prevention Services at Princeton, wrote in a statement to the Daily Princetonian, “At University Health Services, we stay abreast of public health issues that may impact our students and work to ensure the health and well-being of our students.” Fentanyl overdose is now the leading cause of death for Americans from ages 18 to 45.

Naloxone is a drug that blocks the effects of opiates on the brain and temporarily restores breathing function in people who have taken harmful opiate doses. Narcan is a brand name for naloxone. Naloxone

is not harmful to take even if one is not overdosing, but it does not do anything to help prevent harmful effects of non-opiate drugs. Fentanyl test strips allow for detecting the presence of fentanyl, a highly potent synthetic opioid, in other substances.

According to Wagner, this is not the University’s first overdose prevention policy.

“In [July] 2023, the State of New Jersey included institutions of higher education in their Naloxone Direct Program enabling distribution of Narcan® on campuses throughout the state. Once Narcan® was made available to us through the State, we began distribution

of opioid harm reduction materials to anyone who requested them,” Wagner wrote in a statement to the ‘Prince.’

The University also held a Wintersession workshop about opioid overdose prevention, which included training on the use of naloxone and fentanyl test strips. Students can schedule workshops to learn how to use Narcan and fentanyl test strips by contacting Wagner or UHS.

Meghana Veldhuis is an assistant News editor at the ‘Prince.’

Princeton Quantum Initiative unveils plans for new building

By Christopher Bao & Matteo Torres

Princeton’s Board of Trustees submitted building plans to the Princeton Town Council’s planning board on Dec. 15, 2023 for a new building — the Quantum Institute for Quantum Science and Engineering. Much like the ongoing project south of Prospect Avenue to complete the School of Engineering and Applied Science (SEAS), the building is the latest in a series of steps by the University to focus on research and expansion of the sciences. It also features sustainable design as part of the University’s goal of net-zero emissions by 2046.

In the June 2023 update to its strategic framework, the University described the moment as “ripe for a game-changing investment in the University’s engineering departments and related interdisciplinary units.”

The University first established the Quantum Initiative in 2019, spanning across several different departments, including the Department of Physics and Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering. Accord-

ing to a University press release, the goal of the new institute is “to bring together and support faculty and students across science and engineering who are pushing the boundaries of discovery around quantum information, particularly in the areas of quantum computing, communication, and sensing.” The initiative focuses on four research areas: Quantum Systems Experiment, Quantum Systems Theory, Quantum Material Science, and Quantum Computer Science.

Princeton researchers have made major strides in quantum research in recent months. In December 2023, Princeton physicists quantum mechanically entangled individual molecules for the first time — meaning that molecules stay correlated to each other even if they are millions of light years apart. This signaled a breakthrough in molecular study and has many practical applications in the world of quantum science, from simulation to information processing. The new building will house the Quantum Institute’s future work related to these advances.

The building plans, which were submitted by the architecture firm

Hammel, Green & Abrahamson, reveal that the building would be located on the area that is currently occupied by the Strubing and Clarke fields, the current fields where the University baseball team currently conducts practices and plays their home games. This area is bordered to the northwest by the residential neighborhoods on Ivy Lane and Fitzrandolph Road and to the southeast by the current Princeton Football Stadium and the Finney and Campbell fields.

The fields will be relocated to the University’s Meadows neighborhood in West Windsor, which will also include graduate housing, which is expected to open in Spring 2024.

According to the schematics provided to the Township, the building will consist of three main buildings connected by corridors, with a basement level being the lowest level and going all the way up to the third floor. Outlined in the schematics are lab spaces, classrooms, offices, and an auditorium. The proposal includes a geo-exchange field for native species and greenery as part of the University’s goal of net-zero carbon emissions by 2046.

Similarly, the new School of Engineering and Applied Science building includes a series of sustainability features, including “Energy-efficient HVAC system and controls,” “Energy-efficient lighting and controls,” “Geo-exchange Heating and Cooling,” “Green roof,” and “Healthier materials and finishes,” according to the University Facilities webpage. The initiative would add to the growing list of ongoing construction

projects on campus, including the renovations of Dillon Gym, the reconstruction of the Art Museum, and the completion of Hobson College.

Christopher Bao is an assistant News editor at the ‘Prince.’

Matteo Torres is a News contributor for the ‘Prince.’

JOSÉ PABLO FERNÁNDEZ GARCÍA / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN

The Dinky at Princeton Station.

Hotchkiss:

“[F]ollowing the revised PEV policy, effective Jan. 25, 2024, housing inspectors will now tag and remove PEVs if discovered during routine inspections.”

POLICY

Continued from page 1

Hotchkiss wrote that with the exception of candles, “tags are left in the room for any items that are confiscated during fire safety inspections so that students can reclaim their confiscated items at a designated break period for removal from campus.”

Other residents expressed surprise that fire inspections began in the first week of the spring semester. Gabriela Veciana ’24, a resident of Dod Hall, told the ‘Prince’ that she initially assumed fire safety was there to investigate a specific complaint, and thought that students usually “get an email before the checks start.”

“[Fire inspections] have been [random and unannounced] for my whole four years at Princeton, but… they tell you in an email when the inspections are going to begin, so this sort of totally random inspection felt weird,” she said.

Housing Operations notified undergraduates by email in September that routine fire inspections would begin starting on Sept. 18, 2023. The email said that “rooms are inspected several times during the school year” with the purpose of “insuring the highest standards of fire safety in the dormitories.”

In years prior, Housing Operations has sent students multiple reminders in the form of emails ahead of new inspection rounds. In an email from Monday, Nov. 14, 2022, Housing Operations sent an email to the student body saying that dormitory fire inspections would resume the following Wednesday, Nov. 16. The email stated that any dormitories which had not already been inspected, would be inspected

prior to reading period that December. A further email sent on Jan. 27, 2023, informed students that fire inspections had been restarted for the spring semester.

Veciana said that she learned of the fire inspection on Tuesday after a Dod resident sent a message to the building’s GroupMe. She said that “people tend to adjust the way they’re living” when they receive a notice of a fire safety inspection to avoid fines for possession of unauthorized appliances or safety violations. Veciana said that she and her roommates were fined $200 last year for hanging string lights too close to a sprinkler head.

According to the fire policy, tampering with or obstructing smoke detectors or sprinklers results in a $200 fine. The Housing and Real Estate Services website states that inspectors leave a notice of confiscation or notice of inspection in students’ dorms.

The email from September said that area coordinators work in teams of two and inspections last no longer than five minutes in each room. Inspections, conducted between 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. are “intended to cause minimal inconvenience to students while allowing the inspectors to do their jobs effectively.”

Students present for the inspections are encouraged to address any violations if they believe “the situation is not in violation of policy”; the inspector[s] will then “consider the student’s explanation.” Students can also appeal for any “difficulties [they experience] with the fire inspection process,” according to the Housing and Real Estate Services webpage.

Elisabeth Stewart is an assistant News editor for the ‘Prince.’

By Bryan Zhang Senior Constructor

First phase of fitness center renovation unveiled, Rec Pool opening delayed

By Victoria Davies & Vitus Larrieu Assitant News Editor & News Contributor

After 18 months of construction, phase one of the new Class of 1986 Fitness and Wellness Center opened Monday, Jan. 29. The opening of the Recreational Pool, which was initially scheduled to reopen alongside the central fitness area, has been delayed until Friday, Feb. 16 due to “unforeseen circumstances.” Aside from the pool, the first of the three phases of renovations was completed on schedule.

The new fitness center contains 50 pieces of aerobic equipment, including 21 treadmills and four Peloton bikes, an increase from the 36 aerobic machines offered at Stephens Fitness Center, which closed on Dec. 23 for the renovations. The Peloton bikes are equipped with a commercial subscription, allowing gym goers to participate in online classes without the need for an individual Peloton account.

Campus Recreation celebrated the opening of the fitness center on Monday with “exclusive branded workout towel[s] and refreshments,” as well as tour every hour, starting at 10 a.m. The opening, which also coincided with the first day of classes for the semester, marked “one of the highest volume usage days of the year” according to Associate Director of Campus Rec, Facilities & Operations Dan Bennett.

Jessica Ward, senior Associate Director of Athletics for Campus Rec, told the ‘Prince’ that she is “really excited” about the new space. “We have a lot more pieces of equipment we never had before,” she said.

A new section of the gym is called the Six Minute Ab Zone. Equipment purchased from The Abs Company creates a circuit of exercises designed to

provide a comprehensive and time-efficient abdominal muscle workout. The zone includes a traffic light intended to help patrons time their exercises, with a green light encouraging them to continue their exercise and a red light indicating when it’s time to switch machines. “It’s kind of like a game,” Ward told the ‘Prince,’ adding, “We wanted to try and get something completely different.”

Aside from these novel additions, the availability of more traditional strength training equipment, including dumbbells, benches, racks, bars, and plates, has nearly doubled. The plates weigh a combined total of more than 10,000 pounds.

The new fitness center now offers platforms, which enable patrons to perform a greater variety of weightlifting exercises. All exercise equipment is also now located in one 9,000 square foot space, a slight increase from the combined 8,000 square feet of space offered by the upper and lower levels of Stephens Fitness Center.

While Phase One of the Class of 1986 Fitness and Wellness Center includes many new pieces of equipment, there are some noticeable absences. Currently, the new fitness center does not have any selectorized machines that were offered previously in Stephens Fitness Center, which included machines for upper and lower body exercises. Also missing are the cable systems used for lat pulldown and cable rowing exercises, though there are two cable pulleys that can be used for different cable exercises.

Kate Luedtke ’27, who normally uses the gym five times per week, told the ‘Prince’ that she is most looking forward to using “more benches and better free weights” in the new fitness center, but noted that

it “looks like it’s kind of low on cable machines” currently.

Despite these omissions, some students expressed that the new space marked an improvement.

Oliwia Morska ’24, who is employed by Campus Rec and works at the fitness center, told the ‘Prince’ that she is excited for “a proper workout space to accommodate everyone.”

Ward acknowledged that Campus Rec “know[s] that there are pieces that are missing right now,” but plans to remedy that issue with Phase Two of the renovations, which will include selectorized equipment and cardio machines like a self-powered treadmill. Ward explained that many of these new pieces of equipment are now possible due to the increased size of the center.

Phase Two, which is set to open in the fall, will also include a new accessible entrance and lobby — which is intended as a space where students can relax between class or a workout. Ward emphasized the importance of inclusivity in the space, saying that the Phase Two area won’t feel “very gymish.” She said that compared to Phase One, “it will have a different vibe,” explaining that Campus Rec is hoping to foster a “community center feel.”

In summer 2025, Phase Three will replace the current Stephens Fitness Center area with a space focused on functional training equipment, with “turf as a floor” and more space. Once all three phases are complete, the Class of 1986 Fitness and Wellness Center will be around 25,000 square feet.

Victoria Davies is an assistant News editor for the ‘Prince.’

Vitus Larrieu is a News contributor and head Podcast editor for the ‘Prince.’

Third annual DEI report rebuts national anti-DEI sentiment, shows new and bolstered programs

By Victoria Davies & Annie Rupertus Assistant News Editor & Head News Editor

Princeton released its third annual Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) report on Monday, Jan. 29. The report includes new disability-related data and highlights a commitment to a diverse student body and faculty.

The report highlighted the University’s own DEI administrators as national scrutiny of DEI programming in higher education has gained traction, including specific attacks on administrators at Princeton. It also comes in the aftermath of last year’s dismantling of race-based affirmative action by the U.S. Supreme Court which has raised concerns about the future of diversity in higher education.

“I’m especially pleased that the report showcases some of my colleagues, who demonstrate the wide range of activities and expertise that diversity, equity and inclusion practitioners bring to our campus community,” Vice Provost for Institutional Equity and Diversity Michele Minter wrote in the report.

In his introduction to the report, University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 emphasized his belief in diversity as essential to Princeton’s success as an institution, in line with comments previously expressed in his eighth annual State of the University Letter from January. “Princeton University’s excellence depends upon attracting and supporting talented individuals from throughout our society and around the world,” he wrote in the report.

Surrounding issues of diversity, a spotlight has been placed on Eisgruber and the presidents of other peer institutions in particular, after Harvard President Claudine Gay resigned in January. Gay stepped down due to accusations of plagiarism that surfaced in response to her highlycriticized testimony to Congress about campus antisemitism.

In the last year, states and donors have taken aim at DEI programs in higher education. Billionaire donor Bill Ackman, who pushed for Gay’s resignation, wrote a long post criticizing DEI, saying it promotes “an oppressor/oppressed framework” that has fueled “anti-Jewish hate speech and harassment.” Another Harvard megadonor, Ken Griffin, announced

that he would stop donations to Harvard, citing similar criticisms of DEI.

Nationally, at least 65 bills that would roll back diversity efforts at colleges have been introduced in more than two dozen states and Congress since the start of 2023, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education.

Princeton’s report evidenced no effect of the backlash. The 25-page report is split into four sections: climate, inclusion and equity; academic experience; access and outreach; and demographic and climate data. The Daily Princetonian broke down the most significant updates in each category.

Climate, inclusion and equity

The first section of the DEI report discussed campus resources, naming and history, and professional development. It included new roles on campus, such as new Associate Directors of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion programs for Athletics and the School of Public and International Affair (SPIA), a new full-time clinician for Sexual Harassment/Assault Advising, Resources and Education (SHARE), and a new staff position of Manager of Faculty and Staff Accommodations.

The addition of new administrative positions comes amid discussion around administrative bloat and concern from some within the University’s faculty of a “hostile takeover” by administrators.

The report also highlighted updates to campus resources. Tigers Leading Tigers is a “leadership development program designed to equip students with inclusive leadership skills,” launched by the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students (ODUS) in September 2022. The program is “informed by campus trends and student feedback” and includes topics such as socioeconomic equity and hosting sustainable events. According to the DEI report, around 300 students participated in one of the training sessions in 2022–2023.

Workshops on Jewish identity, inclusion, and antisemitism were hosted by the Center for Jewish Life in partnership with the Hillel International Campus Climate Initiative. According to the report, “approximately 100 students and staff members of all faiths” attended the workshops.

Debates over campus iconography have continued but not progressed. The previous report from 2021–22 did not al-

lude to the debate over the statue of University President John Witherspoon; this year the Council of the Princeton University Community (CPUC) Committee on Naming “continues to evaluate a proposal” to remove or relocate the statue. According to the report, the committee held listening sessions inviting all members of the university community and hosted an academic symposium on different aspects of Witherspoon’s life. No final conclusion was reached so the committee “will continue its work in the 2023–24 academic year.”

Academic experience

The second section of the report focused on the relationships between DEI and academics at Princeton.

In August 2022, Princeton’s Graduate School welcomed “one of the most diverse student cohorts in its history.” 22 percent of the cohort are from historically underrepresented racial or ethnic groups, and 27 percent from first-generation or lowincome (FLI) backgrounds.

The Emma Bloomberg Center has also expanded its program for incoming students; the Freshman Scholars Institute (FSI) and FSI Online ensured that over 250 FLI students were “able to experience the academic, co-curricular, and social life at Princeton prior to the beginning of the fall semester.

The University’s DEI priorities move beyond racial and socioeconomic makeup of students, to course content. The McGraw Center for Teaching and Learning solicited applications from Princeton’s faculty for Inclusive Pedagogy Grants, which “invite faculty to revise an element of a course to more strongly reflect equitable and inclusive teaching practices.” 10 of the grants were then awarded to faculty, lecturers, and fellows.

The report also highlighted the expansion of Princeton’s Novogratz Bridge Year Program from four countries to six — Bridge Year now partners with communities in Cambodia and Costa Rica. The report says that Bridge Year has “provided transformative service-learning experiences to over 370 Princeton undergraduates.”

Access and outreach

The third section of the report discussed accessibility and outreach efforts,

Students talk medical dietary needs, allergy accessibility at roundtable

By Justin Tam Staff News Writer

including various ongoing partnerships with local schools, organizations, and community colleges.

“Over 125 Princeton staff have earned certifications from the International Association of Accessibility Professionals, outpacing any other U.S. university,” the report stated.

It also highlighted the new Transfer Scholars Initiative, a summer program for students at partnering New Jersey community colleges, and the new SPIA in New Jersey program which the report said is “leveraging faculty, students and researchers to produce and promote innovative policy statewide.”

Demographic and climate data

The report broke down demographic data collected annually from students, faculty, and staff.

Notably, this year’s report included new information on disability identification. “More than 1,200 students with disabilities were registered with the Office of Disability Services to receive reasonable accommodations,” the report stated — an increase of about 400 students compared to last year.

The accompanying graph in the report included the following context about disability identification: “A student is considered to be registered with the Office of Disability Services once an accommodation request has been made. Registration is a voluntary, confidential process and may occur at any time during the student’s course of study … Requests for accessible housing accommodations are recorded in the data below from 2021–2022 onward, reflecting a change in internal processes to enhance students’ experience.”

The report measures disability identification in terms of number of students rather than percentage of students — and therefore does not account for student body expansion, which may have contributed to some of the increase.

Figures on gender identity, Pell Grant eligibility, and U.S. citizenship of students generally remained constant from last year. The percentage of undergraduate students identifying as Black rose by 2 percent.

Race and ethnicity of tenured/tenuretrack faculty changed very slightly from last year — their makeup is 0.7 percent less white than in 2022–2023.

Faculty and postdoc groups have both historically skewed heavily male (a roughly 35 to 65 percent gender split). Most of these numbers have remained unchanged, although the percentage of female postdocs increased 1.3 percent.

The U.S. citizen to international split has remained steady for undergraduate students, while graduate students are more international this year. Postdocs have also become more international, as have non-tenure track faculty, but percent of international tenured/tenure-track faculty decreased slightly.

The report also draws on a survey meant to assess campus climate by summarizing views among different groups of students.

Similarly to last year, white and Asian students were more likely to report that they would recommend Princeton to students of similar backgrounds. The likelihood of doing so for Black and Native American students rose multiple percentage points compared to last year, but still lags behind other groups, and the likelihood for Hispanic/Latina/o/x remained the same across both years. Nonbinary and queer-identifying events were also much less likely to recommend Princeton to students with their identities.

The report concluded with a note from Associate Provost for Diversity and Inclusion Shawn Maxam, who noted that a committee of the Board of Trustees will be examining Princeton’s admissions policies in the coming year and listed a number of DEI-related goals for the upcoming year.

Such goals include establishing “new professional development resources,” continuing a partnership with PEN America, a free speech nonprofit, continuing work on “understanding and addressing antisemitism, exploring the impact of Islamophobia and fostering inclusion for people of all faith backgrounds and national origins,” and enriching a “commitment to history and sense of place” via several naming and history-related initiatives.

The report is published every year near the beginning of spring semester.

Annie Rupertus is a Head News Editor at the ‘Prince.’

Victoria Davies is an assistant News editor for the ‘Prince.’

ADVOCACY JEAN SHIN / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN RoMa dining hall.

Students with medical dietary needs and significant allergies discussed challenges with dining on campus in a Feb. 5 roundtable hosted by the Princeton Food Allergy and Celiac Team for University Advocacy and Living (FACTUAL). The group had a wide-ranging discussion on cross contamination, tagging food items, and the centrality of food and dining to campus culture.

According to Ana Villada ’24, the biggest issue is a “lack of knowledge or awareness from other students” surrounding the current dining hall accomodations.

Current dining hall practice should involve generating “a menu tag that identifies each of the top nine allergens — milk, eggs, fish, crustacean shellfish, tree nut, peanut, wheat, soybeans, and sesame — as well as gluten, coconut, alcohol, and halal,” according to a food allergy brochure by Campus Dining.

However, the menu tag does not appear for all food items in the dining hall, according to FACTUAL. Villada, who has an anaphylactic allergy to seafood, said that she wished sauces could also have a list

of allergens. She noted that “sometimes [tags] won’t [list] allergens, and fish tends to be in a lot of sauces, [which] people don’t realize.” As a result, she said that she usually avoids eating sauces, unless she is certain it will be safe to consume.

Villada is both on the dining plan and a member of the Cap and Gown Club. While she did not initially prioritize finding an eating club that would serve allergyfriendly food during her Bicker process, she does wish she had spoken up and asked more questions. Nevertheless, she told the ‘Prince’ that she still would have joined her current eating club.

Potential cross-contamination is also a huge issue, Villada and others present at the panel said.

“There can be serious consequences for cross contact,” Rachel Brooks ’25 said in an interview, citing the risks of hospitalization and anaphylaxis. “If we can educate students on this issue, so that they can be more aware and conscious of what they’re doing when they’re grabbing their food, even that simple shift really changes things for individuals who have these dietary needs.”

Villada pointed to the salad dressing station and the use of ladles instead of en-

closed bottles as an example of cross-contact. “Most of the time, kids end up spilling it over other dressings, which means I can’t have them,” she told the ‘Prince.’ She also mentioned the impact of having allergic food in the vicinity to other foods.

“The other week, there was this piece of chicken, and there was like a piece of fish next to it. And it seems like people were using the same utensil for both, so I just didn’t get the chicken,” Villada recalled.

Students with multiple sets of dietary restrictions may also face additional challenges. “What does it look like if you’re thinking about religious dietary requirements or cultural practices, in addition to having something like a food allergy or other types of specialty diets?” Brooks asked.

Vincent Sanfedele ’27, a member of FACTUAL, spoke to the ‘Prince’ about the impact of the repetitiveness of menu options. For days when the main entrees contain many allergens, he typically resorts to staple items such as grilled chicken. “It is not necessarily a problem, but it would be nice to always have options,” he told the ‘Prince.’

Socially, Sanfedele doesn’t believe that his dining hall experience is heavily af-

fected by his having allergies. He pointed instead to the larger group events that have food that can sometimes isolate people with common food allergies. He spoke highly of his Zee group functions, where his RCA has been “very helpful in terms of addressing my food allergies and being able to provide those additional snacks.” However, he also mentioned the difficulty of finding allergy-friendly options at Butler Teahive, a weekly gathering of people from Butler College to enjoy treats from local small businesses and relax with friends.

Brooks also discussed “reframing different events so that food is not necessarily so intertwined with everything, because for individuals who do have these medical dietary restrictions, food is such a different component of their lives.” University

events from guest lectures to study breaks are frequently accompanied by free food and snacks.

During the discussion, Donna Pilenza, the director of residential dining, mentioned including a potential allergy-free zone in the dining hall of Hobson College, projected to be completed by Spring 2027. This would keep specific staff members, utensils, and cooking vessels strictly in that zone, free of the major allergens. Sanfedele showed excitement about the plan, and told the ‘Prince’ that it would allow people who are currently getting meals separately-made to experience the dining hall culture, due to the decreased chance of cross-contact.

Justin Tam is a staff News writer for the ‘Prince.’

‘No taxes for evil woke politics’: Protesters, parents clash over sex ed controversy at Princeton Middle School

By Bridget O’Neill & Christopher Bao Head News Editor & Assistant News editor

Tensions ran high at the first Princeton Board of Education meeting of the semester on Tuesday, Jan. 30 as public commenters debated the sex education curriculum at Princeton Middle School. Some commenters accused protesters of intimidating children after weeks of protesting against the program outside of the school.

With these events, the Princeton school district joins an intense national conversation, as gender, sexuality, and race education in public schools face mounting scrutiny. The controversy also comes amid a tumultuous period for the district after Princeton High School ex-principal Frank Chmiel ‘98 was removed from his role in March of 2023, and Superintendent Dr. Carol Kelley resigned in October after outrage ensued over her decision. Princeton Middle School works with the New Jersey non-profit organization HiTOPS to implement a sexual education curriculum. According to its website, HiTOPS is an organization “that fosters strong and healthy young people of all identities by pro-

STUDENT LIFE

viding inclusive and youth-informed sex education and LGBTQ+ support for young people throughout New Jersey.”

HiTOPS came under fire in September 2023 after conservative activist group Project Veritas released secretly recorded footage of HiTOPS staff. In the edited clip, HiTOPS staff members discussed entering educational materials on LGBTQ+ issues into a required class on racial literacy without parental consent. After the video release, then-superintendent Kelley sent an email to parents stating, “under no circumstances does Princeton Public Schools condone or employ such strategies.” However, in the message Kelley also confirmed they would continue their long-standing partnership with HiTOPS.

According to Town Topics, two to three protesters have demonstrated outside Princeton Middle School every morning in the first two weeks of the spring semester, demanding reform. These protests invoked a counter-protest of ten parents in support of HiTOPS.

The first public commenter at Tuesday’s board meeting was Thomas Perc, an LGBTQ+ parent with three children enrolled in Princeton public schools. Perc accused protesters — some

of whom were present at the meeting — of intimidating children. As he ended his statement, he pointed at one attendee who he then alleged had no children in the school and accused him of intimidating children. Throughout the interaction, Perc was asked to speak to the board and refrain from addressing attendees directly.

After the meeting, Perc told The Daily Princetonian that his 11-year-old daughter said protesters were interacting with children, asking questions such as: “What gender are you?” and “What do you think you are?” Students “were intimidated by these men walking up and down with signs that are targeting children,” Perc noted.

These accusations did not deter protestors present from voicing their perspectives.

Later in the meeting, Luke Alberts, a parent of two sixth graders at Princeton Middle School, and one of the protesters against HiTOPS said, “As long as [HiTOPS] remains, I will continue, and I will be in front of the school.”

“I’m fine with LGBTQ [rights]. I’m fine with the anti-bullying message,” Alberts told the ‘Prince.’ “I am not fine with the presentation of HiTOPS, namely framing everything in the oppressor/oppressed narrative,” he said,

adding that he finds such a framework to be divisive.

During his comment, Alberts held a neon green sign which read, in part, “No taxes for evil woke politics.”

At the end of his comment, President of the Board, Dafna Kendal, shared an anecdote in which a “mother of color” told that her daughter came home and “asked if she should hide” from the protesters.

Corey Laramore, coordinator of student health and safety for Princeton Public Schools, shared that his responsibility includes ensuring protesters are granted their freedom of speech, but do not have any interaction with students. Laramore said that he has not personally seen any protesters interacting with students.

“I just saw the protesters holding signs in front of [the] Princeton Middle School walkway, where students were passing by cars pulling up for the morning drop off … not even speaking to the students, but just holding up the signs and holding them high.”

Acting Superintendent Kathie Foster shared with the ‘Prince’ that the district did receive a report that a student was approached by a protester. However, they could not confirm the allegation. Foster added that school

officials had a conversation with protesters to ensure they remain on public property.

During the meeting, Alberts addressed Perc and asked him to meet him outside to further discuss the topic, which prompted board members to ask him to refrain from addressing the attendees. After the comment, many in attendance, including board members, asked Alberts to leave.

After the disruption, Martha Friend, a teacher at Littlebrook Elementary, made a public comment thanking the school board for trusting educators and for “knowing that educators would never allow lessons that would harm students.” She also noted that the protests are part of a larger distrust in public schools.

Kendal told the ‘Prince’ that the protesters represent “a very small minority of our community.”

Bridget O’Neill is a head News editor at the ‘Prince.’

Christopher Bao is an assistant News editor at the ‘Prince.’

Smoothie machine makes a splash in the RoMa dining hall

By Vitus Larrieu News Contributor

As the first days of class brought the semester into full swing, patrons of the Rocky-Mathey Dining Hall encountered a sweet new addition to the servery: the dining hall’s new smoothie machine. The machine, which serves fruit flavored ice drinks during breakfast hours, was installed over the University’s winter break and began operation during Wintersession. The machine has functioned somewhat inconsistently in the weeks since its introduction — in particular, the consistent availability of smoothies has presented as an issue. Michael Gattis, Executive Chef of RoMa dining

BEYOND THE BUUBLE

hall, wrote to The Daily Princetonian that the consistent operation of the machine is a “work in progress” as the dining hall team is still learning how to use the machine.

The RoMa dining hall is the sole campus dining hall that serves smoothies from a machine, although other dining halls occasionally serve smoothies from pitchers or bowls. The bottled Tico’s smoothies sold at Frist Gallery cost students their entire late meal allowance of $9.50. Beverages from the new machine, which ‘cost’ only a dining hall swipe, may be more attractive to price-concerned smoothie seekers.

The smoothie machine replaced the soda machine on the Mathey College

side of the dining hall, which was one of two soda machines in the entire shared dining hall; its counterpart on the Rockefeller College side remains intact. In an email to the ‘Prince,’ Gattis shared that dining hall staff had noticed a drop off in demand for the soda machine and were ordering “significantly less” soda syrup than in the past. The dining team decided to replace it with the smoothie machine as part of an “effort to reduce sugar and provide healthy options,” according to Gattis.

Although labeled as a smoothie machine, the new equipment resembles a slushie machine, with two drums full of ice and fruit juice, and a central turbine that maintains the smoothie

mixture’s consistency. Mango and strawberry flavors are currently offered, but according to Gattis, more flavors are coming soon. He wrote that the juice is “all-natural, clean-label, and on trend.”

Like the beverages the smoothie machine serves, student reactions to the addition were mixed.

Dylan Bissonette ’26 said that the removal of the soda machine was frustrating. His main complaint is the lack of ice on the Mathey side of the dining hall, which forces him to go “to the Rocky side to get ice and then go all the way back to the Mathey side” when he makes iced coffee in the morning.

Other students have had a more positive reception to the machine. Thomas

Emens ’25 said, “It made my day better when I came in [for breakfast],” though he did raise concerns that the machine does not always work.

For Gattis, the smoothie machine reflects campus dining’s ongoing efforts to serve and connect with students, staff, and other patrons of the RoMa dining hall. Regarding future expansions of RoMa services, Gattis told the ‘Prince,’ “Campus dining is like a surging river, always moving, ever changing, carving new pathways,” and that they are “keeping [their] fingers on the pulse of the food industry.”

Vitus Larrieu is a News contributor and head Podcast editor for the ‘Prince.’

NCO FAQs updated to reflect policy change following FIRE, ADL letter to Eisgruber

By Victoria Davies Assistant news Editor

Following a Jan. 25 letter from the free speech group Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression (FIRE) and the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), Princeton updated the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) page for No Communication Orders and No Contact Orders (NCOs) a day later on Jan. 26. The new FAQ page reflects the Dec. 2023 change in NCO policy, which narrowed the circumstances under which NCOs can be obtained.

The new change to NCOs is that “[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.” Temporary No Communication Orders will typically last until the next business day or when the matter can be reviewed or in the case where a disciplinary infraction is being investigated and there is a safety concern for an individual, until an adjudication of the case can take

place.

The University NCO policy was updated in “response to concerns expressed by community members,” according to an email from University Spokesperson Michael Hotchkiss. NCOs are issued for various reasons, including in emergency situations involving significant interpersonal conflicts or altercations, or when an individual has been found responsible for disciplinary infractions. No Contact Orders and No Communication Orders are similar and require students subject to the orders to avoid communication with the other party.

Both ADL and FIRE responded to the change. In an email to the ‘Prince,’ FIRE wrote, “Students should appreciate that Princeton is taking this seriously. Eisgruber gets a punch on his walking-thefree-speech-talk loyalty card.” They explained that “the new policy makes the important changes [they] asked for.” FIRE also mentioned the change on X.

“Tension on Princeton’s campus around Israel/Hamas is an opportunity for Princeton to model and ed-

ucate on free speech best practices,”

FIRE added. “In today’s world, these are tools Princeton grads will need more than ever when they leave campus.”

ADL wrote in an email to the ‘Prince’ that they “are grateful that Princeton took immediate steps to ensure that their No Contact Policy could no longer be used to censure Jewish student journalists — or any student journalists.”

FIRE and the ADL addressed their Jan. 25 open letter to President Christopher Eisgruber ’83, calling for an update to NCO policy. The letter referred to “Princeton University’s improper use of No Contact Orders to censor students” and called for immediate action to “prevent further abuse of students’ expressive and press freedoms.”

The letter cited two incidents which they claimed were improper uses of the NCO policy. The first was against Danielle Shapiro ’25, a journalist for The Princeton Tory. Shapiro received a No Communication Order due to her reporting at a public event held in February 2022 by the Princeton Committee on Pal-

estine (PCP), after which she followed up with a source. According to the letter, “the source apparently disliked the coverage and requested a No Communication Order,” which was immediately granted.

The second incident came nearly two years later, when Alexandra Orbuch ’25, former Tory Editorin-Chief and current Publisher, received a No Contact Order. Although the letter does not name Orbuch, the letter from FIRE and ADL claimed that the journalist was told she “was inciting something” at a walkout held by Students for Justice in Palestine (SJP) on Nov. 9, 2023. The student was later told by her Assistant Dean for Student Life that the University could not determine if articles written about the protest prior to the issuance of the order would constitute a violation of the order.

“It is saddening that Princeton students must decide between ensuring their physical security and safeguarding the future of their academic careers and fulfilling their roles as reporters. This is not a choice that anyone in a free soci-

ety should have to make,” Orbuch wrote in a statement to the ‘Prince.’

The previous FAQs page for NCOs was 13 pages. FAQs following the December policy update were released on Jan. 26, and are two pages long. The University did not respond to a request for comment in time for publication regarding the delay between the change in policy and the release of the updated FAQs.

The new FAQs also no longer contain examples of NCOs. A detailed explanation of how to obtain an NCO has been moved to the website of the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students under the Conflict Resolution tab. General questions about NCOs are directed to residential staff, and individuals seeking information about NCOs regarding sexual misconduct are directed to the Sexual Harassment/ Assault Advising, Resources and Education (SHARE) office or the Office of Gender Equity and Title IX Administration.

Victoria Davies is an assistant News editor for the ‘Prince.’

How do Princetonians feel about their courses, really? Machine learning analysis offers an answer.

By Myles Anderson Assistant Data Editor

As classes recommence for the spring 2024 semester, The Daily Princetonian data section took a look ahead, examining a common end-of-semester ritual for Princeton students: course evaluations. At the end of each semester, the University encourages students to submit numerical course evaluations, rating their courses on a scale from one to five in various categories.

Questions in the survey ask about various aspects of the course experience, including “what advice would you give to another student taking this course?” These evaluations are available for the reference of future students who consider enrolling in a given course, as resources such as PrincetonCourses. com allow students to easily compare numerical course ratings.

However, the utility of this kind of evaluation has broadly been called into question recently, due to its inherent subjectivity. For example, the difference in quality between a score of “1” versus “2” may differ among students — this makes comparing average “Course Quality” ratings particularly problematic. The ‘Prince’ set out to test a metric that avoids the shortcomings of numerical evaluations: sentiment analysis via natural language processing (NLP).

The Computer Science (COS) department scored an average of 4.02/5. As a fraction, 4.02/5 would suggest a high course rating — this is the highest average numerical evaluation of any sequence analyzed. However, out of all written course evaluations for intro COS, only approximately 66 percent were classified as positive.

RoBERTa, the type of machine learning model we used, is pre-trained on thousands of books and English Wikipedia articles. The exact model we used is a version of RoBERTa, trained on an additional 58 million tweets. The differences between Princeton course evaluations and the data RoBERTa was trained on (books, articles, and tweets) may have affected our findings; tweets have a significant amount of linguistic noise, and this model is unfamiliar with Princeton-specific terminology (i.e. PDF, PSet, precept, etc.).

Introductory and core courses

Introductory courses, which are often required for students pursuing a particular degree track or concentration, are among the largest courses offered at the University. We evaluated introductory course sequences across various popular departments, such as Computer Science (COS) and Economics (ECO), the two departments that awarded the most degrees in the 2022–2023 academic year. For some departments, like COS, the sentiment of written reviews was consistently positive; for others, like ECO, findings varied.

The percentage of students leaving a negative written evaluation of COS 126, COS 226, and COS 217 only rose above ten percent twice since fall 2014: once in fall 2018, and again in fall 2022. Positivity in written feedback increased during the pandemic by roughly 11 percent, before returning to pre-pandemic levels. In spring 2023, 65 percent of students left a positive review, 26 percent were neutral, and only nine percent were negative. In comparison, the av-

erage numerical evaluations from fall 2014 to spring 2023 were 3.96 for COS 126, 4.29 for COS 226, and 3.82 for COS 217, for a total average of 4.02 out of 5. This numerical rating shows a potentially more positive rating than the comments show.

COS 226: Algorithms and Data Structures consistently accounts for a large proportion of the positive reviews.

“I appreciated the fact that our programming assignments were relevant to real world applications,” wrote Rayan Elahmadi ’26 in an email to the ‘Prince.’ Elahmadi cited assignments such as Autocomplete, where students implement a text auto-completion algorithm à la Google search, as particularly applicable.

Before the end of junior year, all economics students at Princeton are required to complete ECO 300/310: Microeconomics, ECO 301/311: Macroeconomics, and ECO 302/312: Econometrics. Our findings for these courses varied — from fall 2015 to spring 2016, the proportion of students leaving a positive review for those six classes decreased from 54 percent to 29 percent.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, reviews gained positivity before gradually returning to pre-COVID-19 levels. In the spring of 2023, 44 percent of all submissions were positive, 40 percent were neutral, and 16 percent were negative. To contrast with the typical numerical averages, over our period of interest the core ECO classes scored an average of 3.48 out of 5.

The overall trend is slightly positive for introductory BSE math and physics courses, with an increase in the proportion of positive reviews from 33 percent in Fall 2014 to 45 percent in spring 2023. In the spring of 2020, there was a noticeable jump in negative reviews. From fall 2014 to spring 2023, the average numerical rating for these courses was 3.23.

The EGR sequence, which began in 2017, was introduced as an alternative to the traditional math and physics courses for first-year engineering students. Responses were very positive in the first several semesters — in spring 2018 and fall 2019, the proportion of positive reviews approached 80 percent of all written evaluations submitted, compared to roughly 45 percent for traditional BSE introductory courses.

There were noticeable oscillations in the data from fall to spring semesters –in some instances there was ten percent more negative feedback in the spring compared to the previous fall. Only two EGR sequence courses are offered in the spring: EGR 153: Electricity, Magnetism, and Photonics, and EGR 154: Linear Systems. The other three, EGR 151: Mechanics, Energy, and Waves, EGR 152: The Mathematics of Shape and Motion, and EGR 156: Multivariable Calculus, tend to receive more positive feedback.

The spring 2023 semester showed an all-time negativity high for the EGR sequence. The average numerical review for the EGR sequence was 3.84 out of 5.

Myles Anderson is an assistant Data editor for the ‘Prince.’

Additional consulting provided by emerita head Web Design and Development editor Anika Maskara.

By Dylan Epstein-Gross Senior Constructor

26

27 Hindu festival of colors

28 Incredible heroine

31 Pton. grading option

32 Slayed

33 Part of pot, in short

34 What the "R" of AARP stands for: Abbr.

35 They may be followed by elses

36 Not mad

37 MOL major's fear, maybe

39 Under covers

42 OB/GYN offering

43 Letters that may blow

By Bryan Zhang Senior Constructor

45 Coordinated

46 To be in Toledo?

47 Word that might possibly describe this clue, maybe

48 Low-cal label

49 Dense dessert

50 Paperless party post

51 Sacred Hindu texts

52 Period

55 Body by 21-Across

56 Night at Terrace or Colonial, perhaps

57 Spotted

59 Sorceress Morgan le ___

61 Distant

BREAKING: Trailblazing MAE senior chooses career outside of consulting or defense

By Michael Hwang Humor Writer

The following content is purely satirical and entirely fictional.

Students and faculty in the Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering (MAE) were left in shock after a pioneering student

boldly accepted a job offer at a nonconsulting, non-defense company.

Ray Theon ’24 is the first MAE student in 40 years to pursue a career that isn’t involved in the trade of killing people or lining someone else’s pockets.

“This is virtually unheard of,” said Professor Martin Lockhead, chair of the MAE department. “Most MAE graduates become servants of the

lucrative military-industrial complex or sell out to consulting and go to hell. Ray is a truly brave soul to sacrifice his income to uphold his morals.”

The Daily PrintsAnything interviewed Theon after he spurned yet another Bain & Company recruiter. “Not that there’s anything wrong with consulting or defense, but I have always wanted to make the

world a better place,” said Theon, as he glared at a student wearing a McKinsey sweater. “It’s really important to me that I work for a company with rigid morals and high standards of quality.”

Theon is excited to begin working at Boeing this summer.

Michael Hwang is a junior in MAE.

Dan Khum ’24, Henry Gussler ’24 win Will D. Znutz mathematics prize for revolutionary ‘KhumGussler algorithm’

By Michael Hwang Humor Writer

The following content is purely satirical and entirely fictional.

On Tuesday, the American Mathematical Society (AMS) jointly awarded its prestigious Will D. Znutz Undergraduate Research Prize to Princeton students Dan Khum ’24 and Henry Gussler ’24. The two math majors developed the aptly named “Khum-Gussler algorithm” — a significant achievement in the field of algebraic topology.

“This prize recognizes Will D. Znutz’s contribution to spreading seeds of knowledge across the academic world,” reads the announcement on the AMS website. “These two up-and-coming mathematicians embody this spirit in their thirst for knowledge and penetrative thinking.”

The Daily PrintsAnything spoke with Khum and Gussler about the prize and asked for a layman’s explanation of their algorithm. “Imagine you have two oblate spheroids on either side of a cylindrical manifold,” said Gussler while using his hands to demonstrate. “Our algorithm synthesizes both the hairy ball

theorem and classical Wiener spaces to address some of algebraic topology’s biggest and hardest problems.”

To celebrate the achievement, the math department hosted a ceremony for the pair in Wood Auditorium on Tuesday. In their remarks, Khum and Gussler paid tribute to their heroes David Cox and Steven Zucker, who met as University graduate students and published their work on the “Cox-Zucker machine” in 1979.

“Our Khum-Gussler algorithm might not live up to the legacy of the Cox-Zucker machine, but we’ve definitely helped fill a gaping hole in mathematical research,” added Gussler.

Khum and Gussler plan to continue their careers in mathematics as quantitative analysts at Siemens Financial Services.

Michael Hwang is a junior studying MAE and a staff Humor writer for the ‘Prince.’ He apologizes to any math majors reading this article.

ALBERT JIANG / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN Engineering quadrangle entrance.

The new age of legacy admissions isn’t about preserving culture, but driving change

Ava Johnson Columnist

Since affirmative action was overturned in June 2023, conversations about how to promote campus diversity and fairness in admissions have turned towards criticism of legacy admissions. Affirmative action and legacy admissions are often positioned as opposing forces — they are perceived as respective representations of diversity and tradition. Recently, columnist Sarah Park argued for the acceptability of legacy admissions on account of their ability to foster “intergenerational community” and noted a general negativity about legacy and legacy students themselves. This negativity exists for good reason: legacy admissions perpetuate privilege and have, historically largely benefitted wealthy, white students. But as time goes on, diversity is increasing within the legacy pool, despite the fact that it is still less diverse than our campus as a whole. No longer are all legacies stereotypical, privileged, white kids. As Princeton continues to diversify, legacy will too. If we end legacy now, we are prematurely eliminating the advantages that come from a more diverse intergenerational community.

Legacy admissions can undoubtedly be exclusionary, but as we consider the drawbacks of legacy, we should also consider its potential benefits. Legacy brings in students with unique historical knowledge about Princeton and greater initial insight into how the school should change in the future. They have the ability to see and illuminate the path towards that change. This insight is particularly special when it comes from legacy families of diverse backgrounds, who can provide firsthand accounts of how Princeton has changed, and stayed the same, in regards to diversity and inclusion. Intentionally removing these students from our campus community would eliminate the potential for growth that an evolving institution of legacy provides.

Though socioeconomic diversity is sparse among the children of Princeton

graduates, diversity of race, religion, gender, and sexuality are all found in the modern pool of legacy applicants. This diversity is not only rapidly increasing, but is fairly recent: Princeton was integrated by three black men from the class of 1949, of whom only one graduated. That man, Robert Joseph Rivers, had three children who graduated in the classes of ‘81, ‘83, and ‘86. While Princeton does not publish explicit data about legacy admissions, it’s likely that they were among, if not the first, black legacy students to graduate from Princeton. Black legacy at Princeton has only existed for about 40 years, and the small pool is presumably growing at approximately the same rate with which diversity of the student body grew after integration. Especially since the children of those who benefitted from the beginning of affirmative action in 1963 started applying in the nineties.

The continuing diversification of legacies means new benefits of legacy admissions. These legacies go further than “play[ing] a role in fostering the intergenerational community Princeton values so strongly,” as Park suggests. They have special knowledge of campus history, tradition, and culture. These students can help us learn from our past to create a better future. This is realized in an incredible lineage of black female Princetonians who truly embody the potential impact of diversifying legacy: Linda Blackburn ‘71, Akira Bell ‘95, and Samantha Johnson ‘23. Blackburn was a member of Princeton’s first co-ed class, Bell and Johnson were, respectively, the first-ever second and third generation female Princetonians, of any race. These trailblazers have paved the way for countless Princetonians after them, and used their unique perspectives to make important contributions to our community. They have publicly discussed their shared hardships and the difficulties of being overlooked as Black female Princetonians, participated in initiatives to foster community among Princeton’s Black alumni, and advocated for continued inclusion on campus. These women used the unique experience of being a student from a marginalized identity on Princeton’s campus, to drive further

change for future generations. Having that history memorialized through legacy admissions is an essential tool for understanding diversity and inclusion at Princeton. It is impossible to grow as a community without the perspective of those who experienced these challenges firsthand.

The reason why I was able to share the story of this incredible family, is that my parents were classmates of Bell, graduating in the class of 1995. Without my personal connection to this history, I probably would not have known their story. For my family, legacy has allowed us to have a more robust understanding of our shared experience as black Princetonians. Being both parents and alumni gives my mom and dad a unique perspective, which informs how they chose to give back to Princeton. Likewise, I draw from their past experiences in my attempts to change and improve our campus community.

We have yet to fully explore and experience the impact that diversity within the legacy pool can have on our campus community. The premature abolishment of

legacy admissions ignores the potential impact of increasing diversity. Instead of just ending legacy, we should focus on diversity and institutional memory for change-making. Undeniably, legacy’s primary purpose has been exclusion and elitism, but changing who is a legacy student also changes the nature of legacy. We should ensure that continuing to include legacy students doesn’t necessarily prevent a student body that reflects the diversity of this country. But we should also recognize that legacies can contribute something unique, not just to ‘preserve’ Princeton’s traditions, as is often argued, but also to change them. This necessary change can be catalyzed by students who have a robust understanding of past and present campus issues. Time to evolve with each new class will allow the legacy system to realize its potential, driving Princeton forward, and encouraging our community to continue changing with our times, and for the better.

Ava Johnson is a first-year columnist from Washington D.C.

ANGEL KUO / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN A mother and daughter walk in the P-Rade.

America is facing a retirement crisis, and Princetonians

Jason Seo Guest Contributor

We often consider Princeton, like many other elite universities, to be the golden ticket for a life of success. But outside of the Orange Bubble, there is a dire warning for us all: managing our personal finances has become much more challenging, even for those with high incomes. In response to the retirement crisis, the University must emphasize the importance of financial literacy to its students.

The retirement crisis originates from our current financial struggles. As of November 2023, 62 percent of U.S. consumers are living paycheckto-paycheck. Household credit card debt is at a record high of $1.08 trillion. Many Americans do not have a sufficient emergency fund, and 22 percent have none at all.

Consequently, many Americans are also not on track for their retirement. 47 percent of Americans are at risk of being unprepared for retirement, and 28 percent of Americans have no retirement savings at all. The Social Security program is projected to deplete its reserves in 2034, which will reduce retiree benefits to 77 percent of the original amount. While the cost of retirement is persistently increasing, our savings are not keeping up.

Unfortunately, the financial situation of younger Americans is even worse. A study from the National Bureau of Economic Research found that millennials “had less median and mean wealth in 2016 than any similarly aged cohort between 1989 and 2007.” In fact, 70 percent of millennials are living paycheck-to-paycheck, which is more than any other generation according to the study. The verdict is clear — America is in a retirement crisis, and it’s not getting any better for younger generations.

So then, how does this concern a student at Princeton? Fundamentally, aren’t elite universities supposed to set students on the path towards financial success?

After all, it is not entirely baseless to assume that Princeton graduates will be unaffected by the retirement crisis. By age 34, the median annual income for Princeton graduates is $90,700. Even outside Princeton, many graduates of elite universities will earn well above the median national household income of $74,580.

Princeton recently expanded its 100 percent grant-based financial aid to all students with a family income up to $100,000, and now 83 percent of “recent seniors” graduating debt-free.

However, even a six-figure income is no longer synonymous with financial security. As of November 2023, 45 percent of American consumers earning

are not immune to it

at least $100,000 annually were living paycheck-to-paycheck. Why then, are there so many people — those we typically consider “financially successful” — struggling with their finances? Simply put, we don’t keep enough of what we earn. But we already know the solution to that problem. Most of us — if not all of us — already are aware that we should form good financial habits. Some of the most common financial regrets cited in the survey are “not saving for retirement early enough,” “not saving enough for emergency expenses,” and “taking on too much credit card debt.” The real challenge lies in actually implementing that solution.

As psychologist Hal Hershfield notes, the challenge in preparing for our financial future is that our future selves often feel like complete strangers to us. In “Your Future Self,” he explains that “we tend to think that the feelings we have in the future will somehow be less intense than the ones we have now.” Because our longterm financial goals often feel like a far-too-distant future, younger generations often do not save for their retirement.

As a result, we lose our most valuable resource in investing: time.

For instance, let’s suppose that starting at age 25, you contribute $100 monthly in an investment account that compounds 10 percent annually. If

you retire at age 67, you would have approximately $645,164. However, if you started investing at age 35 instead, you would end up with approximately $241,365. The snowball effect of compound interest can make the difference in achieving our financial goals (you can experiment with compound interest using this calculator).

In an effort to address this issue, Princeton maintains a website on financial literacy that contains various resources for its students. A notable example is the newly-released program iGrad, which offers multiple self-assessments, articles, and videos on personal finance.

However, Princeton ultimately fails to sufficiently emphasize the importance of financial literacy as a crucial lifelong skill to its students. The University does not require students to study financial literacy, and as a result, treats personal finance as an optional aspect of its education.

But the reality is that financial literacy is not optional. Personal finance is just as critical as learning how to communicate with others and analyze the world. We make financial decisions on a daily basis, such as purchasing food, ordering goods online, or paying for transportation. Although Princeton boasts a generous financial aid program to reduce student debt, it has yet to focus on truly equipping its students

with the ability to manage their own finances after graduation. If Princeton sincerely intends to prepare its students for a life of success and service, it must treat financial literacy as a mandatory skill for all students. This could be achieved through a new course requirement or an online training program, which would educate students on topics such as the importance of investing early, the function of various financial products, and how to create an effective budget.

Many of us will likely be making some of the most important financial decisions of our lives after our time at college, such as applying for a mortgage, choosing an insurance plan, or investing for retirement. But without any prior experience or guidance, it will be difficult for recent graduates to make the optimal choice.

Staying on top of our monthly expenses, let alone preparation for retirement, is now an increasingly daunting task. While it may seem like a fartoo-distant future now, there eventually will be a day when we decide to retire. Don’t let your future self regret the financial choices you make today.

Jason Seo is a first-year undergraduate from Atlanta, G.A. intending to major in Economics.

Princeton should add a religion minor

Anna Ferris Contributing Columnist

We even have a Gutenberg Bible in the library!”

Orange Key tour guides are pointing out something far more important than just a fun fact when they share this: faith is a discipline deeply embedded in Princeton’s history. The academic study of religion — separate from practice or proselytization — is a unique amalgamation of ethics, philosophy, English, comparative literature, and history.

From HIS241: Faith and Power in the Indian Ocean Arena to ENG298: Myth and Mythography in the Early Modern World, even classes outside the Department of Religion are preoccupied with religion. In attaining a well-rounded education in any of the described fields, a student will inevitably encounter thoughtprovoking questions about religion and its role in morality and public life. Because of this, Princetonians might appreciate the opportunity to further plumb the depths of these issues without having to make Religion their concentration — so why don’t they? The issue lies in the current

lack of a minor or certificate program in the Department of Religion. According to The Daily Princetonian’s 2023 Senior Survey, only about 0.7% of last year’s graduating class obtained a degree in Religion. While 74% of classes offered at the University have fewer than 20 students, REL 263: Religion and its Modern Critics and REL 230: Who Wrote the Bible alone drew a combined 181 students last semester. Clearly, Princetonians seek the opportunity to study faith — but they aren’t given the ability to pursue it in an official capacity.

Introducing a religion minor would help Princeton live up to its commitment to thoroughly interdisciplinary undergraduate education. While the Department of Religion welcomes anyone who’d like to take one (or many) of their classes, there are few ways to officially declare one’s commitment to the study of religion alongside other subjects. Comparative Literature majors may choose to focus on Religion as a textual discipline, for example, but what about those pursuing other majors? At Harvard, students can choose to study Religion as a secondary field. The curriculum allows upperclassmen to specialize in a particu -

lar era or geographical region that may complement their primary coursework.

In contrast, at Princeton, students who are fascinated by the academic study of faith — alongside one or more other topics — are often forced to choose when it comes time to declare at the end of sophomore year. Minors and certificates, like Judaic Studies and Near Eastern Studies, allow for the study of certain fields within the religion discipline, but require hyperspecialization that is less attractive to students seeking a broader education in the department.

Additionally, the lack of a minor is a stumbling block for those who want to incorporate religion into their theses. While some minors — like Values and Public Life — have inbuilt tracks allowing students to integrate ethics and theology into their theses, there are no such tracks for, say, science and religion, or religious history. For many non-religion majors, it seems like there are no formalized avenues to substantively include religious research in their theses.

Without being able to declare a minor, students cannot actually call themselves a part of the Department of Religion. Therefore, they wouldn’t

have access to departmental resources, which could create obstacles to conducting independent research. There are departments who have implemented certificates/minors that support students in exploring their respective disciplines through their independent work. The math department, for example, has students in the Applied and Computational Mathematics certificate do independent work that allows them to go deeper into a particular subject area they’ve studied during their time in the program. There is no equivalent that would allow non-religionmajors to conduct curricular independent work in the field. An official religion minor would give Princetonians a clear, cohesive academic path, instead of leaving them to choose a smattering of classes without departmental guidance. What might that path look like? A thorough religion minor could contain requirements for faith-informed political theory, scientific ethics, and religious criticism, and the classes already offered on the major world religions. This would make the program accessible for students across both A.B. and B.S.E disciplines, but applicable to a great number of more specific academic

interests. Rather than having multiple tracks that wave to faith within other majors and certificates, the religion minor could be something of a one-stop-shop.

The University website describes the role of minors and certificates as enabling “students to supplement their work in their departmental concentrations with focused study in another, often interdisciplinary, field.”

The study of religion is clearly supplemental to a variety of disciplines: philosophy questions the existence of a divine presence, history is littered with holy wars, ancient religious texts provide some of our best-kept records of dead languages, and faith continues to inform politics and medical practice worldwide. By Princeton’s own reasoning, religion is a prime choice for a new minor. A really well-rounded education should offer students the chance to work closely with religion faculty and say with pride: “I study [Molecular Biology, SPIA, English, etc.] and Religion.”

Anna Ferris is a sophomore from Pittsburgh, PA intending to major in English.

vol. cxlviii

editor-in-chief

Eden Teshome '25

president

business manager

Aidan Phillips ’25

BOARD OF TRUSTEES

Thomas E. Weber ’89

vice president

David Baumgarten ’06

secretary

Chanakya A. Sethi ’07

treasurer

Douglas Widmann ’90

assistant treasurer

Kavita Saini ’09

trustees

Francesca Barber

Craig Bloom ’88

Kathleen Crown

Suzanne Dance ’96

Gabriel Debenedetti ’12

Stephen Fuzesi ’00

Zachary A. Goldfarb ’05

Michael Grabell ’03

Danielle Ivory ’05

Rick Klein ’98

James T. MacGregor ’66

Julianne Escobedo Shepherd

Abigail Williams ’14

Tyler Woulfe ’07

trustees ex officio

Eden Teshome ’25

Aidan Phillips ’25

148TH MANAGING BOARD

Ryan Konarska ’25

upper management

Naisha Sylvestre ’25

director of outreach

Lia Opperman ’25

Accessibility

Christopher Bao ’27

Education

Charlie Roth ’25

Tess Weinreich ’25

Lucia Wetherill ’25

creative director

Mary Ma ’26

Financial Stipend

Elaine Huang ’25

Sections listed in alphabetical order. public editor

Abigail Rabieh ’25

head archives editor

Raphaela Gold ’26

Kaylee Kasper ’26

Associate Archives editor

Elizabeth Clarke ’27

head audience editor

Paige Walworth ’26

associate audience editors

Zach Lee ’26

Amparo Sanchez ’27

head copy editors

Nathan Beck ’25

Bryan Zhang ’26

associate head copy editors

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head data editors

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head features editors

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associate features editor

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head graphics editors

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head humor editors

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associate humor editors

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head news editors

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associate news editors

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head newsletter editor Kia Ghods ’27

associate newsletter editors

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head puzzles editors

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associate puzzles editors

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head sports editors

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associate sports editors

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head web design and development editors

Yacoub Kahkajian ’26

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148TH BUSINESS BOARD

assistant business manager

Jessica Funk ’26

business directors

Gabriel Gullett ’25

Andrew He ’26

Tejas Iyer ’26

Jordan Manela ’26

chief technology officer

Revive the creative writing program’s application process

The Creative Writing (CWR) program has long been a favorite of the University’s students across class years, degree options, and concentrations. This semester, hundreds of students enrolled in CWR courses, hoping to snatch one of the few spots available. Who filled these coveted spots came down to rather insignificant elements: the reaction time of a mouse click, internet speed, or a cleared cache.

Two years ago, it was not this way. Students had to apply to get into Creative Writing classes with a writing sample. The shift away from applications leveled the playing field for getting spots in Creative Writing classes, but the new free-for-all system neglects to consider students’ personal reasons for taking CWR classes. Due to the department’s extreme competitiveness, this potentially denies great candidates for these classes the chance to participate in the program for all of their four years. The CWR program should reinstate an application system so that it can build diverse classes of students dedicated to contributing to their CWR class.

First come, first served systems usually yield fair outcomes, and they can help ensure that CWR classes are composed of students from different class years, pursuing different majors, and with different interests. But this isn’t necessarily the best approach for the CWR program. Too often, people turn to CWR courses for an easy

fifth class or LA requirement and therefore don’t make the most of the opportunity the class provides. In one fiction class, due to a consistent lack of participation, the professor warned students that they were at risk of ending the class with a D if they did not change their approach. Since the CWR department is so small, these kinds of students filled seats that others with a true passion about writing or who hoped to explore it for the first time in university could have enjoyed.

This is not to say that students shouldn’t be allowed to pursue a balanced course load that fulfills their requirements, nor that classes should only be taken by the students who will be the most dedicated to them. At 96 percent capacity in Fall 2022, CWR is notably popular compared to other programs. In a small program with such high demand, there should be a distinguishing factor that privileges students who want to take the classes for academic interest over others hoping to take an “easy” class. An application that included a question about why students were applying would filter out those students who weren’t committed enough to bother with an application, as well as those without a clear sense of why they wanted to join the class.

This is not to say that the CWR department should only accept good or experienced writers. Students now pursuing the CWR minor or those who wrote creatively throughout high school could very well have clear reasons as to why they want to take a CWR course now at Princeton. Still, having an

application where students can articulate their experience, or lack thereof, in writing could also help give students new to creative writing a chance. With an application process, professors could intentionally craft classes that bring together students with varying writing experience and diverse backgrounds, including those who may not have traditionally taken a CWR course in their program of study. There will be downsides to reinstating an application in the CWR department, just as there were downsides when the application was removed. There is unfairness in both systems: in the random system, the people who want to participate and could benefit the most may never have a chance to take a creative writing class; in the application-based system, bias in selection could lead to student resentment or demotivation at not being able to participate. But there’s a difference between fairness by leaving the selection of students up to luck and fairness through the conscious selection of students for CWR courses. One is intractable; the other is solvable through inclusive intention and just selection guidelines. A solvable problem is much better than an intractable one — CWR should bring back applications, with a centered focus on fairness and opportunity.

Sarah Park is a contributing columnist for the ‘Prince’ and a first-year intending to pursue a major in Comparative Literature. She is from Manila, Philippines.

Robert Mohan ’26

Kok Wei Pua ’25

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project managers

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148TH TECHNOLOGY BOARD

Austin Li ’26

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lead software engineer

Sanh Nguyen ’26

software engineers

Anika Agarwal ’25

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THIS PRINT ISSUE WAS DESIGNED BY

Avi Chesler ’25

Malia Gaviola ’26

AND COPIED BY Bryan Zhang

Ethan Cheng ’27

Haruka Nabeshima ’27

the PROSPECT. ARTS & CULTURE

The stunning range of Triple 8’s “Montage”

By Emma Cinocca | Staff Prospect Writer

On Friday, Feb. 2, I waited in the audience for the lights to go up for Triple 8’s 2024 show, “Montage.” Slowly, and then all at once, Frist Theatre came alive with lowlights. The show had begun. The stage quickly flooded with dancers as the first piece began, a high-energy hip-hop number. My interest was piqued in those first minutes, and for a good reason — they opened the show with a force and precision capable of drawing audiences in, yet didn’t allow the audience to grow too comfortable with a single kind of movement.

Soon enough, the dancers moved into smooth, contemporary pieces that proved to be equally emotive and wellcoordinated. Some numbers were slow, with dancers seeming to contemplate each step they took, while others were more energetic, demanding attention with body control and confidence. But the array of dance genres did not end there. A solo martial arts demonstration astounded a receptive audience with aerial cartwheels and jumps that remained suspended for whole seconds of airtime. All the while, the dancer’s face was schooled into a practiced calm, making him seem at ease despite the intricate routine.

As the montage unfolded, dancers transitioned through numbers in stylistic twists and turns, imploring the audience to stay on their toes.

In addition to being a beautiful collection of choreographic, costuming, and musical choices — which ranged from smooth instrumentals to lyric songs — the show also embraced its theme on a literal level. At a few points, the lighting played on the audience’s perception of the dancers, blacking out the stage for seconds at a time, only to reveal the dancers positioned somewhere new. The stop motion-esque effect brought the show’s title to life as more than a nominal theme. With this inclusion, the montage was unmistakable, as the show blinked in and out of focus like a slideshow of breathtakingly varied vignettes.

The dramatic flair conveyed by many of the pieces was well balanced by moments of humor allowed the audience a reprieve at several moments. An introduction video of Triple 8’s newest dancers visiting MTea and Maruichi and the spotlight video for Triple 8’s senior-year members recreating a dance to 小 (“My Little Apple”) added a light-hearted, comedic value to the show, while showcasing the evident friendship between the dancers.

As the show reached its conclusion, I realized why its impact had been so strong: the dancers never allowed the audience to become complacent. I had repeatedly thought through the course of the show that the piece I was currently watching was my favorite yet, only for it to seemingly be topped mere minutes later. “Montage” only seemed

to get better, as each piece showcased a different skill set of Triple 8’s dancers, all asking the audience to engage with the performance in a different way. The result was as exciting and fresh as it was elegant and poised. The diversity of dance numbers gave it a certain rewatchability, a quality that stuck with me. As I made my way out of Frist, excit-

edly chatting with a friend about what we’d just watched, I couldn’t help but wish for the opportunity to watch it all over again.

Emma Cinocca is a staff writer for The Prospect from Tulsa, Oklahoma. She is a member of the Class of 2027.

The virtual reality experience of the Mahler Chamber Orchestra

By Chloe Lau | Staff Prospect Writer

The Mahler Chamber Orchestra, a world-renowned nomadic ensemble known for performing everything from Viennese classical and early Romantic periods to contemporary works, hosted four classical concerts from January 18 to 21 during Wintersession. The audience could move around, over, under, and even through the musicians, thanks to virtual reality. This was the North American premiere of the concert experience, which was pre-recorded in

two historic Berlin churches over the span of three years. The event was sponsored by Princeton University Concerts (PUC). Seconds after strapping on a bulky white headset, I found myself in the dimly lit St. Elisabeth-Kirche. Five musicians materialized before me, their facial features and figures clearly outlined. As Mozart’s “Allegro from String Quintet in G Minor, K. 516” started, the sound quality startled me: the notes’ slight echo made me feel as though I were actually in the old church. The volume of each in -

strument adjusted according to my proximity. I crouched by the first violin for the piercing melodies, put my ear under the cello to hear the steady bassline, and pretended to play along with the viola’s moving parts. For the first time, I was able to watch a classical concert from countless angles and move around freely — all while the visuals changed seamlessly as I roamed across the space.

For the second piece, Charles Ives’ “The Unanswered Question,” the string quartet was farther away on the altar and shrouded in a hazy, white glow. Contrary to Mozart’s Allegro vivacity, this piece sustained a steady, quiet beginning. The woodwind quartet stood on the right side of the church, fading in and out. Suddenly, a trumpet began playing right next to me, eventually disappearing after his solo. As he entered and exited, the trumpet player stood at varying distances from the altar, experimenting with the acoustics of the church. It was the only moving instrument — everyone else remained still. The headset perfectly mimicked real-life spatial sounds: I closed my eyes and could easily tell where each instrument was positioned.

Finally, Mendelssohn’s “A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Op. 61” unfolded in the full glamor of the full 45-person chamber orchestra in Meistersaal, another historic church in Berlin.

According to VR creator Henrik Oppermann, each instrument and musician was represented as an abstract cluster of dots to create the visuals, and the sound was supplied from 99 microphones distributed around the orchestra. There were no visual or audio lags, allowing me to move comfortably through the concert. The immersive experience came to a climax as I walked through all the instruments playing simultaneously. I danced with the strings for the main theme, then strolled to the wind’s lively tunes, stood among the percussion players, and even tried conducting the orchestra.

The Mahler Chamber Orchestra’s VR concerts provided an intimate view into each part of the orchestra, allowing viewers to interact and listen closely to individual parts of the piece that normally could not be heard in person. As the only classical music Wintersession performance that took place on campus, the limited slots filled up quickly with 36 total students participating. The event was a unique opportunity for musicians and non-musicians alike to be a part of the orchestra.

Chloe Lau is a staff Prospect writer and a staff Features writer for the ‘Prince.’

EMMA CINOCCA / THE DAILY PRINCETONIAN Triple 8 Dancers during their Feb. 2 performance of “Montage.”

The Prospect 11 Weekly Event Roundup

By Russell Fan, Dhyana Mishra & Alexandra Montgomery | Associate Prospect Editor & Staff Copy Editors

“Timelapse”: New Dance Works by Olivia Buckhorn and Ethan Luk

February 15, 16, 17 at 8:30 p.m.

Hearst Dance Theater at Lewis Arts Complex

Two dance works by Olivia Buckhorn ’24 and Ethan Luk ’24 “explore non-linear modes of temporality, the fissures between internal and external landscapes, and the role of the community within the construction of chronology,” according to the Lewis Center for the Arts website. Buckhorn choreographed “Frequencies,” which uses a rotating structure to portray relationships between time and space, and Luk choreographed “but me you have forgotten,” which investigates the ideals of the past and resurrection in performance. This event is free and open to the public, and tickets are required.

1 2 3 4

“Scenario for a Past Future” and Avant-Garde Immersive Worlds

February 13 from 5–7 p.m.

Hurley Gallery at Lewis Arts ComplexLocation

In a conversation with architect Hani Rashid and architectural historian Daniela Fabricius, Josephine Meckseper will “discuss modernist models for immersive architecture,” while “addressing the possibili- ties and limitations of contemporary digital architecture and cultural implications of inhabiting digital environments,” according to the Lewis Center for the Arts website. This event will be presented within the virtual space of the Hurley Gallery exhibition. It will also be accessible via a Zoom webinar. The panel discussion and associated exhibition are free and open to the public, and no tickets are required.

“House Guest”, a new translation by Sandra Chen ’24

February 16 at 7:30 p.m. and February 17 at 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m.

Donald G. Drapkin Studio at Lewis Arts Complex

Directed by Icey Siyi Ai ’25, this staged reading of Sandra Chen’s ’24 English translation of Nick Rongjun Yu’s contemporary play House Guest is a story that honors an older generation of contemporary Chinese scholars. This showcase questions the nature of fate and legacy, and contemplates how we are impacted by the choices we make for ourselves. This event is free and open to the public, and tickets are required.

Atelier@Large: Conversations on Art-making in an Vexed Era — Jennifer Finney Boylan and Bridget Kearney

February 13 at 4:30 p.m. in Richardson Auditorium

As part of a series of conversations that explores modern artists’ art-making process, Pulitzer Prize- winning poet and Princeton Atelier director Paul Muldoon moderates a discussion with Bridget Kearney, a songwriter, producer, and founding member of the band Lake Street Dive, and Jennifer Finney Boylan, a transgender author , of eighteen books and inaugural Anna Quindlen Writer in Residence and Professor of English at Barnard College. This event is free and open to the public, and no tickets are required.

C.K. Williams

5 6 7 Performance, Policy, and Pedagogy: A Conversation About Arts Education

February 13 from 5–6:30 p.m.

Taplin Auditorium at Fine Hall

In honor of their fifth anniversary, Trenton Arts at Princeton is inviting four individuals to discuss the state of arts education. These guest speakers include director of the Harmony Program Anne Fitzgibbon ’98; manager of Princeton’s robotics lab Baffour Osei; Anna Yu Wang, assistant professor of music at Princeton; and acting supervisor of visual and performing arts and partnerships for the Trenton Public Schools Elizabeth Zwierzynski. No registration nor tickets are required.

8

Reading by Vauhini Vara

February 13 at 5:30 p.m.

Godfrey Kerr Theater Studio at Lewis Arts Complex

Vauhini Vara, author of the bestselling story collection “This is Salvaged” and the novel “The Immortal King Rao” (a finalist for the 2022 Pulitzer Prize), will read from her work along with several seniors in the Program in Creative Writing. This event is open to the public. Tickets are currently sold out, but a standby line will form outside the Drapkin Studio 30 minutes before the event. Unclaimed seats will be made available to those in line, with preference given to Princeton students.

2024 Thomas Edison Film Festival Premiere Screening

February 16 at 6:30 p.m. (in-person) in James Stewart Film Theater at 185 Nassau St. and February 17 at 4 p.m. (virtual through Zoom)

In collaboration with the Lewis Center for the Arts, the 43rd season of the Thomas Edison Film Festival (TEFF) will premiere seven awardwinning films, host a live-streamed discussion with filmmakers, and provide on-demand viewings of those seven films on the festival website (available on Feb. 16). These films cover a variety of genres including animation, dance, and documentary. Both the in-person premiere and live-streamed discussion are open to the public.

10

Photo History’s Futures: Emilie Boone

February 13 at 5 p.m.

Room 101 at Friend Center

As part of the Photo History’s Fu- tures series that highlights innovative voices in the field, the Department of Art and Archaeol- ogy and the Princeton University Art Museum invite Emilie Boone, an assistant professor in art history at New York University, to discuss her publication titled “A Nimble Arc: James Van Der Zee and Photography.” This event will be moderated by Jessica Williams Stark, the McCormick Postdoctoral Research Associate in the History of Photography. This event is free and open to the public, and no tickets are required.

9

Hip-Hop Techniques and Foundations: Breaking with K’niin Abbrey

February 17 from 1:30–3 p.m. in Ellie’s Studio

Lewis Arts Complex

This event is part of a co-curricular class series that “develops a diverse understanding of foundational techniques in street and club dance,” according to the Lewis Center for the Arts website. Some dance styles that will be introduced include hip-hop, house, and popping. This class will be taught by guest teacher K’niin Abbrey, a performance artist who specializes in street dance, video digital arts, and music production. This event is free and open to the public, and no advance registration is required.

11 Theater Performance & Audition Co-curricular Classes with Sam Gravitte ’17 and Runako Campbell ’21

February 12 from 4:45–6:15 p.m. in Drapkin Studio at Lewis Arts Complex

Led by Sam Gravitte ’17, a New York City-based actor who starred in “Wicked” on Broadway, this workshop is part of a series of classes (held by Gravitte and Runako Campbell ’21, another New York City-based performing artist who made her Broadway debut in “Jagged Little Pill”) that offer bespoke coaching on singing, auditions, monologues, and dance. This event is open to all Princeton students, and no registration or tickets are required.

Drawing Figures from the Collections | Colored Pencils: Focus on Portraiture

February 15 at 8 p.m. (virtual through Zoom)

As part of Princeton University Art Museum’s collaboration with the Arts Council of Princeton to provide free virtual drawing classes, this live art-making class will focus on portrait drawing. It will be taught by artist-instructor Barbara DiLorenzo, and its inspiration revolves around Walter Fryer Stocks’s chalk drawing “Mrs. Fanny Eaton”, an art piece in the Museum’s collections. This event is free and open to the public, and registration on Zoom is required. This event will include live closed captions in both English and Spanish.

This week in Princeton Athletics, inside and outside of the orange bubble

By Hayk Yengibaryan Associate Sports Editor

This week, Princeton athletes climbed the rankings, had action in the major leagues, and made a splash in international sporting competitions. Coming off of a historic 2023 calendar year that saw many Princeton athletics programs find success in the postseason, The Daily Princetonian looked at how Tigers past and present have made their mark in the sporting world this week.

Tosan Evbuomwan ’23 plays first two games with the Grizzlies

After signing a 10-day contract with the Memphis Grizzlies, former Ivy League Player of the Year Tosan Evbuomwan made good use of the minutes he was given during his first two games with the team.

Evbuomwan played his first career NBA game against the Golden State Warriors last Friday. Despite his team’s loss, Evbuomwan played 16 minutes, scoring three points, grabbing one rebound, and recording one assist. He had an increased role on Monday evening against the Boston Celtics. In 29 minutes of action, Evbuomwan grabbed a game-high 12 boards. Per Bluff City Media writer and podcaster Shawn Coleman on X, “Tosan Evbuomwan is only the 5th NBA reserve to grab 9 or [more] boards in the first quarter of a game since quarter stats began being tracked in the 96-97 season.”

Kaitlyn Chen ’23 earns weekly honors, AP Poll Update

On Monday morning, the Ivy League announced its weekly honors. Senior guard Kaitlyn Chen was named the Ivy League Women’s Basketball Player of the Week.

Furthermore, on Tuesday, the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA) announced that Chen had earned Player of the Week Honors. This is her second time receiving the honor from the MBWA.

Across the two wins the Tigers notched at Jadwin Gymnasium last weekend against Yale and Brown, Chen averaged 22 points, five rebounds, and four and a half assists.

Chen’s exceptional performance across her career has made such achievements a regular occurrence, as Tuesday’s announcement marks the fifth time in her career and the second time this season that she has earned the Player of the Week award.

After going 2–0 over the weekend, the Tigers remained at No. 25 in the weekly AP Top 25 Women’s College Basketball Poll. However, the Tigers beat No. 24 Oklahoma by doubledigits at a neutral site earlier this season but are still ranked below them. In the latest Bracketology projections for the NCAA tournaments, ESPN analyst Charlie Creme has the Tigers at the nine seed. Princeton will return to the court this weekend when they head to The Palestra in Philadelphia to play the Penn Quakers.

Men’s volleyball ranked No. 10 in latest AVCA Coach’s Poll

On Monday, the American Volleyball Coaches Association released its weekly poll. Following their win over the then-No. 10 ranked Pepperdine Waves, the Tigers come in as the new No. 10 in the Feb. 5 poll. Junior pin Nyherowo Omene has been the player to watch for the Tigers. The Illinois native has 117 kills this season and has been key to the Tigers’ recent successes.

You can catch the nationally-ranked Tigers in action this weekend at Dillon Gymnasium when they host Lincoln Memorial and Sacred Heart.

Ashleigh Johnson ’17 and Jovana Sekulic ’26 representing the United States at 2024 World Aquatics World Championships

The USA Women’s Water Polo Team is currently in Doha, Qatar for the 2024 Aquatics World Championships. The reigning Olympic champions will have both familiar and fresh faces in the water in Doha.

Goalie Ashleigh Johnson ’17 — who is a two-time Olympic champion with the squad — is the first-choice goalie for the United States. In the team’s first match against the Netherlands, Johnson recorded six key saves against the Dutch to propel the United States to a crucial 10–8 victory.

On the other hand, sophomore Jovana Sekulic is playing in her first major tournament for the United States.

After a stellar two years with the Tigers, Sekulic opted to take a gap year in hopes of making the 13-person Olympic roster for the Paris games. After not making the roster for the 2023 Pan American Games, Sekulic was selected for the World Championships roster. Despite not scoring in the first match against the Dutch, Sekulic found the back of the net three times against Brazil in the second pool game for the United States.

You can catch both Johnson and Sekulic in action Thursday morning against Kazakhstan at 9:30 a.m. EST.

Another Milestone for Theresa Sherry ’04

On Jan. 27, former Tiger women’s lacrosse standout Theresa Sherry ’04 was named to the Greater Baltimore Lacrosse Foundation Hall of Fame.

Sherry has written her name in the history books of Princeton lacrosse. She won four Ivy League titles with the Tigers and two national championships in 2002 and 2003. Furthermore, she earned four All-Ivy honors and also played varsity soccer, winning three Ivy League titles with them during her time as a Tiger.

Women’s Swim and Dive breaks school relay record at HYP meet

The Princeton women’s 400m freestyle relay team finished the iconic Harvard-YalePrinceton (HYP) swim meet in stellar fashion. Sophomore Sabrina Johnston, junior Ela Noble, senior Ellie Marquardt, and sophomore Heidi Smith -

wick broke the 400m freestyle relay school record, touching the wall after 3:15.08.

Women’s swim and dive defeated both Harvard and Yale at Denunzio Pool at the conclusion of the two-day meet at which the Tigers honored their seniors.

Looking ahead

At home, No. 8 ranked women’s water polo will host Villanova on Thursday evening at 6:30 p.m. for their home opener. On Friday, wrestling will host powerhouse Cornell at 7 p.m. Men’s basketball will play rival Penn at Jadwin Gym on Saturday evening at 6 p.m. The first 500 fans in attendance will receive a limitededition magnet.

No. 12 ranked women’s ice hockey will host No. 3 Clarkson on Friday evening at 6 p.m. before hosting No. 6 St. Lawrence on Saturday afternoon. No. 2 ranked men’s squash will host No. 1 ranked Penn Saturday afternoon at noon. Following the conclusion of the event, the No. 4 ranked women’s squash team will play against No. 3 ranked Penn.

In championship competitions, men’s and women’s fencing will compete in the Ivy League Championships this weekend at Columbia University, while women’s tennis will compete in the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships in Boston, Massachusetts over the weekend.

Hayk Yengibaryan is an associate Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’

Grizzlies, Tosan Evbuomwan ’23 has featured in two games thus far with the team.

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

Women’s basketball breaks back into top 25 after Ivy play dominance

By Tate Hutchins Associate Sports Editor

Back on Dec. 3, a game-tying shot fell short at the buzzer against the Rhode Island Rams to hand Princeton a two-point loss and bounce them from the top 25 rankings. Since that point, it’s been nothing but dominance from women’s basketball (15–3 overall, 5–0 Ivy League), and now they are back to No. 25 in both the AP and WBCA polls.

“Being ranked as one of the top 25 schools feels really good. We have been working,” star sophomore guard Madison St. Rose wrote to The Daily Princetonian.

“I believe the main reason as to why we [have] been so successful so far is because of our practices. We are constantly trying to push each other every single day so that when it comes to playing against different teams, we feel confident about the game plan,” she added, on the Tiger’s success.

Since the loss, the Tigers have been on a ten-game win streak where the outcome has been rarely in doubt. They closed out five non-conference games with wins over the likes of the Rutgers Scarlet Knights and Villanova Wildcats, and are a perfect 5–0 to kick off Ivy play. They’ve dominated

the Ivy, winning by an average of 28.0 points and establishing them as the new heavy favorite to win the conference.

The Tigers also needed just 28 points to earn their place in the AP rankings this time around — in November, they needed all of 58 points for the No. 25 spot.

This is likely due to the fact that AP voters tend to vote for more established programs, like Princeton, at the beginning of the season, since many of the lesserknown suspects still haven’t had the chance to prove themselves against top competition.

As the season progresses, the year’s overachievers prove themselves worthy of AP votes and receive them accordingly, taking what would have been votes for the Tigers earlier in the season as a result.

Some notable games from the Tiger’s hot streak include a comeback 80–65 win over the Columbia Lions to seize the outright Ivy lead and a dominant 79–38 victory over the Cornell Big Red to open Ivy League play. The Princeton Women’s “Get Stops” mantra has been evident in their performance, holding opponents under 50 points in four of their last five games.

Leading the way for the Tigers

has been St. Rose averaging 15.9 points and senior guard Kaitlyn Chen with 14.9 points per game on the season. Senior forward Ellie Mitchell has been a defensive anchor with 10.7 rebounds per game as well.

The wins have also led to multiple honors for Princeton. Head coach Carla Berube was recently named to the watchlist for the Kathy Delaney-Smith Mid-Major Coach of the Year. Mitchell and Chen have both picked up an Ivy Player of the Week award this academic year, while first-year guard Skye Belker has won Ivy Rookie of the Week three times.

The solid start bodes well for Princeton, who have been known to close out the season tremendously well. Their current win streak is the longest since they had a 15-game win streak during the NCAA Tournament last season after downing the NC State Wolfpack in the first round as an 11 seed. If they were to pick up another March Madness win this year, it would mark three straight seasons with a second-round appearance, a feat not accomplished by any Ivy League basketball team in recent history.

As Princeton looks to carry their strong play through the remainder of Ivy play, March

continues to grow closer. ESPN’s bracketology puts the Tigers as a 10 seed and rising in their latest projections for the NCAA Tournament, which would land them in March Madness even without winning the Ivy tournament.

“Our mentality heading into the rest of the season is to play every game as if it were a championship,” St. Rose wrote to the ‘Prince.’ “In order for us to pursue our big goals of being Ivy League Champs and playing in the March

Madness Tournament, we need to make sure we take each opponent seriously, no matter what their ranking in the conference is,” she added.

Princeton will be the favorite by far in their ranked re-debut against the Yale Bulldogs (4–14 overall, 1–4 Ivy League) Friday at 7 p.m. in Jadwin Gymnasium.

Tate Hutchins is an associate Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’

No. 16 men’s volleyball triumphant in home opener

By Josefina Gurevich Staff Sports Writer

The No. 16 Princeton men’s volleyball team dominated at their midweek home opener against the No. 12 UC Santa Barbara (UCSB) Gauchos, winning three sets to one (25–18, 24–26, 25–16, 25–21).

After this decisive win, the Tigers now possess a 1–0 home record and a 4–3 away record, after recently losing two consecutive matches to then eighth ranked (now ninth ranked) Brigham Young University Bulldogs. Early in the season, the Tigers have already proven that they are prepared to make the best of their home-court advantage in Dillon Gymnasium. The Tigers grabbed a swift and decisive

3–0 lead early in the first set, forcing the Gauchos into a timeout to regroup. The star of the set was certainly junior hitter Nyherowo Omene, who brought the Tigers’ lead to 18–10 with consistent kills that proved disastrous for the Gauchos.

An ace from sophomore middleback Ryan Vena and two service errors from UCSB placed Princeton at the cusp of determining the first set. A final ace from senior outside hitter Ben Harrington secured the opening set in favor of the Tigers, their first set of the season at home.

In the second set, the Gauchos proved they were not going down without a fight. First-year outside hitter Jameson Vaccaro delivered an expertly placed cross-court

hit to give the Tigers a lead. After a string of errors, Princeton fell to a 6–4 deficit; however, the Tigers quickly recovered after another monstrous kill from Vaccaro.

The remainder of the set played out in a ping-pong style fashion with neither team leading by more than two points throughout. Vaccaro shined in his home debut, showcasing tips and back row kills to respond to the Gauchos second set push.

After an insane point that ended with a momentous kill, before which the Tigers were chased into the bleachers on defense, UCSB grabbed a pivotal 20–17 lead.

At this point the Gauchos were locked in on their serves and returns, but the Tigers managed to crawl back to a tie at 21-all after a clutch block from Omene. After further back-and-forth intense play from both teams, the Gauchos seized the set 26–24 to tie the match at a set apiece.

At 2–1 in the third set, the Gauchos attained a let point after an unanswerable Tiger kill by fortuitously placing the game ball into the ceiling gutters of Dillon Gym.

But the Gaucho luck did not last long as Vena returned a Gaucho tip with a dump to hand the Tigers an 8–4 lead. Senior middle-back Gavin Leising delivered kills and blocks, and a short while later, Princeton stood over UCSB with a commanding 21–13 third set lead.

The Gauchos shocked the Tigers into a timeout after playing incredible defense for three consecutive points, placing them at 21–16 — but the Gauchos would not tally a point for the remainder of the set, and the Tigers once again held the match lead, 2–1; 25–16 in the third set.

The opposing teams both began the fourth set in good shape, landing at a 12–12 tie after the first 24 points.

A service error and timeout on the Princeton side gave the Gauchos a slight lead at

17–15. Omene and Harrington turned the pressure up at the net with kills and a tip, respectively. Junior setter Henry Wedbush took it from there with three aces to place the Tigers on the precipice of winning their first home match of the season.

At 21–19, Princeton played a supreme point that displayed the entire team’s sheer skill with impeccable defense from Wedbush, and a staggering hit from Omene to settle the point. The Tigers clinched the match with a 25–21 fourth set won after a service error from the Gauchos.

Early in the season, the Princeton men’s volleyball team is still getting its feet wet. “Coming back from last year, we have a bit of a different team,” Harrington told The Daily Princetonian. “We have three or four new guys that we’re trying to work into the lineup, and it feels similar playing with the same guys from last year, but it’s always a different team,” he added.

Some of the new faces, however, are more than holding their own. The firstyear, Vaccaro, who finished with 13 kills, is playing a vital role on this new-look team and has been proving himself as a starting caliber player, as he trailed only Omene in kills against UCSB.

“We have a lot of injuries right now, so every game almost feels like a new team that we’re playing with,” Harrington shared further with the ‘Prince.’ They aim to continue to build team chemistry and cohesion as the season progresses.

The Tigers will face No. 10 Pepperdine at 4 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 2 at Dillon Gymnasium, seeking to continue their early home success.

Josefina Gurevich is a staff Sports writer for the ‘Prince.’

PHOTO COURTESY OF @PRINCETONWBB/X Kaitlyn Chen and Ellie Mitchell celebrate another Ivy victory at Jadwin Gymnasium.

PHOTO COURTESY OF @PRINCETONVOLLEY/X.

Men’s volleyball improves to 5–3 on the young season after a win over UC Santa Barbara.

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Pierce: “It’s not often you see a player like him [Wolf]. We look at it as a fun opportunity to test where we’re at defensively, and we’re excited to get that opportunity again sometime soon.”

Continued from page 1

man to man, and a lot of that is because Bez [Mbeng] can get over ball screens on guys like Xaivian [Lee],” Jones told the ‘Prince.’

Mbeng opened the scoring with a bank three, with the gym quickly erupting into volcanic cheers. The Princeton Tigers didn’t let the hostility of the crowd rattle them, as junior guard Blake Peters immediately responded with two threes on consecutive possessions, reminding Yale fans that the Tigers were there to play. Both teams, defensively focused, executed sturdy and steadfast defense, as the score stood 11-10 in Princeton’s favor after a Lee triple with 13:30 remaining.

Sophomore forward Caden Pierce and senior forward Zach Martini took turns battling Yale’s sophomore 7’ goliath, Danny Wolf. Despite the constant team effort to shut down Wolf, his presence still dominated the paint both offensively and defensively.

“It’s a fun challenge for us,” Pierce told the ‘Prince’ in regards to the matchup against Wolf. “It’s not often you see a player like him. We look at it as a fun opportunity to test where we’re at defensively, and we’re excited to get that opportunity again sometime soon.”

Halfway through the first half, the Tigers found their flow offensively. Martini hit a pull up transition three, and Lee followed that with a bank three on a seemingly dead and expiring Princeton possession. Shortly after, it was firstyear guard Dalen Davis stroking a three that gave the Tigers a 22–16 lead.

The Bulldogs had no answer for Lee in the first half. The Canadian standout guard hit his third three

YEARS LATER 24

of the half over the outstretched arms of Wolf to keep the Tigers lead at six, with 27-21.

3rd triple of the game for Xaivian Lee. He’s on fire for the Tigers tonight.

On the other end of the court, Wolf again proved to be a menace in the paint, making his shots look easy against the smaller Princeton defenders. However, Pierce connected on a deep three to give Princeton its largest lead of the game at 32–23. Bulldog forward Matt Knowling provided light for the Yale offense scoring through contact and earning an and-one. But to no avail, Pierce answered with yet another deep three.

The final minutes of the half proved to be vital for the Bulldogs. The Yale defense held the Tigers scoreless for nearly three minutes while scoring four of their own. Wolf scored the final four points of the half in a defensively grueling stretch, and both teams ran into the locker room as the game stood 35–30 in favor of the Tigers.

In the second half, Lee continued right where he left off. He hit his fourth triple of the game early to give Princeton a 40–34 lead with just over 18 minutes remaining.

The turning point of the game came with 17:20 remaining in the game. Down by six, Wolf forced a double team before connecting on a behind-the-back pass to Knowling to cut the deficit to four. The play landed Wolf on Sports Center Top 10 Plays that night and ignited the Yale student section.

“Come Ivy League season when you have a big game like this, the fans rallying around us is really important, and it helps us do what we do best,” Wolf told the ‘Prince.’ “Just being able to play off that atmosphere and momentum is incredible.”

With the growing energy of the Yale crowd, Princeton began to falter and failed to convert offensively. Moments later, the once nine-point Tiger lead had vanished, and the game was tied at 40. After a timeout by head coach Mitch Henderson ’98, Davis hit a contested mid-range jumper to regain the lead for Princeton.

“He played within himself and made some huge shots,” Henderson noted postgame about Davis.

The next five minutes of the game saw both sides force crucial stops on the defensive end. With 12:49 left in the game, the Tigers held a narrow 44–43 lead. The Bulldogs’ lone lead of the game thus far came after the opening possession triple to make it 3–0.

However, guard John Poulakidas had other plans. Poulakidas, one of the nation’s best threepointer shooters, hit Yale’s first three of the half, bringing the crowd to its feet and giving the Bulldogs an important 46–44 lead. After a flagrant one-foul was issued against the Tigers, Pierce hit yet another shot from beyond the arc to tie the game at 47 with 9:30 remaining.

The triples continued to pour.

Senior guard and captain Matt Allocco converted before Wolf hit one over Lee to give Yale the lead once again. The bulldogs continued to play well on both ends of the court. After forcing a Pierce turnover, Yale held a 56–52 lead with five minutes remaining.

The next stretch proved to be detrimental for Henderson’s squad. After going over four minutes without a score, Pierce went baseline to give the Tigers some life. With 3:23 remaining in the game, the Tigers trailed by four and had no momentum going for them.

Following the final media timeout, Yale captain August Ma-

honey hit what appeared to be the dagger. The shot gave Yale its largest lead of the night at 61–54. The Tigers attempted to crawl back after Pierce connected on a triple.

After taking the lead, Yale made costly mistakes down the stretch. Missed free throws by Wolf along with turnovers shrunk the Bulldog lead to two with 21 seconds remaining. However, it proved to be too little too late for Henderson’s squad. Clutch free throws by Mbeng and Wolf down the stretch sealed a 70–64 win for the Bulldogs.

The win makes it 11 wins from the last 13 matchups over the Tigers for the Bulldogs. Wolf — likely the current frontrunner for Ivy League Player of the Year — finished with a game-high 21 points and 12 rebounds, marking his ninth double-double of the season. When the final whistle sounded, the crowd started cheering Wolf’s name.

“Danny’s a tremendous player, and he showed a little bit of everything he can do tonight,” Jones told the ‘Prince.’ “He can do the hard things really well that certain guys can’t do.”

After the emotional loss to the Bulldogs, the Tigers traveled further north to play the Brown Bears (6–15, 2–14) on Saturday evening.

“Now you’re in the back-tobacks,” Henderson added. “The Saturday nights will be difficult.”

The Tigers went into Providence hoping to end their twogame losing streak against the Ivy League’s top scorer, Bears guard Kino Lilly Jr. The Princeton defense did an excellent job in the first half, holding Lilly Jr. to just two points with zero made field goals. During the halftime break, the Tigers held a slim 30–28 lead.

In the second half, both sides continued to trade buckets. With just over eight minutes remain-

ing, the Tigers led 55–53. From that point on, the Princeton defense dominated. The Tigers held the Bears scoreless for three minutes, making huge stops before Alloco converted an and-one to give Princeton a five-point lead. The Bears scored just seven points in the final eight minutes as Princeton hung on for a 70–60 victory.

The difference for the Tigers on Saturday night was free-throw shooting. The Tigers attempted only three free throws all game against the Bulldogs, a seasonlow. Against the Bears, the Tigers got to the line early and often, going 20–21 from the charity stripe. Lee had his seventh 20-point game while Pierce added 13 points and 14 rebounds for his ninth double-double of the season. Notably, Peters converted his 100th triple of his career early in the second half.

After the win against Brown, Princeton sits in third place of the Ivy League standings behind undefeated Yale and Cornell (17–3, 6–0). Henderson’s squad has work to do if it wants the highly desired one seed in the 2024 Ivy Madness tournament.

The Tigers will host the Penn Quakers (9–12, 1–6) next Saturday at Jadwin Gymnasium. Tipoff will be at 6:00 p.m. EST with streaming available via ESPN+. Despite a subpar record, the Tigers cannot afford to overlook their rivals next weekend. Earlier this season, the Quakers beat then No. 22 ranked Villanova at the iconic Palestra.

Hayk Yengibaryan is an associate Sports editor for the ‘Prince.’

JP Ohl is a staff Sports writer for the ‘Prince.’cccc

‘I haven’t seen enough results’: Pushing for greater commitment to Asian American Studies ARCHIVES

By Amy Park Staff Archives writer

On Feb. 8, 2000, Princeton hired Grace Hong, a specialist in Asian American studies. The Daily Princetonian published an article reflecting on her hiring. Four years prior, Princeton students had occupied Nassau Hall to express their disapproval of Princeton’s weak commitment to Asian American and Latino Studies. Hong recognized that students had not seen enough development since their sit-in and pledged to add permanent Asian American Studies courses to the registrar.

Some students were unsatisfied with this step, noting that the University had pledged to do more following the sit-in in 1995. Jane Liu ’01 said at the time, “I don’t think the University has committed itself fully. I haven’t seen enough results.”

For example, Princeton still had not created an official Asian American studies program. The University responded that with “a field like AsianAmerican and Latino studies … there is a smaller pool of candidates, [so] the competition becomes greater.” The University also argued that hiring more faculty would be timeconsuming, as Princeton strives to “offer students the best qualified instructors.”

Administrators negotiated with protesters following the 1995 sit-in and ultimately signed a pledge that put their commitment to hiring Asian American and Latino Studies faculty in writing. The University claimed that these plans had been in progress prior to the sit-in. In the piece from 2000, Nancy Malkiel, a professor emeritus of history who served as Dean of College from 1987–2011, said that the University had al-

ready been working to expand these departments but that these plans “weren’t made known to students.”

Professor David Carrasco, former Princeton history professor and current professor of the study of Latin America at the Harvard Divinity School, said that despite the prior existence of plans, “the sit-in enabled changes to become clear and happen faster.”

Some students remained unconvinced about the merits of establishing an Asian American Studies department. In the following ‘Prince’ issue, students Thomas Tso ’02 and Hao Kueh Yuan ’02 argued in a letter to the editor that there was “no need” for such a department, explaining that its subject matter was too vague and that it would not meet the needs of current students.

It took until 2018 for Princeton to officially establish an Asian Ameri-

can Studies program, and since then, the University has expanded course offerings and faculty in those specialties. Recently these courses have been especially abundant. In Spring 2023 and 2024, Princeton offered seven courses in Asian American Studies, the most since the department’s founding. Additionally, the University established an Asian American Studies minor in May of 2023.

Morgan Hoang ’27, a prospective English major, told the ‘Prince’ that she has been “inspired at the progress Princeton made in Asian American Studies.” She added that many of her clubmates in the Princeton Student Association had expressed interest in pursuing the minor.

Amy Park is a staff Archive writer for the ‘Prince’.