Volume LXXVI, Number 14
Senior Living Pages 19-21 Destructive Legacy of Experiments is Focus of Film About Ukraine . . . 5 “Food for Thought” Series Returns to Hopewell Theater . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Special Council Meeting On Cannabis Draws Many Different Viewpoints . . . 9 Measuring Sadness in Drive My Car . . . . . . 15 PU Chamber Choir Presents Program of Challenging Music . . . 16 Audra McDonald Sings at McCarter Theatre . . . 17 Making Journey from Norway To PU Track, Guttormsen Wins NCAA Pole Vault Title . . . .28 Hun Baseball Looking Formidable Again as it Starts 4-0 . . . . . . . . . 32
Patrick Kenah Helps PHS Boys’ Lacrosse Start 2-0. . . . . . . . 30 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 26 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 36 Education & Recreation . .3 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 13 New To Us . . . . . . . . . 22 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 34 Performing Arts . . . . . 18 Police Blotter . . . . . . . . 9 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 36 Religion . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
www.towntopics.com
Princeton Celebrates Robeson’s Birthday, Honoring His Legacy Robeson Week of Remembrance 2022 is underway and a series of events celebrating one of Princeton’s most famous residents will culminate on Saturday, April 9, Paul Robeson’s 124th birthday, at the Arts Council of Princeton (ACP) Paul Robeson Center for the Arts. Highlights of the celebration, organized by the Paul Robeson House of Princeton, along with the ACP and the African American Cultural Collaborative of Mercer County (AACCMC), will include the dedication of the Robeson Pew on April 8 at Princeton High School (PHS) and the inauguration of the Robeson Scholars Recognition Program at ACP at 10 a.m. on April 9, followed by a full afternoon of performances at Hinds Plaza next to the Princeton Public Library celebrating the life and legacy of Paul Robeson through song, poetry, storytelling, spoken word, and more. “I’m very excited about this year’s celebration,” said Paul Robeson House Board President Ben Colbert, emphasizing the impact of the new Paul Robeson Scholars Program. The Paul Robeson House of Princeton has also been leading the project to renovate the Robeson family house on Witherspoon Street across from the Princeton Cemetery. “The celebration of Paul Robeson is important,” said Shirley Satterfield, cofounder and president of the Witherspoon-Jackson Historical and Cultural Society. “It’s important that people know who he was — a scholar, athlete, lawyer, actor, and activist. He fought against racism in the United States and against fascism all over the world.” At noon on April 8 in the PHS guidance offices, Satterfield will be participating in the dedication of a newly refurbished church pew once used by Paul Robeson’s family, and donated from the Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church. Students, staff, and the community are invited to join in a commemoration of the historic pew. Satterfield, PHS school counselor emeritus, recalled the 1998 renovation of the Witherspoon Street Presbyterian Church, where Paul Robeson’s father had served as pastor. The original pews were replaced, but Satterfield, working with Cecelia Hodges, educator and performer who was awarded recognition at Continued on Page 12
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Wednesday, April 6, 2022
COVID Surge Ends 3-Month Decline in Cases The Princeton Health Department on Monday, April 4 reported that COVID-19 cases had doubled in the past week, with 53 cases in Princeton in the previous seven days and 80 cases in the previous 14 days. The BA.2 sub variant of Omicron, which has been spreading in the state over the past few weeks, is largely responsible for the surge, the health department reported. BA.2 is responsible for about 84 percent of COVID-19 cases in the region, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). BA.2 apparently spreads more easily than the original strain of Omicron, but
it does not seem to cause more severe illness. The New Jersey COVID-19 transmission rate was 1.09 Tuesday, with any number over 1 signifying that infection numbers are expanding and new cases are leading to an average of more than one additional case. The Princeton University COVID Dashboard recently reported rising case numbers with a seven-day daily average of 32.43 new cases on April 4, but the campus mitigation level remains at “baseline,” which does not require a change to current testing or mitigation measures, and campus case severity is reported as “mild.” Princeton Public Schools also reported
an increase in case numbers, with 12 new cases for the week ended April 1, an increase from seven cases in each of the previous two weeks. All of New Jersey’s 21 counties are still listed as having low rates of transmission, according to CDC updated guidelines. Case numbers and transmission rates locally and statewide are still far below their peaks in December and January. Mercer County saw 51 new cases on Monday, a five percent increase from the previous day and a 55 percent increase in the 14-day daily average, according to The New York Times. New Jersey saw a 2 percent increase from the previous Continued on Page 10
New Construction at Charter School Adds Space, Capacity to Campus
SPRING IN BLOOM: Cheery daffodils are now in abundance on the Princeton University campus and around town. Residents and visitors share their favorite spring blooms in this week’s Town Talk on page 6. (Photo by Weronika A. Plohn)
Thanks to the completion of a two-year construction project, fourth and fifth grade students at Princeton Charter School have moved out of temporary trailers into new, spacious, light-filled classrooms. The $5.6 project, which will be celebrated Thursday, April 7 with a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by State Sen. Andrew Zwicker, Mayor Mark Freda, members of Princeton Council, and other guests, also includes an expansion of the cafeteria, allowing for more reasonable lunch hours and a space for after-school programs. “This is massive for us,” said Head of School Larry Patton. “We so needed the extra capacity. Our students and parents are thrilled, and the fourth and fifth graders are just loving the space.” Founded 25 years ago, Princeton Charter School was originally in a former office building at 100 Bunn Drive, and has expanded over the years. The new classrooms and cafeteria were needed to accommodate the full student enrollment of 424 students from its expansion in 2017. Fourth graders had been in the trailers since 2017, the first year of the school’s expansion. The fifth graders are in two new classrooms connected to the middle school, freeing up space in the main building that will ease the demands of its schedule. The new classrooms are located between the lower and upper school buildings, “literally and figuratively bridging the space between the two divisions,” reads a press release from the school. Patton appreciates the design created by Continued on Page 8
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