Institutional Governance & Accountability

Bill Hewitt '74
Princeton Alumni Weekly

Excerpt: In his March President’s Page (“Speak Up for Princeton and for Higher Education”), President Eisgruber ’83 exhorts us to “be an ambassador for Princeton.” Rather than recite public praise for the good ship Princeton, this loyal crew member shouts to our captain of flooding in our lower decks. Would only our captain acknowledge and act on these vital alerts.

To his credit, President Eisgruber acknowledges that Princetonians “can and, indeed, should raise questions about how best to pursue excellence and inclusivity. Disagreements are natural and essential to improving scholarly and civic communities.” But President Eisgruber falls troublingly short on the merits of these objectives and the means to pursue them.

Miriam Waldvogel
Daily Princetonian

Excerpt: The U.S. Department of Education launched an investigation into the University on Wednesday, April 3 regarding antisemitism on campus following a January complaint from Zachary Marschall, the editor-in-chief of the conservative website Campus Reform.

“Based on our familiarity with events on our campus and other information available to us, we are confident we are in full compliance with the requirements of Title VI,” University Spokesperson Michael Hotchkiss wrote in a statement to The Daily Princetonian. “Based on the complainant’s published description of the complaint, we know that he is not a member of the University community and that his complaint appears to be premised on chants at protests.”

Ethan Hicks, '26
Princetonians for Free Speech

On Tuesday, March 19, 2024, Princetonians for Free Speech and the James Madison Program welcomed Kyle Duncan, Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit, along with Professor Robert George, McCormick Professor of Jurisprudence and Director of the James Madison Program, for a discussion on "What Free Speech Is — And What It Isn't."

Bridget O’Neill
Daily Princetonian

Excerpt: The guest policy changed at Princeton’s sole selective sign-in eating club. Days later, it changed again. On March 26, Charter Club’s President announced a new guest policy in a club-wide group chat. Under the new policy, club members were required to inform the Club Manager and a student officer of guests they invite during meal hours who were not friends or family “for review.”

By April 2, the policy was reversed after an intervention from the club’s Graduate Board. In the seven days in between, debate over the policy rose from the club’s private GroupMe to the headlines of national right-wing publications. Club leadership maintains that the reversal was not due to national media scrutiny.

National Review
Abigail Anthony

Excerpt: This week, a Princeton University student-run newspaper published an op-ed by senior undergraduate Matthew Wilson, who detailed the controversy that emerged when he brought conservative professor Robert P. George to dine at an eating club. (For those unfamiliar, an “eating club” functions similarly to Greek life for juniors and seniors, where they eat their meals and, on weekends, enjoy less virtuous activity.)

In the article, Wilson relays that a group of students filed complaints after George’s visit, and therefore the club adopted a policy requiring that the leadership approve guests for meal-time hours who are not friends or family.

Matthew Wilson
Daily Princetonian

Excerpt: The eating clubs, like the University as a whole, must avoid becoming ideological echo chambers or so-called safe spaces where people go to avoid the risk of having their convictions or worldview challenged. Unfortunately, Charter’s new visitors policy — enacted to protect students from those whose ideas and mere existence they erroneously and ridiculously believe threaten their safety — does just the opposite. The new policy is intellectually indefensible and must be immediately revoked.