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Tuesday february 16, 2016 vol. cxxxix no. 12
{ www.dailyprincetonian.com } ACADEMICS
Average GPA for fall 2015 rises to 3.400
By Zaynab Zaman senior writer The average University Grade Point Average for the fall 2015 semester was 3.400, the highest semester average GPA attained at the University. This represents a .95 percent increase from the fall 2014 semester average GPA of 3.368, according to University Media Relations Specialist Min Pullan. The grade deflation policy was repealed in October 2014, leaving fall 2014 semester the last semester impacted by the policy. The repealed policy had stated that no
department within the University should allocate A grades to more than 35 percent of students. The figure from 2015 represents a near 0.7 point increase from the average GPA from the 2013-2014 academic year, the last academic year impacted by the grade deflation policy, according to figures from a report from Ad Hoc Committee to Review Policies Regarding Assessment and Grading. While grade deflation was in place, the average semester GPA oscillated between 3.27 and 3.32, according to a report from Ad Hoc See DEFLATION page 3
SNOW AGAIN
RACHAEL SPADY :: PHOTO EDITOR
Alexander Hall stands in snow while heavy snow covered the campus all throughout Monday.
BEYOND THE BUBBLE
U N I V E R S I T Y A F FA I R S
County prosecutors find no wrongdoing in Perry case
CPUC discusses Wilson School name change
By Jessica Li news editor
The Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office released its findings from a preliminary investigation into allegations of police mistreatment made by Imani Perry, the Hughes-Rogers Professor of African American Studies at the University, revealing no wrongdoing on the part of the officer, according to First Assistant Prosecutor Doris Galuchie. Perry declined to comment. Perry was stopped for speed-
ing on Feb. 6, and was subsequently arrested for a warrant on an outstanding parking ticket. Since the incident, Perry has voiced her concerns about her encounters with the police over social media. In a series of tweets, she alleged that she was handcuffed to a table at the police station and denied the opportunity to make a phone call during her arrest. According to Galuchie, following Perry’s allegations of mistreatment, an internal affairs investigation reviewed all
LECTURE
video evidence, police reports and court documents related to the case. “Based upon that review, the officer’s conduct is to be commended, not criticized,” Galuchie said. Videos of Perry’s arrest and interactions with police officers were released last week. “It is imperative to note that everything Perry claimed before the video came out is simply not true,” Galuchie said, “What happened to her had nothing to do with her race See PERRY page 3
By Annie Yang News Editor
In a Council of the Princeton University Community meeting Monday, University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 noted ongoing discussions about a potential name change for the Wilson School and spoke about ongoing efforts to support graduate students. Vice Chairman of the Board of Trustees Brent Henry ’69 noted that the Wilson Legacy Review Committee received over 554 comments on its website as of Feb. 11. The Committee
is composed of 10 members of the Board of Trustees, including Angela Groves ’12 and Henry, both of whom were present at the meeting. The website features five questions which ask readers to submit views on Woodrow Wilson as president, Wilson’s legacy and how the University should recognize public figures, Henry added. He explained that the Board of Trustees seeks to take into perspective the long-term effects of any of its actions. Groves noted that the trustees are a diverse group, which See CPUC page 2
BEYOND THE BUBBLE
Israeli diplomat George Deek Former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer ’81 speaks about policy, conflict to face investigation for alleged assault resolution in Middle East By Andrea Ayala staff writer
staff writer
Actions of inciting hatred has been destroying the diversity of the Middle East, George Deek, a diplomat working for the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs in the International Law department, said in a lecture on Monday. Deek noted that such actions are keeping us from a home of ancient cultures and a place of diversity to a region of uniformity,a place where there’s no more room for people who are different, “People are aligning along ethnic, tribal, religious lines, and the entire order of states is collapsing… And change of this magnitude often creates a lot of uncertainty, not knowing what’s going to happen next. And uncertainty is often translated into fear, and suspicion. And it doesn’t take much to use that fear that people have from change in order to incite hatred,” he said. Deek noted that his message to University students was that all religious and ethnic groups should be able to live without fear in the Middle Eastern region
and that nations, including Israel, should have the ability to establish peace and unity and to protect their inherent right to be different from the majority. “[Israeli] is the only minority in the region — as a Jewish minority, as a Jewish country — that has both the role and the capability to protect our right to be different. Because our ability to be different, the diversity that characterized the Middle East for thousands of years is in jeopardy.” “As long as Israel exists, hope exists for the Middle East that we can change course, and to become a more tolerant region,” he added. Deek noted that a lot of people asks him why he’s doing what he’s doing, adding that his Christian and Palestinian background make others question his passion for working with Israel. To this, Deek explained that he is passionate not only about the narrative of Israel but also about minorities’ rights to the dignity of being different and resisting assimilation to dominant cultures. Deek explained that his personal life inf luenced See LECTURE page 2
In Opinion Columnist Imani Thornton discusses the link between music and culture, and guest contributor Grant Golub calls for cooperation on the Israeli-Palestine conflict. PAGE 4
The New York Police Department will investigate former New York Governor Eliot Spitzer ’81 for allegations of assaulting a woman at the Plaza Hotel on Saturday night, according to the the Office of the Deputy Commissioner of the New York Police Department. According to the New York Post, an unidentified woman called 911 around 8 p.m. on Saturday night, claiming that she was having a breakdown and had cut her wrist. Following this call, NYPD officers knocked on the door of the hotel room from which the call had come. The New York Post reported that Spitzer came to the door and said to the police officers that there was “no problem.” When police came back a second time a short while after, they noticed broken glass, blood stains and clothing on the floor. The police then began a search of the room. In follow-up interviews with the detectives, the woman claimed that she was Spitzer’s girlfriend and said that Spitzer choked her, threw her to the ground and threatened her when she said she was going back to Russia, the New York Post reported.
Today on Campus
COURTESY OF BUSINESS INSIDER
Eliot Spitzer ‘81, former New York Governer and USG chairman.
Spitzer did not respond to requests for comment. According to a statement by the Office of the Deputy Commissioner of the New York Police Department, Manhattan detectives are currently investigating the incident in response to allegations of an assault. The statement further read that the victim indicated that her abuser was Spitzer. Lisa Linden, Spitzer’s
12:20 p.m.: Mathis Hain of the University of Southampton will lead a seminar “The ocean’s carbon and nutrient biogeochemistry: From greenhouse world into the ice ages” at a Mathis Hain Seminar sponsored by the Geosciences Department. Guyot Hall 10.
spokesperson, denied the allegation. “There is no truth to the allegation,” she said in an email, declining to comment further. Spitzer was implicated in a case of prostitution in 2008, when a wiretap revealed that he had intended to spend thousands of dollars on a prostitute who was part of a high-end prostitute ring. See SPITZER page 3
WEATHER
By Maya Wesby
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100 percent
The Daily Princetonian
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Tuesday february 16, 2016
Deek: As long as Israel U. Board of Trustees to issue survey on Wilson School name change exists, hope exists CPUC for the Middle East Continued from page 1
LECTURE Continued from page 1
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him to pursue a career in diplomacy in the Middle East. In 1948, when Israel was established by the United Nations, Deek’s family was told to f lee the country by Arab leaders, who told them that Israeli forces would kill them. Eventually, Deek’s grandparents made the decision to return to home to Jaffa, Israel and build a family. “The reason I’m standing in front of you today as an Israeli diplomat and not as a Palestinian refugee from Lebanon is precisely because my grandfather had the courage to make a decision that was unthinkable to others, including his own family. Rather than falling into despair, he found hope in the one place no one else dared looking for it. He chose to come back to Israel, live among those who were supposed to be his enemies, and made them his friends,” Deek explained.
In an interview with the Daily Princetonian before the lecture, Deek explained that his entrance into diplomacy was a coincidence. According to Deek, after working as a lawyer in Israel, he was inspired to become a diplomat after reading a newspaper advertisement for a diplomatic training course offered by the Israeli Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “There’s a saying in Chinese that goes, ‘When the student is ready, the teacher arrives.’ So I think I was ready, and we kind of found each other. And today I can’t imagine myself doing anything else,” he said. Deek is currently on sabbatical as a Fulbright Scholar at Georgetown University in Washington, DC. He has been labeled by Tablet Magazine as “Israel’s Best Diplomat.” The lecture, titled “The Art of Middle East Diplomacy,” was sponsored by the Whig-Cliosophic Society, took place in the Senate Chamber of Whig Hall on Monday at 4:30 p.m.
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will be beneficial when taking a critical look at the situation. The committee is focused on the impact of a potential name change for the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and Wilson Residential College on a variety of individuals, from current students to alumni. Henry added that while it is important to recognize a public figure’s contributions, it is also important to balance that with other aspects of his or her life. He noted that decision of this nature are not just binary. Carolyn Rouse, professor of anthropology, said it is important to make changes on a pedagogical level by opening up classroom discussions to include these topics. “At the end of the day it’s what is in the classroom that matters, not so much what is on the building,” she noted. She added that many buildings are named for powerful individuals who may not have committed perfect deeds. However, Rouse noted that it is important to entertain the idea of a name change or alteration in
consideration of those who are truly upset by the use of Wilson’s name. Vice President for Campus Life W. Rochelle Calhoun noted that the issue at hand does not simply refer to Woodrow Wilson’s name itself, but the absence of diverse representation. “That absence is broadened to sharp focus for us as we discuss Wilson,” she said. Among other suggestions, several students noted that it is important to inform students about the underlying story of the University. Other audience members suggested that the building be stripped of its name but not renamed. Although individuals will be unable to see which decisions are being considered with regards to the name change, Henry said the Committee will make recommendations to the Board of Trustees and from there the Board will make the final decision on the appropriate course of action. The Strategic Planning Framework was approved by the Board of Trustees on Jan. 30, 2016, and was intended to be a flexible document, according to Eisgruber. He added that it reaffirms Princeton’s core values as a liberal arts research univer-
sity, recognizes responsibility for leadership and responds to technology’s impact on society. Eisgruber noted that graduate students are critical to the University’s research strength. However, he added that any adjustments made to the graduate student body are dependent upon each department’s needs. He said the decision to expand the undergraduate student body by 125 students does not necessarily mean that the graduate student and faculty population will increase as a result. He said that it increases incrementally over time, so expanding undergraduate admissions would bring the system back into balance. Although the wellbeing of graduate students is a primary concern, Eisgruber did not specify any plans to increase graduate student housing. Eisgruber added that efforts to increase socioeconomic diversity have already occurred during the admissions process, as the University accepted 18 percent of Pell Grant-eligible students, compared to six percent during University President Emerita Shirley Tilghman’s presidency. However, expansion would better facilitate this process. “If you increase the degrees of freedom, it becomes easier to solve the problem,” he said. Regarding transfer applicants, Eisgruber said that community college students and military veterans are currently unable to apply for admission to the University. He noted that the University anticipates being able to accept transfer applicants in fall 2018. Eisgruber also stressed the importance of technology and increased support for engineering and applied sciences. From June 2014-15, there has been a 30 percent increase in the awarding of engineering degrees. “It’s not as though technology is making residential education less important, but more important,” he said. He argued that although the University is often glorified as Einstein’s university or an ivory tower, it is important to recognize that this is the 21st century and that the University must adapt accordingly. “Our rivals in New Haven and Cambridge are now aggressively — desperately — realizing this importance,” he said.
CORRECTION Due to an editing error, a Feb. 15 article on sign-in numbers misstated the first and second round sign-in numbers for Terrace Club. The numbers should be 105 and 35, not 15 and 125. The Daily Princetonian regrets this mistake.
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Repeal of grade deflation has not improved campus mental health DEFLATION Continued from page 1
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Committee to Review Policies Regarding Assessment and Grading. According to Senior Associate Dean of the College Claire Fowler, the average freshman GPA also increased last semester by an unspecified number. Fowler explained that after the removal of grade deflation, every department is now responsible for its own grading standards. To ensure integrity, the Faculty Committee on Examinations and Standing will periodically review departmental standards, she added. However, in a survey of various introductory courses at the University, multiple course heads noted that grade distributions for their classes did not significantly change following grade deflation removal. 200-level math courses, including MAT 201: Multivariable Calculus and MAT 202: Linear Algebra with Applications, gave out Arange grades to roughly 30 percent of the class. MOL 214: Introduction
to Molecular Biology assigned 29 percent of the class A-range grades, while EEB 21: Chaos and Clockwork of Ecological Design issued A-range grades to roughly 31 percent of the class. CHM 201: General Chemistry also saw little change in the grading distribution. Responses to grade deflation removal also varied between departments. Professor of Economics Elizabeth Bogan, who teaches ECO 100: Introduction to Microeconomics and ECO 370: American Economic History, said that although the removal of grade deflation meant that there would be no cap on the distribution of certain grades, students did not necessarily receive better grades in her classes. Bogan explained that she made only slight adjustments when the grade deflation policy began, allocating only a few more B-pluses and a few fewer A-minuses in order to satisfy the cap of 35 perfect A’s. Consequently, she did not change grade distributions drastically after grade deflation removal. “Before we got rid of the grade
deflation policy, I was giving students more A-minuses than I was supposed to, because I thought that the students really deserved it,” Bogan added. However, Professor of Operations Research and Financial Engineering Robert Vanderbei, who also serves as head instructor for ORF 245: Fundamentals of Engineering Statistics, stated that he gave out A-range grades to more than 50 percent of his students last semester. Although he did not teach the course before the repeal of grade deflation, Vanderbei said that he has become a little more generous with regards to grades since the lifting of the grade deflation policy. Vanderlei noted he always thought the 35 percent target for A’s was silly, but remarked that there are still significant issues with grading that need to be addressed. He noted the issue at hand is grade compression, in which too many students are assigned the same grade. “If the policy was still in place, with the constant pressure that the faculty feel to inflate grades, even-
Galuchie: The officer’s conduct is to be commended, not criticized PERRY
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and everything to do with her driving 20 or more miles over the speed limit while her license was suspended and she had warrants out for her arrest.” Galuchie noted that Perry had cancelled a meeting with the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office last week, noting that she indicated wishes to reschedule the meeting. Perry must present her narrative in order for the investigation to continue, according to Galuchie. “Unless Perry comes forward with additional evidence, the case will be closed by a finding exonerating the officer,” Galuchie noted. She added that a detective from the Mercer County Prosecutor’s Office will reach out to Perry this Tuesday. If Perry
does not respond to the office before the end of the week, the case will be closed, according to Galuchie. On Feb. 12, Perry shared a note via social media stating that she does not intend to speak about the incident in public any more. She noted that the intention behind her tweets were to point out that municipalities should not be generating revenue by using the Police power to arrest and that police practices in the United States is racially discriminatory. According to a Feb. 11 article by CentralJersey.com, Perry has taken a sabbatical leave from her position at the University. In a letter to The Princeton Progressive, members of the Black Justice League expressed support for Perry. The BJL stated that even if the way Perry was treated by law enforcement was in alignment with proper
conduct for the department, the incident speaks to broader historical and contemporary issues around “the racialized, gendered intimidation and dehumanization of Black people at the hands of the police and in society at large.” Faculty in the Department of African American Studies and University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 also similarly voiced empathy for Perry last week. “Professor Perry has written powerfully about the “cultural practice of inequality” — how our choices in our daily lives, and the discretion they evidence, reinforce structures of inequality,” read a letter released by faculties of the African American Studies department on its website. “We support Professor Perry and those who aren’t as well known who are subject to this kind of policing,” the letter said.
Spitzer spokesperson says there is “no truth” to allegations of assault SPITZER Continued from page 1
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While Spitzer was never charged for his actions, the college student who managed the prostitution ring was sentenced to prison for six months in 2011 after pleading guilty for charges of money laundering and conspiring to promote prostitution, as reported by the New York Times. The allegations led to Spitzer’s resignation from the
post of New York Governor in 2008, a year after his term began. During Spitzer’s tenure as New York attorney general, he also prosecuted prostitution rings, calling them a “sophisticated and lucrative operation” in an interview with the New York Times. According to a 2011 Daily Princetonian article, after Spitzer’s patronage of the New York prostitution service, Spitzer retreated into solitude. He re-emerged with a “new public image” as host
of the CNN talk show In the Arena, which was released in 2011. Spitzer also became a professor at The City College of New York and a columnist for Slate Magazine. While a student at the University, Spitzer served as the chairman of the Undergraduate Student Government. During his term as chairman, Spitzer led the student campaign to encourage University divestment from South Africa as a response to the country’s policy of apartheid.
tually 35 percent of students would get A-pluses and 65 percent would get B-pluses. That satisfies the policy but is a terrible example of grade compression,” he added. Bogan explained that one reason for the repeal of grade deflation is that competitive graduate programs often compared students from various universities without factoring in the University’s unique grade deflation policy. As such, University students were often at a disadvantage. Additionally, Bogan noted that the University passed the grade deflation policy thinking that Harvard University and Yale University would follow, a prediction that ultimately did not come to fruition. In 2013, the Dean of Undergraduate Education at Harvard University declared the average grade to be an A-minus, with the most frequently awarded grade a flat A. The repeal of grade deflation has not appeared to have significant effects on improving mental health, according to Director of Counseling and Psychological Services Calvin Chin.
Though students did feel that the grade deflation policy caused extra stress, Chin said, he still does not think that campus mental health is better now that the policy has been repealed. In fact, the number of students seeking services from CPS has been steadily rising. “The academic rigor of the University certainly makes it sometimes a stressful place,” Chin explained. “Of course, Princeton students are also very gifted and talented.” He noted that students at the University are particularly intelligent, and are stressed in part because they hold themselves to the University’s exceptionally high academic standards. Fowler added that the real goal, regardless of the repeal of grade deflation, is shifting the conversation surrounding academics from grading on to assessment and feedback. “This shift is actually what I wish for all students so they understand how their work is assessed and the value of it and can learn from it,” Fowler said. She added that it is still very early to see a clear change in GPA.
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Opinion
Tuesday february 16, 2016
page 4
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Music and us Imani Thornton
contributing columnist
I
remember the first time I realized the music of my childhood wasn’t acceptable for college. To clarify, my musical tastes were unacceptable not in the sense that they were explicit, but rather because it wasn’t “just music” anymore. It was political. It was during Community Action, and fellow frosh were picking songs to play after a long day of volunteer work. There was some EBM, a little rock and even some classical. The entire time while I waited for my turn, I racked my brain for something that wouldn’t be difficult to explain; I assumed that as the only black girl in the group, no one would understand if I played Erykah Badu or an old Jackson 5 tune. Until that moment, I didn’t consider my musical tastes to be particularly unique or alienating, but when it was my turn, I picked a random pop song. What would it have meant if I had instead played Marvin Gaye’s “What’s Going On?” or Earth, Wind & Fire’s “September”? Perhaps nothing would have happened, and even if my fellow classmates hadn’t liked the music, maybe nothing would have been inferred from it. Perhaps my musical tastes would not have been considered profound, brave or somehow indicative of the way I was raised. Regardless, I let a part of me — something that had never really felt like a large part of my identity before then — slip away as the next song played.
During my time here at Princeton, similar incidents have occurred. My roommates play a great deal of music in the common room, everything from country western to 70s rock. I play music in the common room too — just when they’re not around. On the off chance that I happen to be playing music while someone else is in the room, I quickly turn it off or capitulate to a Miles Davis track. Nothing too political, nothing too contentious. Once, my roommate walked in while Al Green’s “Let’s Stay Together” blasted from my computer; before I could turn it off, she asked me about the genre of the song. “Was it jazz?” In the moment, it felt like more than a personal inquiry even though I didn’t own the song and indeed there was nothing particularly controversial about the romantic lyrics. Despite this, the inquiry felt like an interrogation of home, images of which the song evoked: warm summer nights with my parents, driving down a long highway. I had been indulging in such memories of home on a college campus that seems, many times, the opposite. Songs like this always played on my hometown R&B radio stations. In my community, it’s considered a classic. At Princeton, what felt like an invasion was perhaps a simple inquiry, an innocent question that no one at home would have ever asked. As I explained to my friend that Al Green was a soul artist, I couldn’t help but wonder what about my musical tastes had marginalized me. Music helps to define many cultures, and within the African-American community, musical genres such as jazz, soul, funk and
hip-hop are emblematic of the specific time periods in which they originated. Much of this music has political undertones, but it also has been the casual soundtrack of my life in the same way that other people have songs that played large parts in their childhoods. The difference here is that I didn’t realize this music might not be mainstream — or even recognized — until I got to a “diverse” college campus. All of this represents something more than differences in musical tastes. This is neither a condemnation nor a hipster manifesto. I probably will never like country music and it is possible that none of my roommates will ever appreciate Lauryn Hill or Frank Ocean the way that I do. That’s okay. However, what are the larger implications of pieces of our home lives that are not within the mainstream of Princeton’s campus? When you’re looking for home during the four years we are here, how can you do so when many of the pieces of your identity must be explained in a way that your friends’ do not? College is a place to learn, but minority students do not often think of themselves as teachers. The same frustrations may exist for any minority on campus whose musical comforts from home — and even culture in general — come to necessitate explanation due to their perceived obscurity. When leisure must become a lesson, what are marginalized cultures to do? What is home? Imani Thornton is a sophomore from Matteson, Ill. She can be reached at it4@princeton.edu.
What Frosh Think Room Draw Is Tashi Treadway ’19 ..................................................
vol. cxxxix
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LETTER TO THE EDITOR
Why we need a third way on Israel-Palestine
Grant Golub
L
guest contributor
ast week, I was walking up campus from class when a large white wall caught my eye on the Frist Campus Center north lawn. Curious, I walked closer to give it a look. I quickly realized why it was there and I spent a while scanning it over on both sides and reading the text on it. I walked away from the structure intrigued and thought about it throughout the remainder of the day, but as the hours passed and the toils of everyday life took hold again, I pushed it to the back of my mind. The wall’s presence was pushed to the forefront again, however, on Feb. 10 when I read first Eli Schechner’s column about why he and Tigers for Israel oppose the wall’s construction and then the Princeton Committee on Palestine’s rebuttal the following day. And after soaking both of them up I began to realize, “I think they both have it wrong.” To be clear, I’m referring to the wall erected by the PCP and the Princeton DREAM Team to oppose the real-life barrier separating Israel from the West Bank, which to the Committee, “is the most recognizable symbol of the [Israeli] occupation and of the crippling lack of self-determination given to the Palestinian people.” Last school year, when I was still Chief Elections Manager for USG, I managed the Israeli divestment referendum pushed for by the PCP and
opposed by Tigers for Israel and its sister initiative, Tigers Together. And to be honest, never before had I seen such strife and hostility displayed by students toward one another since arriving at Princeton two and a half years ago. I was quickly disillusioned by the tactics both sides displayed in their efforts to win the day. Every single day during the campaigning period leading up to the vote, I received calls, texts and emails from both sides complaining about how the other was violating the rules, urging me to disqualify or penalize the offending party. In addition, I received complaints from neutral students detailing how they were being stalked, harassed, intimidated or pressured by both parties to vote their way. By the end of the process, I was outraged by the behavior displayed by all involved. Now, I bring this story up because I want to highlight what I believe are callow and counterproductive performances by both sides when they engage one another on this important and sensitive topic. While I completely understand that passions run high on this matter, I do not believe that pointing fingers at each other and writing opinion articles on the action taken by the other side is going to solve any of the issues surrounding the Israeli-Palestinian conf lict. Instead, I would love to see both groups come together and hammer out a compromise on how they can work together to help solve and inf lu-
ence the pressing issues surrounding the conf lict, which ideally would lead to lasting peace between Israelis and Palestinians. To my knowledge at the writing of this piece, that action has not happened thus far. If we as Princeton students cannot come together to work out compromises, how can we expect our leaders and those making decisions to do so? On the international stage, certainly both Israel and the Palestinian National Authority, along with Hamas, are to blame for the current impasse on this issue. For one thing, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu did not help when he exploited fears about Arab and Palestinian encroachment in the finals hours before an election last year to secure a fourth term as prime minister. In addition, his actions in regard to Israeli settlements in the West Bank have not indicated to anyone that he is serious about pursuing peace with the Palestinians. If he was truly serious, he would immediately call for a permanent freeze on Israeli settlement building as a starting position to sit down with the Palestinian leadership to work out a peace agreement. On the other hand, from an Israeli perspective, I can see why it would sometimes be hard to take the Palestinian viewpoint seriously after Palestinians elected Hamas, a terrorist organization, to lead their government in Gaza in 2006 — and when the Palestinian Authority does not do nearly enough to help Israel rein in Hamas or to assist in capturing key
Hamas leaders and other terrorists hell-bent on destroying Israel. It takes bold leaders who have the stomach and political will to pursue peace to actually achieve peace. Right now, neither side has that. Instead of blaming the other side, the University students so thoroughly engaged in this process should be encouraging the leadership on both sides to engage one another and forge a peace settlement. Beginning in 1993 with the Oslo I Accord, Israeli Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin and Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat took bold steps to move toward an agreement, despite public opinion being opposed to a solution. Two years later, Prime Minister Rabin was assassinated in Tel Aviv by a Jewish extremist who believed Rabin was selling out his fellow Jews. If we want peace, we need to encourage our leaders to have courageous visions and to take bold action in the face of public opinion. That is what TFI and PCP should be directing all of their efforts toward instead of the steps they have taken thus far this school year. As President Abraham Lincoln said, “Those who deny freedom to others deserve it not for themselves.” I call on both sides to take the action necessary to achieve freedom for all and to desist from the activities they have publicly displayed so far. Grant Golub is a history major from Sarasota, Fla. He can be reached at ggolub@princeton.edu.
The Daily Princetonian
Tuesday february 16, 2016
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Men’s tennis wins first ECAC championship since 2011 M. TENNIS Continued from page 6
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Thomas Colautti and Joshua Yablon prevailed in their respective contests to seal the all-important doubles point. Securing the doubles point sparked strong performances in singles play. Vives carried his momentum from doubles, winning at the one position 6-3, 6-4, while junior Kial Kaiser and senior Luke Gamble steamrolled through their matches, with each not dropping a set below the score of 6-2, setting up a duel against the Penn Quakers on their home courts.
The third-seeded Tigers started off on the right foot Saturday by grabbing the doubles point against a seventh-seeded Penn squad with wins from the two and three positions. Vives and Wasserman maintained their high level of play, winning 6-3. Wasserman attributed their triumphs to “strong serving and putting together a couple of good points on the return game.” Princeton found itself up 3-1 following another strong showing from the five and six singles players Kaiser and Gamble, who won in straight sets. However, Penn showed great resolve, prevailing on courts two and four to tie the match up.
Challenging opponents trouble men’s hockey M. HOCKEY Continued from page 6
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even in the first two periods. Unfortunately, the Tigers could not defend against Clarkson in the third period when the Golden Knights scored three unanswered goals to win the game 5-2. Despite the loss, Kuffner and junior goaltender Colton Phinney posted strong individual performances. Kuffner extended his season point total to a team-high 18 points, and Phinney recorded 25 saves. In Canton, N.Y., the Tigers faced an even greater challenge. Historically, the Tigers have struggled consistently against the Saints. Princeton has not won against St. Lawrence since 2011. Adding to the damage, the Saints have excelled this season, winning or tying their last six. With the matchup set, the two teams collided in Appleton Arena on Saturday night. Unfortunately, the Saints wasted little time pouncing on the Tigers. Princeton trailed by only one after the first period, but the Tigers were unable to re-
cover from this modest deficit. The Saints took advantage by scoring three unanswered goals in the second, extending the lead to 4-0. Sophomore forward David Hallisey prevented a shutout in the third period, scoring the Tigers’ lone goal of the game. With his fourth goal of the season, Hallisey ranks third on the team with eleven total points. With star goaltender Colton Phinney out, sophomore Ben Halford stepped into the crease against the Saints. Prior to Saturday’s match, Halford had only played in three of this season’s games. Halford impressed, saving 35 goals against an offensively dominant St. Lawrence. In addition, freshman goaltender Austin Shaw made his season debut on Saturday, protecting the goal for the final ten minutes of the match. Shaw blocked both St. Lawrence shots he faced. Following this difficult past weekend, the Tigers will face Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Union College next. The two teams rank fifth and ninth in the ECAC while Princeton is tied with Brown for 11th.
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There was a feeling throughout the day the match would come down to junior Alex Day’s contest against Penn’s Josh Pompan, and it did. After dropping the first set 5-7, Day rallied to win the second before coming up with some incredible shotmaking in a 6-3 deciding set that sent the Tigers to their first ECAC final since 2008. Waiting for Princeton was the 60th nationally ranked Cornell team, which had just knocked off top-seed Harvard. Once again, the Tigers secured the doubles point. Coulatti and Yablon finished the weekend with three match victories, and this time the No. 1 duo of
Day and Gamble won 6-3, allowing the Tigers to gain the early advantage in the contest. In singles action, Vives dominated at the one singles position 6-2, 6-2 while Day and Gamble both toughed out three set matches to put Princeton over the top. Coach Billy Pate was especially happy with his team’s effort on Sunday. Courtesy of Princeton Athletic Communications, coach Pate said, “We knew Cornell would come after us, and they did. They’re a very talented team, top to bottom. Every single match was very close. We’re really happy to get through and I’m very proud of the guys.”
After a streak of five ECAC final appearances without a win, the tennis team is certainly proud of its accomplishments. Josh Yablon said about the weekend’s success, “To get a trophy is always good. I think the way we did it today, the whole weekend, getting better each match, was a large step in the right direction. Most of the guys played some of their best tennis this weekend, and we won all three doubles points, which is something to build on.” The Tigers look to extend their eight-match win streak as they square off against Rice University this upcoming weekend down in Houston, Texas.
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Sports
Tuesday february 16, 2016
page 6
{ www.dailyprincetonian.com } MEN’S TENNIS
Men’s tennis claims ECAC Championship By Hamza Chaudhry contributor
The Princeton men’s tennis team enjoyed tremendous success this past weekend, capturing its first Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference (ECAC) championship since 2001. The Tigers battled a group of challenging Ivy League teams, including Brown, Penn and Cornell. Riding a five-match winning streak which saw deci-
sive victories against Navy, Georgetown, NJIT and Buffalo, the men’s team had great confidence heading into the ECAC tournament hosted by the University of Pennsylvania. The 8-2 Tigers opened play against Brown University, sweeping the Bears 4-0. After the one doubles team dropped their match, the doubles pairs of sophomore Diego Vives and freshman Jimmy Wasserman and junior captains See M. TENNIS page 5
COURTESY OF GOPRINCETONTIGERS.COM
The Tigers captured every doubles point this weekend, paving the path towards a championship.
WOMEN’S HOCKEY
Women’s hockey loses to Clarkson, beats out St. Lawrence By Claire Coughlin contributor
On Friday night, the No. 8 Princeton Women’s Hockey Team (20-6-1, 13-6-1 ECAC) battled it out on home turf against the No. 5 Clarkson Golden Knights (24-3-5, 12-3-5 ECAC) at Hobey Baker Rink. The deciding goal of the game came in the third period from Clarkson sophomore Brielle Bellerive at 6:43, which marked her first goal of the season. The match began relatively uneventfully, with Clarkson outshooting the Tigers 14-6 in the first quarter, but neither team putting any points on the board. The breakthrough came at 7:44 into the second period when Clarkson sophomore Amanda Titus scored off a pass from freshman Ryan McGill. The Orange and Black was quick to respond though, scoring off of a power-play goal set up by sophomore defender Molly Strabley and senior goalie Kimberly Newell and then finished by sophomore defender Kelsey Koelzer. This goal tied the game, but the Tigers remained scoreless for the final two periods, which
resulted in a 2-1 loss after Bellerive’s decisive goal in the third quarter. Despite the loss on Friday, the Orange and Black ended Saturday’s game with a win. Although St. Lawrence came out strong with a power-play goal in the first quarter, the Tigers gained a 2-1 lead in the second period. Princeton’s first goal was scored by freshman forward Keiko DeClerk and its second was scored off of a rebound by sophomore forward Molly Contini. The Saints’ senior forward Jenna Marks tied it at 2-2 ten minutes later. In the third quarter, Strabley score off of an assist from Lund to get the lead back again, to which the Saints responded just three minutes later with another goal. The 3-3 score resulted in OT, during which time Kelsey Koelzer scored her second goal of the weekend to bring the Tigers to victory. The Orange and Black Women’s Hockey has an important weekend ahead of them, facing off against both Rensselaer and Union. Both games will be available to watch on the Ivy League Digital Network.
JASPER GEBHARDT :: STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
Women’s hockey rebounded with a clutch overtime victory against St. Lawrence on Saturday.
MEN’S HOCKEY
Men’s hockey falls to foes No. 20 Clarkson and St. Lawrence By David Liu sports editor
KATHERINE TOBEASON :: STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER
The Tigers will seek better luck next week when they face easier opponents in Union and Rensselaer.
Tweet of the Day “Moment I stop having fun with it, I’ll be done with it.” Dorian Williams (@DWilliamsPU), junior defensive back, football
Despite a four-game skid, the men’s hockey team did not receive a break this weekend. The Tigers’ schedule took them north to face two dominant conference foes in St. Lawrence (16-11-3 overall, 10-6-2 ECAC Hockey) and No. 20 Clarkson (16-11-3, 8-7-3). For the majority of Friday’s game, the Tigers matched Clarkson, but a devastating third period defeated the Princeton team, who lost 5-2. On Saturday, St. Lawrence proved to be even more challenging, as the Tigers lost 4-1. The two recent loses extend the Orange and Black’s losing streak to six
Stat of the Day
35 saves Sophomore goaltender Ben Halford impressed with 35 saves in his fourth game of the season.
games. Should the Tigers have won a game this weekend, most would have predicted a victory over the Clarkson Golden Knights. In fact, the Tigers shut them out just this past November. Unfortunately, the Tigers did not have the same luck on Friday. Since losing in the fall, the Golden Knights have improved, posting 9-3-1 record since the new year. When the Tigers and Golden Knights met on Friday night, the Orange and Black underclassmen once again led the team in scoring. Freshmen forwards Ryan Kuffner and Max Veronneau each netted a goal to help the Tigers keep the game See M. HOCKEY page 5
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