Princeton University
Princeton Weekly Bulletin September 25, 2006, Vol. 96, No. 3 prev next current
- Page One
- • Tilghman charts path for the University’s future
- • University establishes new Center for African American Studies
- • Princeton to end early admission
- Special community ties section
- • Community and regional affairs office serves as bridge
- • Celebration this fall to mark 250 years of ‘Princeton in Princeton’
- • Community and Staff Day goes ‘under the lights’ at Princeton Stadium Oct. 13
- • University and local communities invited to join in ‘Plans in Progress’
- • Faculty, staff give back to the community through volunteer work
- • Collaboration with start-up company aims to improve efficiency of solar power
- • CAP shares academic riches with area residents
- • Center keeps pace with civic engagement opportunities
- • Community outreach generates a winning feeling for student-athletes
- • Cotsen materials go on the road
- • Trenton Program kindles passion for art
- Inside
- • Class of 2010 is most diverse in Princeton‘s history
- • Library exhibition celebrates Goheen
- • Science takes a walk in the park
- • Retiree Open Enrollment is Sept. 25-Oct. 6
- People
- • Humanities Council lines up roster of distinguished visitors
- • Eugenides, Thompson among new faculty members approved
- • Spotlight
- Almanac
- • Calendar of events
- • Nassau notes
- • By the numbers
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- Editor: Ruth Stevens Calendar editor: Carolyn Geller Staff writers: Jennifer Greenstein Altmann, Eric Quiñones Contributing writer: Denise Barricklow, Cass Cliatt, Karin Dienst, Teresa Riordan Photographers: Denise Applewhite, John Jameson Design: Maggie Westergaard Web edition: Mahlon Lovett
Q&A with President Tilghman
Taking a stand
President Tilghman delivering her 2006 Commencement address (photo: John Jameson)
Princeton NJ — In her 2006 Commencement address, President Tilghman lamented the “adamantly polarized” nature of today’s world and urged the new graduates to take stands on important issues while retaining the spirit of inquisitiveness and open-mindedness that Princeton seeks to instill in its students. Below, she addresses her own and the University’s contributions to the public discourse.
As a university president, are there certain issues on which you feel it’s important to speak out publicly?
I’ve been careful to restrict public pronouncements to two areas where I have professional expertise. I have felt that I had the right to speak about stem cells and evolution, which as it happens were two very important public policy issues over the last five years. I certainly didn’t speak about them on behalf of Princeton, but I felt that I had the professional credentials to speak about them publicly. The other areas I’ve addressed are directly related to higher education, such as: the status of women in science and engineering; the importance of investing in science and engineering generally; the importance of the partnership between the federal government and universities to create innovation; the importance of access, which I feel particularly strongly about.
This relates to an issue that you brought up at Commencement: the lack of thoughtful public dialogue on key issues. What does Princeton do to address this?
We’re doing two things that come to mind immediately. One is just the way we educate students: The fact that our educational methodology involves a great deal of conversation — conversation among students, conversation between students and faculty members. The fact that the seminar and the individual one-on-one are two of the most important venues we have for teaching our students how to engage in discussion in a respectful, civil way — using your brains and not your belly.
The other is the kind of things that come out of, but are not restricted to, the Woodrow Wilson School — bringing a broad cross-section of people to campus to meet with students, to give public lectures, to teach in some cases. And it’s important to take the research that is going on in the Woodrow Wilson School, which is highly relevant to the issues of the day, to Washington or to Trenton or to wherever the appropriate place is. I think Dean Slaughter has been particularly aggressive about ensuring that our faculty members are in those cities talking to policy-makers from the perspective of the public policy research they are conducting.
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