My four years at Princeton are flying by, and there are so many classes I would love to take if I had more time. If I listed them all, it would probably be the length of a senior thesis, so here’s a selection of my top 7:

1. Making an Exoneree (Department: School of Public and International Affairs)

   Making an Exoneree is one of the most unique courses I have ever come across. The course was started by a professor at Georgetown University who helped to exonerate a childhood friend who spent almost 18 years in prison for a crime he did not commit. An intensive, hands-on course, students have contributed to freeing three wrongfully convicted individuals since its inception at Princeton in 2018. Students describe the course as "life-changing... If you want a real look into the criminal legal system and care deeply about justice, then this course is something you absolutely should take during your time at Princeton."

   

2. International Organizations (Department: Politics)

   Taught by Professor Vreeland, an expert in international political economy, International Organizations has quickly become one of the most popular courses at Princeton, with enrollment exceeding the 400-person cap every semester it is offered. The course examines the origins, effectiveness, and future of institutions from the UN and WHO to the European Union and African Development Bank. I had to see what the buzz was about and sat in on a lecture during shopping period last spring, and I would have given an arm and a leg to take the class. Professor Vreeland was an extremely engaging lecturer, making memorable references to popular songs and movies, and keeping students on their toes by asking for participation using a random name selector. He also cares deeply about students inside and outside of the classroom and regularly publicizes and attends students’ performances. This course review says it all: "Professor Vreeland teaches you how to read, how to think, and how to learn at a fundamental level. He's the quintessential educator: a professor who wants his students to learn for the sake of learning and knows exactly how to motivate them and work with them. You should not leave Princeton without taking this course." What a shame I’ll have to do so!

   

3. Poverty, by America (Departments: Sociology and African American Studies): 

   I still remember reading Evicted on a sunny afternoon during a summer in junior high and the impression it left on me of the challenges of facing housing insecurity. I was impressed to discover that the author, Matthew Desmond, had spent a year living among the eight families featured in order to write the book. When a friend told me that she worked with Professor Desmond in the Eviction Lab at Princeton and was taking a class taught by him, I knew it would be among the top on my wishlist.

4. The Great Russian Novel and Beyond (Department: Slavic Languages and Literatures)

   I love to read (send me an email if you have any book recommendations!). Last fall, I was looking for a literature course to fulfill my remaining literature and the arts distribution requirement and a good friend of mine (who was actually my Community Action orientation leader) recommended this introduction to Russian literature. I enrolled in the course and discovered that it was a hidden gem tucked away among the many interesting literature classes available at Princeton. Professor Chances clearly loves the books, and I was eager to learn about famous and lesser known works of Russian literature in a small class setting. The weekly precept (small group discussion) was led by Professor Chances and only had four students! Unfortunately, I had never read any of the books before so I was having trouble keeping up with the reading. I made the difficult decision to drop the course at the end of the second week, known as add/drop or shopping period. I was able to borrow the books for the semester through the University library, so I hope to finish Fathers and Children and read Anna Karenina once classes end.

5. Beginner’s American Sign Language (Department: Linguistics)

   Princeton began offering for-credit ASL courses in 2018 which could be used to fulfill the foreign language requirement starting in 2021. I would love to learn a language which uses a completely different part of my brain, gain a better understanding of deaf culture, and think about how we can increase accessibility for individuals who are hard of hearing. Former blogger Naomi wrote a wonderful post about learning ASL three years ago which makes me want to at least shop ASL101 in the fall.

6. Princeton University Steel Band (Department: Music)

   Steel Band is another popular course in which students learn how to play the steelpan, an instrument originating from Trinidad and Tobago with a beautifully resonant sound. The course is P/D/F only, which means students receive a “pass”, “D”, or “fail” for the course, removing the stress of receiving a good grade (read more in Jocelyne’s blog post about P/D/F classes). Almost every review reads, “Take this course!” and one student commented that they’ll be talking about it for many years after Princeton. Although I won’t be able to fit it into my schedule, I plan on attending the class performance at the end of April which will also feature the student steelpan ensemble TigerChunes, led by one of my friends!

   

   

7. Practical Ethics (Departments: Center for Human Values and Philosophy)

   Last but not least, I wish I could have taken Practical Ethics, which discusses topics ranging from abortion to the ethics of what we eat, and actually made my Outdoor Action co-leader become vegetarian. Taught by Professor Peter Singer, author of a number of fascinating books including Animal Liberation and The Life You Can Save, students praised the application of different ethical theories to real-world issues and Professor Singer as an “excellent lecturer, speaker, and arguer.” Unfortunately, the course is no longer offered following Professor Singer’s retirement in 2023, but I hope he will return to give an occasional lecture!

   Honorable mentions include: 

8. Analog Photography, or any course in the Visual Arts department
9. The Glass Class, a freshman seminar on the science and art of glass which travels to Venice over the break!

Clearly, I could go on. Princeton offers a wide array of unique courses which stretch students in different ways, whether by learning a new language on campus or abroad, engaging with community members and organizations, or simply discussing topics and authors you had never heard of before. As my time at Princeton comes to a close next semester, I am grateful to have had access to scholars, professors, and students who continue to stimulate my intellectual curiosity and teach me something new every day.

Last fall, I wrote about my experience as an intern through Princeton Internships in Civic Service (PICS)—a program that connects undergraduate students with community partners to complete funded summer internships in civic service. Having loved the work that I did last summer, I was excited to return for a second PICS internship.

Summer internships are an excellent opportunity to explore your career interests. They are opportunities to assess what you do and don’t like about particular fields or work environments, as well as allow you to reflect on what you can improve on as a young professional. My decision to work for the Latin American Legal Defense Fund last summer was a result of my interest in the nonprofit sector generally, as well as the organization’s commitment to the empowerment of immigrant communities. I loved working within the environment of a nonprofit organization, but I knew I wanted to seek out an internship that would be more directly involved in legal work in the future. Thankfully, PICS’ wide variety of community partners made it very easy to find another organization that aligned with my values and interests.

Immigration Equality is an organization that provides legal services to LGBTQ and HIV-positive immigrants and their families, particularly for those seeking asylum or refugee status. The organization is involved in a wide range of advocacy and litigation efforts in addition to connecting individuals with other pro bono attorneys as necessary and hosting relevant events around New York City.

When seeking out my internship for the summer of my junior year, I knew I wanted to connect with an organization deeply rooted in immigration justice and advocacy. Immigration Equality was truly the best organization I could have ended up working at. I had the privilege of working alongside a team of extremely passionate, knowledgeable, and welcoming individuals. As a legal intern, I was responsible for a variety of projects, ranging from creating a presentation for a pro se asylum filing workshop to putting together a country conditions index for a client’s case. I was excited to get to work with many of the attorneys at Immigration Equality, especially since each worked on something different—the refugee program, asylum cases, and the detention hotline, to name a few. Furthermore, I felt myself grow as an individual in the workplace, advocating for myself to receive more assignments I was interested in and reaching out with questions whenever I felt confused. No matter how small or complicated my questions, everyone was always willing to take the time to respond and I can easily say I learned a lot about the immigration system.

My internship was remote, which meant that I was able to spend my summer reconnecting with my hometown in a way that I hadn’t gotten to since coming to Princeton. I enjoyed breakfast with my family every morning and did my work on the back porch with a cup of tea in the Florida heat. Getting to do so was an important part of what I hoped to get out of my summer, and I am thankful for my PICS internship’s role in enabling this for me. In addition to spending time at home, I was able to start preparing for my post-Princeton plans and take the time to reflect on the last few years. Connecting with my paired alumni mentor through PICS was an integral part of this reflection.

As I move into senior year, I feel recharged and fueled in my desire to pursue a career in immigration law. And although obvious nerves abound, I find myself more excited than ever to see where my future as an academic will take me.

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This Summer, I found myself interning at Atento Capital, an early-stage investment firm focused on unlocking unsung potential in Tulsa, Oklahoma. While I was initially apprehensive about relocating to the midwest for the Summer, I have found myself growing quite fond of the people, the places, and the memories I have made here.

Over the past 10 weeks, I experienced my first rodeo, stepped back into medieval times, and even touched bison! While each activity has uniquely shaped my perception of what the Midwest has to offer, it is truly is the people who make this place special. While we are a group of 19, it has been surprisingly easy to connect with my fellow “Atenterns.” We are co-workers during the day but we seamlessly blend into close friends by night. With everyone coming from such different backgrounds, it truly is such a privilege to be in Tulsa and learn more about the impact venture capital can make on the local community.

Indeed, since coming here I’ve learned many things about venture capital, including how to do due diligence and analyze product-market fit. As part of a startup company, I have learned how to be resourceful and flexible, taking each day as a learning opportunity. Contrary to what some might expect, the most important skills I’ve learned here have not been how to pitch companies or network, but how to embrace being a giver and through so, build community. 

For every drive to work, coffee chat, and weekday/weekend spent together, I’ve learned to appreciate the importance of community in both my immediate and broader circles of friendship. Community is big in Tulsa — it is what drives the transformation of the city’s tomorrow. This transformation, to me, is what makes the city pulse with hope. This hope is what makes my work, and the work of every person who lives here, feel like it has a purpose and an impact beyond ourselves. 

At the start of the summer, I asked myself how I could take everything I’ve learned at Princeton to improve the work I would do in Tulsa. Now, I find myself asking how I can take the lessons of being “Atento” (helpful) to shape the trajectory of my last two years at Princeton. While I do not know what these last two years will look like, my personal and professional experiences have taught me to take that leap of faith — whether it be in a new industry or a new city and to never cease to venture. 

Many Princetonians find themselves on the east or west coast, whether through an internship during school or a job after graduation. As part of a larger trend, the middle of the country is often overlooked, flown over, and forgotten. This sentiment has been valid in my mind up until now. Thanks to one of Princeton’s Center for Career Development’s job/internship fairs, I found an opportunity hidden in an overlooked place: Tulsa, Oklahoma. 

When I first walked up to Atento’s booth, I had no clue who or what their company was. It turns out, they are a venture capital firm out of Tulsa, OK, looking to do good by unlocking unsung potential in marginalized founders. Their mission is to provide capital to groups who are often overlooked. There is no better place to do so than Tulsa. 

When I first heard that I got the internship, I was excited, but then I realized that I’d be in Tulsa for the summer—essentially the middle of nowhere. Oh, how wrong could I have been? Since coming to Tulsa, I have been pleasantly surprised. Although the city is nowhere close to the likes of NYC, San Francisco, or other coastal metropolitan cities in terms of size, it is still a city with its own unique culture. This culture is what makes Tulsa amazing. 

Tulsa is growing, and growing fast. In the past, Tulsa was the ‘Oil Capital of the World’ and home to what was known as Black Wall Street, both of which are no longer, but it is now trying to become great again. My internship has given me some insider knowledge on this mission, and it seems to be coming into fruition, thanks mostly in part to the philanthropy of George Kaiser. 

George Kaiser, in short, is a philanthropic billionaire who made his money from his family's oil and gas company as well as the Bank of Oklahoma. He acknowledges the life he was born into and has pledged at least half of his wealth to charity upon his death (the giving pledge). He also has a foundation, the George Kaiser Family Foundation, which is committed to reversing the generational cycle of poverty in Tulsa through early childhood education (among many other initiatives). He is fully committed to making Tulsa a better place, which is symbolized in how much he has done for Tulsa, including his flagship park, the Gathering Place, and what he plans on for the future. With this backing, Tulsa will be a great city once again, included in conversation with other large cities. 

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You may be wondering what the point of this blog is, well, it is to encourage my fellow Princetonians and others alike to take a chance and explore opportunities in ‘unknown’ places. It is hard to find those hidden gems, if you aren't open to looking for them. Maybe moving to a city you never pictured yourself in could be an amazing opportunity. If venture capital has taught me anything, it's time to invest in a small city! 

Civic service and engagement are a large part of what Princeton stands for. The Pace Center for Civic Engagement provides a very wide range of possible volunteer opportunities for Princeton students. Organizations range across a wide variety of interests and social issues. To highlight just a few, the list includes opportunities to tutor local K-12 students or incarcerated individuals in the NJ-NY area, involvement in a summer camp that supports children affected by a caregiver’s cancer diagnosis, and volunteering at blood drives with the Red Cross.

In addition to the opportunities listed explicitly on the Pace Center’s website, many students become embedded in the surrounding community and engage with organizations that are not necessarily affiliated with the University. For example, many students that I know volunteer with an organization called Solidaridad Central Jersey, which operates a pro se asylum clinic. A variety of individual clubs and organizations on campus also execute their own volunteering efforts. The options feel limitless.

From September through December, I spent my Tuesday evenings teaching English as a Second Language (ESL) classes in the basement of Green Hall. Students for Prison Education, Abolition and Reform (SPEAR) works with the local non-profit, Familias en Resistencia y Acción (previously known as Unidad Latina en Acción NJ), to host around a dozen immigrants in the Mercer County area who are interested in reinforcing or building their English proficiency.

Every week, students are responsible for teaching one two-hour class, either on campus during the week, or in Trenton on Saturday mornings. During the days leading up to each class, co-teachers meet to create their lesson plans. Many times, however, teachers are required to adapt on the spot—we aim to be very flexible and responsive to ESL students’ needs during the classes themselves. There are three English levels taught each day.

SPEAR’s first semester offering ESL classes was in the spring of 2023, but my first time volunteering was not until that summer. Being fully transparent, I had initially been worried about my ability to manage my time well enough to undertake this additional responsibility. However, it was something I really wanted to do, so I joined the team of teachers over the summer to assist with the virtual classes being offered. Every Saturday, my co-teacher and I taught Level 1 English from 6 to 8 PM. It was a great experience, and I am so happy that I continued to teach ESL in the fall.

With the same co-teacher, we taught Level 2 English during the fall semester. It was extremely rewarding not only to see familiar faces from the summer, but also to build relationships with new students. Every class, students became increasingly confident and participated more and more. By the end of the fall semester, our small class felt like a small community and Tuesday evenings were the highlight of my week. As the spring semester kicks off, I look forward to continuing my involvement teaching ESL.

Volunteer opportunities are more than abundant on and around campus. Although it may feel intimidating to devote time to other extracurriculars, it is beyond worth it. Volunteering and engaging with people living in the surrounding community has enhanced my time at Princeton—it feels good to be a part of something bigger.

What do I want to do this summer? 

I kept asking myself this question over sophomore year. The past two summers I had studied abroad and worked a retail job in my hometown, but I knew, going into my junior year, that I wanted to do something explicitly related to my career. 

I want to go to law school. In a perfect world, I work as a Staff Attorney at the ACLU in their Immigrants’ Rights Unit. I am drawn to issues pertaining to detention centers and citizenship rights, and I wanted what I did over the summer to, in some capacity, address that.

This is why I chose to work for the RISE community partner CANY. CANY, or the Correctional Association of New York, is a non-profit promoting criminal justice reform. They conduct independent monitoring and oversight of all 44 New York State correctional facilities to improve transparency, identify harmful practices, and decrease incarceration across the state. With grounding values of respect, justice, and anti-racism, I was immediately drawn to CANY’s mission. 

I was on the Monitoring and Reporting Team, which organizes visits to correctional facilities, formulates standardized surveys to send out to incarcerated individuals, and is responsible for correspondence with incarcerated individuals and their loved ones. As an intern, I connected incarcerated individuals to social and legal services, conducted one-on-one interviews, and built CANY’s volunteer database to expand the facility visit program.

The environment was incredibly supportive, but the work was hard. While my supervisors were considerate of my time, communicated expectations clearly, and gave ample opportunities to ask questions, the material was heavy. Daily, I sifted through testimony about the abuses incarcerated individuals faced in facilities hundreds of miles away from their families. When working with organizations addressing issues of racial injustice and other inequalities, one can feel inundated with all the bad in the world. RISE gave me an opportunity to look at the nonprofit work I wanted to be involved in, and ask myself if I could handle it mentally and emotionally. 

This was a critical challenge to face. Through support from my co-workers, I learned to establish boundaries between myself and my work. Through generous funding from RISE, I was able to afford living in New York City with two of my best friends (also RISE fellows and PICS interns!). I learned ways to recharge – taking weekend trips to meet friends, cooking dinner with my roommates, or calling family back home. It was a summer to experience a new kind of independence, a taste of what post-grad could be, and affirmation that the service-focused professional world was where I wanted to be. 

To anyone considering the RISE program – reflect on what matters to you. Identify community organizations that align with your values, and push yourself to face the challenges that accompany new professional and personal experiences. Being a member of the Princeton community comes with the responsibility of serving communities beyond just our own. RISE gives us a unique opportunity to do just that.

Princeton Internships in Civic Service (PICS) is a program that connects students with summer internship opportunities at nonprofit and government organizations in a wide variety of fields, ranging anywhere from healthcare to education. PICS is a funded opportunity, with students receiving a lump-sum stipend before the start of the summer. This stipend can be used towards any costs associated with your internship, including housing, food, and transportation. In addition to funding, PICS provides students with a network of resources and alumni to better support them during their internships and beyond. Through PICS, I spent this summer working as a Communications and Development intern at the Latin American Legal Defense and Education Fund (LALDEF) in Trenton, New Jersey.

The way that PICS works is relatively straightforward. At the end of the fall semester, a list of PICS community partners is released. This means you have about a month to choose up to two organizations to apply to, as well as prepare your application materials, all before the January deadline to submit your application. Interviews are usually held throughout the month of January, and by early to mid-February, you are notified about whether you have been selected for an internship.

When I was first looking into PICS, LALDEF stood out to me as it aligned with my own interests and personal values. LALDEF works to empower immigrants living in Mercer County, helping them navigate the systems and resources necessary for their own self-sufficiency in the United States. This includes access to legal services, citizenship test preparation, ESL classes, and youth mentoring programs. I am very interested in immigration work, and am considering the possibility of at some point working in the nonprofit sphere, so LALDEF made complete sense for me. Additionally, I loved that it was located near campus, as integrating myself more into the community surrounding campus is something I value greatly.

During my nine-week internship, I stayed on campus and took the train every day to Trenton. I worked Monday through Friday, eight hours a day, which meant that every morning, I made the trek from the train station to the office and up the stairs to the third floor, where our office space was located.

Most days after work, I would spend my time staying active, putting together puzzles, reading, and unwinding from the day. The weekends were a great opportunity for me to get off campus, even going into NYC twice over the summer.

The internship itself entailed a wide range of tasks and projects. As an intern working in the Communications and Development department, I was able to interact with the whole LALDEF team. Some of my major projects were designing the 2023 Impact Report and putting together the Fall 2023 Newsletter. The creation of the newsletter involved designing the layout itself, as well as contacting the different program heads to fill the newsletter with content and updates from each program. I was also involved in a variety of different supporting tasks within my department, but within other departments as well. I learned the importance and process of grant-writing, and conducted interviews with past and present clients to assemble testimonials for promotional purposes. One of the most impactful moments of the summer was sitting in on a legal intake interview, where I helped translate a client’s migration story.

All in all, I feel that I gained valuable insight into nonprofit work thanks to my PICS internship. I also learned what I like about different work experiences and environments, and what I would like to do differently in a future internship or job. Princeton-funded opportunities for internships (and research, if that’s more your thing) feel limitless at times. There is truly something for everyone, and the process will feel so much less overwhelming when it's upon you.

Princeton Students for Prison Education, Abolition, and Reform (SPEAR) is a student group focused on educating and advocating against the carceral state of the United States. SPEAR consists of a variety of committees, including Students Against Policing, the Re-Entry Committee, and Project Solidarity. Over time, I had become very passionate about the intersections between the criminal justice and immigration systems, and was excited to learn about, and join, SPEAR’s Immigration Committee.

The Immigration Committee works closely with other organizations in central New Jersey fighting for justice for local immigrant communities. In the past, the Committee has welcomed representatives from these organizations to speak about state-wide initiatives. For example, in the Fall of 2022, we hosted various organizers to raise awareness about the New Jersey Domestic Workers Bill of Rights. SPEAR also partners often with Unidad Latina en Acción (ULA), a non-profit organization just off campus on Witherspoon Street. With ULA, Princeton students teach English as a Second Language (ESL) classes every Tuesday and Saturday, welcoming local residents to join, no matter their current English proficiency.

One of the highlights of my sophomore year was getting the opportunity to organize a panel specifically on the criminalization of immigration, or “crimmigration” as it is often called in the literature. This is the idea that, over time, immigrants in the United States have been increasingly criminalized, both in the media, but also in immigration proceedings. In the fall, I took a class called The Politics of Crime and Punishment, where my final paper had focused on this shift in immigration law and the consequences that it has had on migrant communities particularly through the lens of procedural justice. At the time of this panel, I was also taking another course with Dr. Amelia Frank-Vitale on borders. Particularly, the class explored how borders are not only geographic, but can also be reproduced by systems within a country–in this case policing.

Through our panel, we wanted to raise awareness within the student body by inviting Princeton professors to speak on the topic, as many people often don’t know about this intertwinement of criminal and immigration laws. However, we also knew gaps in knowledge can arise from looking at these sorts of issues through a purely academic lens. Therefore, over the course of two months, we set out to bring together a group of diverse perspectives and organizers, both as academics and as activists. In the end, we welcomed three Princeton professors and three representatives from local organizations, although it’s important to note that all of the professors on our panel also considered themselves to be activists. A few days before the event, we designed our flyer to circulate across campus. As I would be moderating this event, I prepared our list of questions, which ranged from asking our panelists to define “crimmigration,” as well as elaborate on what this looks like within their work, and how it affects the ways in which they carry out ethical research and activism.

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Perhaps one of the reasons this panel had such a big impact on me, besides the obvious ability to share something that I care deeply about with fellow classmates, was the fact that it enabled me to see a tangible connection between the things I have learned and studied during my time at Princeton, and the sort of work that can be done, especially with the help of Princeton’s resources. I believe the ability to take the lead on these sorts of initiatives–whether it be organizing panel discussions, proposing a new volunteering experience or club, or receiving funding to engage in social impact activities–is something that is uniquely possible for Princeton students, and something I look forward to replicating in the future.

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Princeton offers students many ways to get involved outside of the classroom with its 500+ different student-run organizations and activities. For those interested in service and social impact, I have just the group for you! Housed within our Pace Center for Civic Engagement, the Service Focus program is intended for rising sophomores looking to make a difference and learn a little in the process. It runs from the spring of your first-year to the spring of your sophomore year and is made up of 3 major components:

1. Summer Service Experience/Internship

During the summer between their first and second years, all Service Focus students engage in some sort of funded service experience or project that aligns with their interests. For instance, I got to intern with award-winning documentary specialist and Princeton professor Purcell Carson. With her organization, The Trenton Project, we recently released a new documentary titled “What’s in a Name?”, which centers around the history of desegregation at Trenton’s Hedgepeth-Williams Middle School. Our team of six interns was involved in all aspects of the film’s creation including: storyboarding, conducting interviews, editing, etc. It was truly an unforgettable experience, and I learned so much.

And if you don’t know where or how to find a summer service internship, no worries! The Service Focus program is there to help guide you in finding one, whether that be through a Princeton program, like mine, or one with an outside organization.

2. Service Cohort

When you sign up for Service Focus, you can indicate what area(s) of service interest you most, with options ranging from Sustainability to Health & Care to Race, Migration and Belonging. (Note: it doesn’t necessarily have to relate to your summer service experience!) This helps you eventually be placed into a cohort, where you’ll meet other students that share your passion. Given my personal experience with educational opportunity, I opted for the Education & Access Cohort.

Over the past few months, my cohort has met weekly to discuss some of the most pressing educational issues today and how we might alleviate them. We’ve also engaged in fun activities like watching episodes of ABC’s "Abbott Elementary" and listening to podcasts. Not to mention we get free food each meeting from a local restaurant! Our group really offers an informal way to discuss service ideas, while engaging with other members of the Princeton community with similar passions who we might not have met on-campus otherwise!

3. ProCES Course

The last element of the program ties in the academic curriculum to our commitment to service. Service Focus members are required to take at least one ProCES-designated course sometime during their sophomore year. ProCES is the nickname for Princeton’s Program for Community-Engaged Scholarship. On their website, you can not only find a list of these ProCES classes, but other service-oriented projects and opportunities that students can partake in.

Service Focus students also have the option to petition a course that isn’t officially indicated as a ProCES course, but that they feel presents opportunities for community engagement and service learning. What’s great about this is that it both encourages student advocacy and allows us to identify other creative ways that classes may connect to service. And, once again, the course you take doesn’t even necessarily have to be related to your summer experience or your cohort topic. For example, for my ProCES course, I’m currently thinking about taking SPI387: Education Policy in the United States, or I may branch out and try DAN306: Introduction to Radical Access: Disability Justice in the Arts. Who knows? Maybe I’ll even take both! 

Overall, Service Focus truly offers a unique chance to infuse your service interests with your academic experience, and I highly encourage any student even slightly interested to apply. Visit the Service Focus website to learn more!

CA, OA, DDA. These are acronyms that all incoming first-years come to know as they embark on their college journey at Princeton. Community Action, Outdoor Action, and Dialogue & Difference in Action, respectively, are three of the main orientation programs that new students are assigned to upon arrival to campus. While all three programs have their unique merits and focuses, I’d like to talk about my amazing Community Action experiences, both as a first-year student and later as a leader. 

I remember arriving at Princeton and, like many incoming students, wondering how, when, and where I’d make friends. Surely, you’ll meet peers through your classes, your advisee “zee” group (AKA the people that live on/around your floor), and through clubs. However, CA, and orientation in general, presents a special opportunity to meet a random assortment of fellow first-years that you may otherwise never have met anywhere else. It also is an opportunity to connect with communities nearby and engage in service.

My first year, I absolutely loved my CA group. Even though we were still in our COVID-era and could not do the typical overnight orientation trips, our group bonded quickly. One of my favorite memories was going to the Princeton-Blairstown Center (PBC) and getting to do team-building games and go canoeing together. Another would be doing a gardening service project at the local Grounds for Sculpture. These activities really brought our group together and, to this day, I’m still good friends with many members of my CA group. And even with those I’m not, it’s nice to have a familiar face around campus to say hi to. Coincidentally, my CA trip is also where I met one of my best friends (shoutout Kelsey!). Though she was in a different group than me, we were both at the same service site and got to talking. We found out we shared a lot of similarities, like being from New Jersey, living in what was then First College, and also enjoying our CA experiences so much.
 

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That is partially what inspired that very friend and I to become CA leaders together this year for the Class of 2026. Our CA group (shoutout Group 17~38!) quickly became like a family, and the energy and positivity our first-years brought was absolutely palpable throughout our entire trip. Now many weeks past the end of this year’s orientation program, we still find ourselves sending jokes in our Group 17 chat, grabbing dinner together on Nassau St., and studying with them on our floor. I can safely say that becoming a CA leader was one of the best decisions I’ve ever made and our CA trip this year was one of, if not the, best 4 days of my Princeton experience thus far. 

All this to say, orientation and Community Action is one of the many ways Princeton helps foster community amongst the incoming class. From the start of your Princeton career, you’re able to build strong connections with your peers — connections that will hopefully end up lasting a lifetime!
 

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