The class of 2005 gathered on Princeton's Cannon Green Monday, May
30, to celebrate the conclusion of their undergraduate careers in a
Class Day ceremony honoring their achievements and service.
Matthew Shapiro, a Woodrow Wilson School major from Menands,
N.Y., received the Harold Willis Dodds Achievement Award, recognizing
the senior who best embodies the qualities of Princeton's 15th
president, Harold Dodds, "particularly in the qualities of clear
thinking, moral courage, a patient and judicious regard for the opinion
of others and a thorough devotion to the welfare of the University and
the life of the mind." Shapiro, who worked as project coordinator for a
program that tutors middle school students and served as a residential
adviser at Mathey College, is known for his devotion to the University
and to engaging others in serious intellectual exploration.
The Allen Macy Dulles '51 Award was given to Joseph Robinson, a
sociology major from Mahwah, N.J. The award goes to the senior whose
activities best represent or exemplify the University's informal motto:
"Princeton in the nation's service and in the service of all nations."
Robinson has been a volunteer with six organizations that help
children. He also created his own community service project that
brought children from the Trenton area to campus one or two nights a
week for tutoring in reading and basketball.
Antoinette Seaberry, a French major from Baton Rouge, La.,
received the Frederick Douglass Service Award, which is given to the
senior who has exhibited "courage, leadership, intellectual achievement
and a willingness to contribute unselfishly toward a deeper
understanding of the experiences of racial minorities and who, in so
doing, reflects the tradition of service embodied in education at
Princeton." Seaberry, who served as vice president of her class, has
been active in the Black Student Union, the Chapel Choir and the Martin
Luther King Day Planning Committee.
The Class of 1901 Medal, which goes to the senior who, in the judgment
of his or her classmates, has done the most for Princeton, was awarded
to Matthew Margolin, a politics major from Portola Valley,
Calif. Margolin, the president of the student body, has been a member
of the Undergraduate Student Government since 2002.
Azalea Kim, president of the class for the last two years,
received the W. Sanderson Detwiler 1903 Prize, awarded to the senior
who, in the judgment of his or her classmates, has done the most for
the class. A Woodrow Wilson School major from Yonkers, N.Y., Kim served
as a team leader for the Arts Alive program, a core member of the
University Honor Committee and a leader of the Outdoor Action program.
The Priscilla Glickman '92 Memorial Prize, which honors "independence
and imagination in the area of community service," was given to Meridel Bulle and Brandon Nicholson,
both Woodrow Wilson School majors. Bulle, who is from Garden City,
N.Y., established the University’s first service link with the
neighboring community of Hightstown, helped expand the scope of the
freshman pre-orientation program Community Action and worked to raise
$150,000 for reconstruction projects in areas devastated by last year's
tsunami. Nicholson, who is from Oakland, Calif., has served as
coordinator of Community House's middle school tutoring program and for
the past two years has played a leadership role in the Big Brothers Big
Sisters project there.
Athletic awards
Neil Mehrotra won the Class of 1916 Cup, which goes to the
senior varsity letter winner with the highest academic standing.
Mehrotra, an economics major from Eden Prairie, Minn., is a member of
the men's lightweight crew team.
The William Roper Trophy, which honors "a Princeton senior of high
scholastic rank and outstanding qualities of sportsmanship and general
proficiency in athletics," was given to Soren Thompson and Will Venable.
An art and archaeology major from San Diego, Calif., Thompson is a
fencer who advanced to the quarterfinals in the men's epee individual
event at the 2004 Olympics. Venable, an anthropology major from San
Rafael, Calif., was a first-team All-Ivy League selection and NCAA
tournament participant in both basketball and baseball.
The Otto von Kienbusch Award was shared by Stephanie Hsiao, Avery Kiser, Esmeralda Negron and Elizabeth Pillion.
The award goes to "a senior woman of high scholastic rank who has
demonstrated a general proficiency in athletics and the qualities of a
true sportswoman." Hsiao, the 2005 Ivy League Championships Swimmer of
the Meet, is an East Asian studies major from Irvine, Calif. Kiser, the
only Ivy League golfer to win the league title three years in a row, is
an operations research and financial engineering major from Rancho
Palos Verdes, Calif. Negron, the all-time leading scorer in soccer at
Princeton for men and women, is a Spanish major from Harrington Park,
N.J. Pillion, a two-time, first-team All-America and two-time,
unanimous first-team All-Ivy selection in women's lacrosse, is a
psychology major from Villanova, Pa.
Alexandra Brown, Chanel Lattimer and Joseph Robinson
shared the Arthur Lane '34 Award, which is given by the Princeton
Varsity Club to honor selfless contribution to sport and society by
undergraduates. Brown, an ecology and evolutionary biology major from
Los Altos, Calif., is a member of the women's volleyball team.
Lattimer, a sociology major from Severn, Md., is a member of the
women's track and field team. Robinson, a sociology major from Mahwah,
N.J., is a member of the football team.
Honorary class members
The class of 2005 also named five people as honorary members: Don Betterton, director of undergraduate financial aid; Chevy Chase, a comic actor who spoke at Class Day; Charles Jones, who works in dining services at the Butler Wilson dining hall; Ben Stiller, a comic actor and director who participated in a program on campus in April to kick off senior week; and Shirley M. Tilghman, Princeton's president.
