Members of Princeton's class of 2008 gathered on Cannon Green Monday, June 2, to celebrate the conclusion of their undergraduate careers in a Class Day ceremony honoring their service and accomplishments.
The Harold Willis Dodds Prize was awarded to Thomas Lipp of New Haven, Conn. The award recognizes seniors who best embody 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 opinions of others, and a thorough devotion to the welfare of the University and to the life of the mind." Lipp, a mechanical and aerospace engineering major, was a peer educator on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues and served as president and vice president of the Pride Alliance. He was a member of the engineering honors association Tau Beta Pi and the University Film Organization, and served as a Mathey College undergraduate fellow.
Mary Katherine (Katie) Lewis-Lamonica of Lawrenceville, N.J., received the Allen Macy Dulles '51 Award, which is presented to a senior whose activities while at Princeton best represent or exemplify the University's informal motto: "Princeton in the nation's service and in the service of all nations." A Woodrow Wilson School major, Lewis-Lamonica served as vice president of Engineers Without Borders, helping to design and implement a solar energy project in Peru. She also volunteered as an English as a second language tutor and as a youth mentor in the Trenton Bridge Lacrosse Program. In addition, she was an Outdoor Action trip leader.
The Frederick Douglass Award was given to Anna Almore of Midlothian, Va., and Sian ÓFaoláin of Tucker, Ga. The award, established in 1969 by the Association of Black Collegians, recognizes a senior who has exhibited leadership, intellectual achievement and a willingness to contribute unselfishly toward a deeper understanding of racial minorities and who, in doing so, reflects the tradition of service embodied at Princeton. Almore was co-coordinator of the Leadership and Mentoring Program and co-chair of the Undergraduate Student Government's U-Council. She also founded Ignite, a program that encourages underprivileged middle and high school students to attend college by having them visit the Princeton campus. Almore, an English major and a candidate for certificates in African studies and African American studies, also received the University's Martin Luther King Day Journey Award for fostering cross-cultural relationships. ÓFaoláin is a Woodrow Wilson School major and a candidate for certificates in African American studies and Latin American studies. She was president of the University branch of Sustained Dialogue, which aims to create an open and healthy campus climate. Under ÓFaoláin's leadership, the organization held six dialogue groups on campus and hosted the Sustained Dialogue Campus Network annual conference in 2006. She also is co-founder of the Union of Multiracial and Multicultural Students and a member of the Princeton Justice Project.
The W. Sanderson Detwiler 1903 Prize was awarded to Grant Gittlin of Boca Raton, Fla. The prize is given to a senior, who in the judgment of his or her classmates, has done the most for the class. A politics major, Gittlin was class president for three years and was a member of the University Honor Committee. He also served as the chair of the senior class' annual giving campaign and as the Ivy Club social chair. Gittlin helped organize the Princeton Hip-Hop Symposium, which brought academics and activists to campus in 2006 to explore the role of the hip-hop generation as today's dominant youth culture.
Robert Biederman of Chappaqua, N.Y., received 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. Biederman, an economics major and candidate for a certificate in finance, was active in the Undergraduate Student Government, serving as president, as vice president and as a U-Councilor. He participated in the junior varsity and club basketball teams, the College Republicans and Tiger Magazine, and also was an Orange Key admission tour guide.
The Priscilla Glickman '92 Memorial Prize was awarded to Joshua Loehrer of Pulaski, Va., and Jessica Gheiler of Miami, Fla. The award honors "independence and imagination in the area of service." Loehrer, a Woodrow Wilson School major, has served as a student leader and coordinator for the Community Action program for freshmen. He also was a project coordinator for Community House, and was involved with the Student Volunteers Council and the Pace Center. Loehrer was a member of the Butler College Council, served as a Butler residential college adviser and was president of the club soccer team. He also has received the Lee D. Butler College Service and Leadership Award and a 2008 Spirit of Princeton Award for his contributions to campus life. Gheiler, a Near Eastern studies major, has been involved with the Student Volunteers Council. She served as an executive board member and as a leader of the council's service break trips. She also volunteered as an English tutor and organized the annual Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Week. Gheiler also served as a student leader of freshmen in the Community Action program.
Athletic awards
Landis Stankievech of Trochu, Alberta, Canada, received the Class of 1916 Cup, which is presented to the senior varsity letter winner with the highest academic standing. Stankievech, a mechanical and aerospace engineering major, was one of three Princeton students named Rhodes Scholars this year. He also received the University's Moses Taylor Pyne Honor Prize, the highest general distinction conferred on an undergraduate. A member of the men's hockey team, Stankievech was a key part of Princeton's 2008 Eastern College Athletic Conference and Ivy League championship victories. He was awarded the 2008 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award in the men's ice hockey division. The award, chosen by a nationwide vote of coaches, media and fans, is presented annually to college hockey's outstanding NCAA Division I senior student-athlete.
The William Winston Roper Trophy was shared by Mike Moore of Calgary, Alberta, Canada, and David Nightingale of West Hartford, Conn. The award goes to "a male senior of high scholastic rank and outstanding qualities of sportsmanship and general proficiency in athletics." Moore, a mechanical and aerospace engineering major, was a member of the men's hockey team and served as captain this year. Moore was a first-team All-Ivy and first-team All-Eastern College Athletic Conference selection, and was chosen as the Eastern College Athletic Conference Defenseman of the Year. He also received the Blackwell Trophy as the team's most valuable player and the Class of 1941 Trophy for his inspiration and leadership. Nightingale, a history major, is one of the top distance runners on the cross country team, earning All-America honors in every season. He won four individual Ivy League Heptagonal championships on the track and earned first-team All-Ivy honors in cross country three times. A team captain this year, Nightingale also earned Academic All-District and Academic All-Ivy honors from the College Sports Information Directors Association.
Meagan Cowher and Diana Matheson shared the C. Otto von Kienbusch Award, which goes to a "senior woman of high scholastic rank who has demonstrated a general proficiency in athletics and the qualities of true sportsmanship." Cowher, a religion major from Pittsburgh, is the only three-time, first-team All-Ivy League honoree in Princeton women's basketball history. She began her career at Princeton with an Ivy League Rookie of the Year honor in 2005. Cowher broke her own single-season scoring record this year with 532 points, becoming the 11th woman in the history of Ivy League basketball to reach that total. An economics major from Oakville, Ontario, Canada, Matheson became the sixth player in Princeton women's soccer history to be named the Ivy League Player of the Year. Matheson is the third Princeton women's soccer player to be selected four times for the All-Ivy first team. Also an accomplished international player, Matheson helped the Canadian national team qualify for the 2008 Summer Olympics in China, the first time Canada has qualified a team in women's soccer.
Ted Gudmundsen, Michael Honigberg and Mary Katherine (Katie) Lewis-Lamonica shared the Arthur Lane '34 Award given to honor selfless contribution to sport and society by an undergraduate athlete. Gudmundsen, a physics major from Great Falls, Va., was a member of the lightweight rowing team. He has worked extensively with Africare in Zambia on business development and educational projects. He also has been active in the Odyssey of the Mind competition, which presents students with a contemporary issue that is addressed and solved through the performance of a skit. Gudmundsen brought the program to the Lawrence, N.J., school district and helped five district teams advance to the international competition. A Woodrow Wilson School major form McLean, Va., Honigberg has taught math and English in impoverished areas near Cape Town, South Africa. The swim team member also worked at the Children's National Medical Center in Washington, D.C., and has volunteered with the Special Olympics. In addition, he has been a volunteer violinist at Princeton-area nursing homes. Lewis-Lamonica, a Woodrow Wilson School major from Lawrenceville, N.J., played for the women's lacrosse team. She served as vice president of Engineers Without Borders, where she helped design and implement a solar energy project in Peru. She also volunteered as an English as a second language tutor and as a youth mentor in the Trenton Bridge Lacrosse Program. In addition, she was an Outdoor Action trip leader.
Honorary class members
The class of 2008 also named six people as honorary class members: Stephen Colbert, the Emmy-Award winning actor and host of Comedy Central's "The Colbert Report," and Class Day speaker; Rachel Baldwin, assistant dean in the Office of the Dean of Undergraduate Students; Shelby M.C. Davis, a member of Princeton's class of 1958 and a University trustee; Christopher Gorzelnik, production supervisor at the University's Richardson Auditorium; Stuart Orefice, director of University Dining Services; and Etta Recke, undergraduate administrator in the Department of History.
