News

Senator Menendez indicted for corruption, asserts his innocence

Senator Menendez indicted for corruption, asserts his innocence

Christina Vosbikian

U.S. Senator Robert Menendez and Salomon Melgen, a Florida ophthalmologist, were indicted on Wednesday by the District of New Jersey for one count of conspiracy, one count of violating the travel act, eight counts of bribery and three counts of honest services fraud. Menendez was also charged with one count of making false statements. The announcement was made by Assistant Attorney General Leslie Caldwell of the Justice Department’s Criminal Division and Special Agent in Charge of the FBI’s Newark, New Jersey Division Richard Frankel. According to CNN, Menendez has asserted his innocence, pledging to fight the federal corruption charges brought against him.

NEWS | 04/01/2015

Whig-Cliosophic Society holds sexual assault policy discussion

Katherine Oh

The American Whig-Cliosophic Society discussed various aspects of the University’s new sexual assault policy on Wednesday. Wilson School professor Stanley Katz, whois an outspoken critic of the University’s decision in 2014to lower the evidence standardfor sexual assault cases,addressed the topic in a short talk at the beginning of the discussion. Whig-Clio senate president Jack Reed ’16 explained that the event was intended to be an open conversation, rather than a lecture. There were no representatives in support of the University's new standard of evidence at the discussion. According to Katz, the administration sent the entire faculty an email at the beginning of this academic year indicating a possible change in the disciplinary procedure to address sexual assault cases on campus.

NEWS | 04/01/2015

Karmapa visits Princeton, discusses women’s rights, social activism, environment

Zaynab Zaman

Women’s rights are a reflection of the degree to which everyone enjoys basic human rights, the 17thGyalwang Karmapa said in a lecture on Wednesday. Dean of Religious Life and the Chapel Alison Boden introduced the Karmapa, noting that Karmapa literally means “the one who carries out Buddha-activity” or “the embodiment of all the activities of the Buddhas.” The Karmapa was born in Tibet and fled to India, where he has continued his training as a monk, Boden said. The Karmapa explained that he was born into isolation and had no opportunity for formal education as a child.

NEWS | 04/01/2015

Falcon ’15 awarded David-Weill Scholarship

Olivia Wicki

Eric Falcon ’15 became the first University student to be awarded the Michel David-WeillScholarship, and he will pursue a master’s degree in European affairs at Sciences Po in Paris after graduation. Every year, the Michel David-Weillaward provides one American student, studying at one of twenty Sciences Po partner institutions, with an $80,000 grant to attend Sciences Po and obtain a master’s degree.Named after Michel David-Weill, the former chairman of the investment bank Lazard Frères, the scholarship is directed by the Michel David-Weill Foundation. “I was very excited.

NEWS | 04/01/2015

News & Notes: U. has third-lowest admissions rate among Ivy League schools

Daily Princetonian Staff

Only two Ivy League universities' admission rates were lower than that of the University's as of Tuesday night, although Harvard's admission rate had not yetbeen released, Business Insider reported. Columbia accepted only 6.1 percent of its applicants to the Class of 2019, and Yale accepted only 6.49 percent.

NEWS | 03/31/2015

Q&A: Miss America 2014 Nina Davuluri

Shriya Sekhsaria

Miss America 2014 Nina Davuluri spoke about her journey to the crown in a lecture entitled, "Celebrating Diversity Through Cultural Competency" on Tuesday.

NEWS | 03/31/2015

Big Sean to perform at Lawnparties

Big Sean to perform at Lawnparties

Jessica Li

Grammy-nominated rapper Big Sean will headline spring Lawnparties, Undergraduate Student Government social committee chair Simon Wu ’17 announced in Frist Campus Center Food Gallery on Tuesday night. Hip-hop singer Luke Christopher and pop singer Alus from Montville, N.J., will provide the opening acts, he added. Big Sean’s most recent album, “Dark Sky Paradise,” topped the Billboard 200 chart earlier in March.He signed with Kanye West’s GOOD music in 2007 and has collaborated with multiple artists including Nicki Minaj, Lil Wayne and Justin Bieber.

NEWS | 03/31/2015

Miss America 2014 discusses personal journey, cultural standards

Miss America 2014 discusses personal journey, cultural standards

Shriya Sekhsaria

As the first Indian-American to win the Miss America crown in 2014, Nina Davuluri said at a lecture on Tuesday that the Miss America Organization is often misunderstood. “It felt so timely for this organization to finally reach out to a new demographic of young women that’s representative of what America is today," Davuluri said.

NEWS | 03/31/2015

U. office removes statement about safety of Wi-Fi radiation following activist pressure

Catherine Offord

The Office of Environmental Health and Safety removed a statement from its websiteabout the safety of radiation from Wi-Fi in June 2014 in response to activist pressure. The statement, which reflected the University’s position on the hazards of exposure to wireless radiation and authored in 2007, disappeared from the website after the University deemed it to be out of date. The move took place against a backdrop of activist concern about Wi-Fi safety in schools across the country and in Europe and was triggered by a series of emails from individuals outside the University who had viewed the University's statement on radiation safety. The process began with an email in February 2014 from a womanconcerned about Wi-Fi safety who had two young children, Sue Dupre, the University's Assistant Director of Environmental Health and Safety, said.The woman was not affiliated with the University. “She contacted us and everybody in our office, including more senior people in University management, expressing concern about our position statement and saying that there were other important, recent studies we needed to look at,” Dupre said.

NEWS | 03/31/2015

U. offers admission to 6.99 percent of applicants for Class of 2019

Do-Hyeong Myeong

The University has offered admission to 1,908 students, or 6.99 percent, of the 27,290 applicants for the Class of 2019. This makes it the most selective admission year the University has seen to date. The number of applicants for this year was also the largest, breaking the record number of 27,189 set by the Class of 2015. The increase in selectivity is partly because of the larger applicant pool, and partly because the University offered admission to more applicants from early action round than last year, Dean of Admission Janet Rapelye said. The Office of Admission's effort to reach out to prospective applicants might have influenced in the increase in applicant pool, Rapelye added. The University’s generous financial aid and the Office of Admission reaching out to more first-generation students earlier in their high school careers might have influenced more qualified first-generation college students to apply to the University, she explained, noting that her office is working with more than 300 programs and community-based organizations such as Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America and QuestBridge. Of the 1,908 admitted students, 767 were admitted through the early action applications in December.

NEWS | 03/31/2015

Kemper ’02: A Triangle, Quipfire alumna, now a star on Netflix

Doug Wallack

Before Ellie Kemper '02 starred in the title role in "Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt," she had an interest in writing about weirdness for Triangle Club, David Turner '02, who acted with Kemper in Triangle, said.“She was totally unique,” Turner said.

NEWS | 03/30/2015

News & Notes: Rutgers student charged with attempted murder after taking LSD

Grant Golub

An unclothed Rutgers student was arrested on Saturday and charged with attempted murder and other offenses after allegedly stabbing a fellow student, NBC News reported. The two had both allegedly taken LSD. A witness reported to police that the accused student, 22-year-old Kevin Huang, at some point had become aggressive with the other student and removed his own clothing. Huang allegedly stabbed the 23-year-old male student in the neck.The victim, bleeding from the neck, escaped the apartment. Police found Huang naked and on the second floor of the apartment.A later search of the residence found 15 pounds of marijuana, a sizable amount of Xanax, cocaine and unidentified pills and a substantial amount of cash. The condition of the victim, who was not identified, was uncertain. Police also charged Huang with two weapons counts and several drug offenses.

NEWS | 03/30/2015

Environmentalists express concerns over pipeline construction

Christina Vosbikian

Environmentalists and other local community members have expressed concerns over the Williams Transcontinental pipeline that will run through parts of Princeton and Montgomery. When the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission found in December that the proposed pipeline would not significantly impact the surrounding community, it permitted Transco to move forward with the project. The project would include 30 miles of a new natural gas pipeline loop through Mercer, Somerset and Hunterdon counties in New Jersey and in Monroe and Luzerne counties in Pennsylvania.

NEWS | 03/30/2015

Stossel speaks on the efficiency of free markets

JohnStossel_RachelSpady_Contributing_WEBsmall

Stossel speaks on the efficiency of free markets

Charles Kyungchan Min

The free market is the only meaningful alternative to government programs, which create inefficiency and have unintended harmful effects, John Stossel ’69,Fox Business channel host and libertarian pundit said at a lecture about his political philosophy on Monday. “It doesn’t help people," Stossel said.

NEWS | 03/30/2015

DPS seeking accreditation

Grant Golub

The Department of Public Safety is awaiting word from theCommission on the Accreditation of Law Enforcement Agencies on whether it will receive accreditation from that organization. CALEA is a national organization that prescribes standards for law enforcement agencies and recognizes agencies that meet its standards by awarding them accreditation.

NEWS | 03/30/2015

News & Notes: Yale Spanish and Portuguese department faces anonymous allegations of discrimination

Daily Princetonian Staff

Yale’s Department of Spanish and Portuguese is under administrative review following anonymous allegations about the department’s academic and social environment, the Yale Daily News reported. An anonymous letter was distributed to members of the department and university administrators on March 6.

NEWS | 03/29/2015

USG senate addresses accessibility of campus recreation, new referenda

Katherine Oh

The Undergraduate Student Government senate discussed making campus recreation more accessible and the Bicker referendum during its weekly meeting on March 29. USG has been working with Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Campus Recreation David Leach ’88 to provide more convenient access to the fitness center by adding a side door, chief designer William Aung ’18 said. “We broached the subject of having other entries to Stephens Fitness Center, and after talking to him, he didn’t really seem to be in support of it now, because of the way that it’s constructed,” Aung explained.

NEWS | 03/29/2015

Pao ’91 loses discrimination lawsuit

Pao ’91 loses discrimination lawsuit

Cassidy Tucker

Ellen Pao ’91 lost her three-year discrimination lawsuit against venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers on Friday.A jury found that Kleiner Perkins did not discriminate against Pao on the basis of gender and did not retaliate against her for reports of gender discrimination that she had filed with senior staff at the firm.

NEWS | 03/29/2015

Former Triangle Club accountant pleads guilty to theft

Former Triangle Club accountant pleads guilty to theft

Shriya Sekhsaria

Thomas Muza, former Triangle Club accountant and McCarter Theatre general manager, pleaded guilty on Friday to embezzling more than $240,000 from the club between January 2008 and February 2013.The specific charge was second-degree theft by unlawful taking.Muza declined to comment.Triangle’s Board of Trustees was originally unhappy with Muza because he was not doing responsible financial reporting, Marc Segan ’77, chairman of the board, said.“We found it not easy to deal with him because we wanted to get clear financial information, and I guess that was because he had things to hide,” he said.Muza was Triangle’s accountant between 1993 and 2013, and received an annual salary from Triangle of $4,000.

NEWS | 03/29/2015

U. advertises sexual misconduct survey heavily in hopes of high response rate

Christina Vosbikian

The University has been advertising heavily for students to take its survey about the climate for sexual misconduct on campus because it wants to conduct the survey in future years, Daniel Day, the University’s acting director of communications, said. A high response rate this year would give the University a good baseline for later comparison, he explained. “We’ve had a good initial response,” he said.

NEWS | 03/29/2015

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