‘Validating Moment’ Starts Class of 2029’s Princeton Journey

The Class of 2029 and incoming transfer students got off to a roaring start to their Princeton experience, as they walked through FitzRandolph Gate during the Pre-rade, were welcomed by University President Christopher Eisgruber ’83 at Opening Exercises, and sang their hearts out at the Step Sing.

Opening Exercises, which took place Aug. 31, marked one of the final events of orientation for 1,409 first-time, first-year students and 32 transfers, who came back from their small group experiences the previous day.

Liam Darnell ’29, a member of Yeh College, was a part of Outdoor Action (OA), and stayed on campus. He spent one night camping — for the first time — and said, “It was good to step a little bit outside my comfort zone.”

Julianna Gallup ’29, also a member of Yeh, spent her time in OA backpacking in a state park. “It was a bit challenging at times, but I enjoyed spending time in nature,” she said.

Students in Community Action (CA) also enjoyed their experiences but had mixed opinions on the service aspect of the program.

Kemi Ojikutu ’29 described CA as a “very fun bonding experience,” but said her group, which stayed on campus and focused on youth development, lacked significant action for the community. “I think that we could have done a lot more actual service, especially as Princeton students,” she said.

Hassan Soliman ’29 also participated in CA, where his group focused on education and STEM access. They lived in a yurt in the Poconos and visited a local museum center. He enjoyed hearing about the interactive education that the center is piloting and taking part in it himself. “My group’s pretty close now,” he said.

Michelle Hernandez ’29 discussed her experience in Dialogue and Difference in Action (DDA), which consists of a smaller cohort of students than those in CA and OA. “DDA is full of people who are so open and passionate about what they believe in, no matter how radical,” she said. One highlight from the group, she said, was having a civil conversation with and learning from a student who believes in Marxism, as Hernandez was born in Cuba, where she believes Marxism ruined her country.

“You can tell from the various prayers and blessings how inclusive the campus is. … It just really brought the energy of the whole place, and really made me excited.”

— Grace Wang ’29

Students also enjoyed Opening Exercises, from hearing the sounds of the Chapel Choir to seeing the wide range of religions represented.

“You can tell from the various prayers and blessings how inclusive the campus is. … It just really brought the energy of the whole place, and really made me excited,” Grace Wang ’29 said.

During his speech, Eisgruber urged students to be loyal to the truth and not to the preferences of any official, agenda, or ideological platform, and to engage in scholarly discourse. He also explained that universities must be independent sources of data, theory, and argument.

“Students should have the incentive, the responsibility, and the freedom to pursue scholarly excellence even when the arguments they generate might anger or displease powerful people,” he said.

The freshmen also reflected on the expansion of Princeton’s financial aid across the income spectrum, announced in August.

“I think a big reason for me coming to Princeton is the financial aid. I think a big reason for a lot of people is because of the financial aid,” Arnav Soni ’29 said. “It makes Princeton so much more accessible to students in any sort of community.”

Prior to the Class of 2029’s arrival on campus, Princeton announced that the class included the largest number of Pell-eligible students in University history and 69% of the incoming freshmen qualify for financial aid.

For Hernandez, attending a school like Princeton has been her dream since she was 13. Most people stayed in her hometown of Miami, she explained, so Opening Exercises were very special to her. “I feel like it validated my parents’ sacrifices moving from Cuba to Miami to give my sister and I a better life, and working so hard for us to be here,” she said. “I feel like it’s a very validating moment for immigrants all across the University.”

Prentis Hall ’79, the president of the Class of 1979, was on hand at the Pre-rade to welcome the Class of 2029, ’79’s grandchild class. “It feels amazingly fulfilling to be a part of a new generation of scholars that will be coming through this University that is, to most of us, it’s our intellectual network,” he said.

Orientation Sunday wrapped up with the Pre-read talk from Dean of the College Michael D. Gordin on his book, On the Fringe: Where Science Meets Pseudoscience, and the following night at the Clash of the Colleges, residential colleges competed to showcase spirit through games and challenges. Forbes was declared the winner.

The Graduate School has 566 new doctoral-degree students and 187 new master’s-degree students beginning this fall; 329 of those students enrolled in the humanities and social sciences, while 424 enrolled in the natural sciences and engineering. The number of international students — 351 — was comparable to those in the last two graduate cohorts (343 in 2024 and 354 in 2023).

Graduate students participated in a two-day orientation, where they were welcomed in Richardson Auditorium for an opening address, participated in the Info Fair, and learned about different activities and professional development opportunities on campus.