Year in review: Top campus headlines

Published in the Dec. 14, 2011, Issue

The conceptual design by Steven Holl Architects for the proposed arts and transit neighborhood. At the top is McCarter Theatre; in front of the theater are three connected buildings for the Lewis Center for the Arts. At right is New South; in the foreground is the planned transit plaza and new Dinky station.

For the final piece in our review of the year at Princeton, we flipped through the magazine to select 2011’s top news stories on campus. Add your picks in the comments section below.

1. Early admission returns

Princeton returned to an early-admission process in the fall, ending a four-year experiment with a single application deadline that drew little support from the University’s peer institutions. Related stories: Reversing course, Princeton to offer early-action option; Early admission, take two; More than 3,500 apply for early action

2. Arts center plan stalls, then moves forward

The University’s proposal for a $300 million arts and transit center south of McCarter Theatre faced resistance from municipal officials and local residents, partly because of a plan to move the Dinky station 460 feet to the south. In December, the proposal moved ahead, thanks to key zoning approvals (details will appear in the Jan. 18, 2012, issue of PAW). Related stories: After a 'go/no-go moment,' arts center plan in jeopardy; Slow progress on arts center plans; Area residents file lawsuit to block Dinky move

3. University bans freshmen from fraternities, sororities

Freshmen will be banned from joining fraternities and sororities at Princeton starting in the fall of 2012, the University announced in August. Related stories: Freshmen to be prohibited from fraternities, sororities; Study group: Ban freshmen from Greek organizations

4. Sims, Sargent share economics Nobel

Christopher Sims, the Harold Helm ’20 Professor of Economics and Banking, was awarded the 2011 Nobel Prize in economics, sharing the prize with NYU’s Thomas Sargent, a visiting professor at Princeton this year. Related story: Longtime friends, colleagues share the Nobel for economics

5. Gender study group reports disparities on campus

A yearlong study documented that undergraduate women at Princeton have been underrepresented in the most visible leadership positions and as recipients of major academic prizes in the past decade. Related stories: Report on campus leadership documents gender disparities; Limits, still

Honorable mentions: Banner year for endowment as investment return jumps; West *80 to take seminary position; Wilson School to end selectivity for major; After lecturer’s suicide, students seek investigation