Princeton in NJ's Service

"In the nation's service and in the service of humanity"

This informal motto of Princeton University has guided the mission of its students, alumni, faculty and staff since first proposed by then-University President Woodrow Wilson in 1896 and updated in 1986. In 2016, Princeton’s informal motto was revised to “In the Nation’s Service and the Service of Humanity,” bridging phrases from Woodrow Wilson and Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor, Class of 1976.

When President Christopher L. Eisgruber asked all members of the incoming Class of 2017 to read Anthony Appiah’s “The Honor Code,” his intent was for them to think about what it means to live a successful human life, “living a life that makes you happy, and living a life that is of service to others.” From day one on campus, this principle is central to the Princeton experience, and one that begins right here in New Jersey.

 

Community Service News

United way 2018
By the numbers: University raises funds for United Way
May 11, 2018
United Way officials and Princeton University representatives gathered April 23 on campus to acknowledge the $128,998 raised for the United Way in this year’s campaign.
Service focus
New program makes ‘Service Focus’ central to Princeton student experience
April 26, 2018
The Service Focus program will bring undergraduates together to explore the meaning of service and its place in their lives during an intensive yearlong experience. Students will participate from spring of their first year to spring of sophomore year. Service Focus builds on the University’s commitment to service and civic engagement. The program consists of a funded summer service internship; service-related courses; and opportunities for students to engage with faculty and peers to learn what it means to be “in the nation’s service and the service of humanity.”
Detroit
Students engage in spring Breakout Princeton service trips
April 5, 2018
Over spring break, more than 100 Princeton students explored critical social issues such as immigration, land use and gun violence in communities across the U.S. and on campus through Breakout Princeton and Breakout Local with the Pace Center for Civic Engagement.
Alumni day
Alumni Day speakers Gibson, Mendelsohn champion free press, civility
Feb. 26, 2018
Veteran television journalist Charles Gibson and author and critic Daniel Mendelsohn reflected on modern challenges to fundamental democratic values in speeches during Princeton’s annual Alumni Day.
FGLI reception
Supporting first-gen, low-income students is focus of college conferences
Feb. 23, 2018
As Princeton and its peer schools have increased the number of first-generation and low-income (FGLI) students, resources and staff dedicated to these students also have grown. The FGLI Consortium, which formed last year, is a national organization that provides leadership and expertise to administrators working with students who are low-income and/or the first in their families to attend college.
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