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NEWSLETTER | Spring 2012 ConnectCap and Gown Club to Cap News From the Board Chair Tom Fleming ’69 Dear Cap Members, Focus of the Committee Here is an update on the latest news from the ECSC’s efforts are divided into three areas of concentration: GICC (Graduate Inter-Club Council) and the ECSC (Eating Club Steering Subcommittee). • University Policies This has been a very active period of collabo- • Cost Issues ration between the clubs and the University. • Admissions Reform In the fall newsletter, I mentioned that I have been co-chairing the ECSC along with the Undergraduate President of Tower Club. We established goals for admis- Our outgoing undergraduate President, Derek Grego ’12, is one sions reform that encourages of the four undergraduate members. This task force was cre- a workable system for all clubs ated by the GICC as a follow-up to the Report of the Task Force while preserving each club’s right on Relationships between the University and the Eating Clubs, to decide who and how to admit mem- which was commissioned by President Tilghman and released in bers. We seek maximum choice for sophomores in a fair and the spring of 2010. efficient process. The ball is now in the court of the undergradu- ate presidents to see if they can devise a system to make this Respecting the important guiding happen. I will report more on this in the next newsletter. principle that the clubs are independent of the University, the official members University Policies and Cost Issues of the ECSC are four grad board The University encourages greater choice for undergraduates in presidents and four undergraduate dining and social options. They have shared data with us that presidents of the clubs as well as track student choices in recent years, the costs of those options, the GICC advisor, a recent graduate and the impact of those costs on financial aid. who is employed by the clubs. Five representatives from the University Key considerations include: are invited as observers: Mark Burstein, EVP; Bob Durkee’69, VP and Secretary of the University; Cynthia Cherrey, • The total number of students joining the club system has VP; and Associate Dean Maria Flores Mills; as well as Cap Alum remained constant, although the percentage of students in the Matt Kinsey ’97 who works in Mark Burstein’s office. junior and senior classes has declined with the increase in the size of the student body. Relationship with the University • There was already excess capacity in some of the clubs before We are fortunate to be able to work so closely with the University the return of Cannon club this fall. on a wide range of issues that impact the clubs. In contrast to • It costs nearly $3,000 per year more for a student to join a past times when the club/University relationship was strained, club compared to eating in a University-owned dining facility. the University has a clear desire to help the clubs flourish at Princeton. Through the work • Recent increases in financial aid cover most of the higher of the Task Force on the costs, but students who choose a less expensive dining option Eating Clubs, the University can use the increased financial aid for other purposes, includ- now recognizes that the clubs ing reducing their overall personal and family contribution to are a highly positive aspect their education. of Princeton, a point that has • The popularity of the clubs, particularly selective ones such been emphasized in a recent as Cap and Gown, demonstrates that the clubs provide a video prepared for prospec- valuable experience for our members. This is true for financial tive students. aid students who represent a significant percentage of our members. Visit the Cap and Gown Alumni Website at cap.reuniontechnologies.com • While this is encouraging, the graduate boards of the clubs recognize that we have to carefully manage this cost differen- The Club Scene tial if we are to continue to flourish. Alec Egan ’13, Cap President • The primary reason why clubs are more expensive than our University competition is economies of scale. The fixed Hey Y’all, costs of clubs are high and must be spread across a small membership. My name is Alec Egan and I am the cur- rent President of the Illustrious Cap and A major thrust of our club-wide committee has been to focus on Gown. I am a junior from the great state of ways we can decrease costs while preserving the value added Texas, and wanted to take a quick minute for our members. The University is helping us pool our collective to let y’all know what is going on in and purchasing power to reduce our expenses. around the club. Impact on Cap and Gown The spring here at Cap has been bustling and exciting to say the least. We began February with our bicker process and the Where does Cap fit into all of this? We are in an enviable posi- acceptance of 90 new sophomores and 3 new juniors to our tion. Cap is highly popular with a super facility. We are financially ranks. These students have jumped right into the Cap and Gown strong and should once again be debt free by the end of our Family, and we see them using the club to socialize and study Capital Campaign pledge collection period in December. On alongside the older membership all the time. the other hand, we are one of the most expensive clubs on the street, which impacts all of our members including the high num- We welcomed these new members the weekend following pick- ber on financial aid. ups and initiations through a Valentine’s Day semi-formal. Dennis, Chef Greg and their staff put together a spectacular spread of A rough calculation concludes that we could match University street truck style food and drinks as a way to say, “Welcome to costs if we increased our membership by 100 students. In other the Street” to the new membership. It was an exciting event and words, our current section size of 85 would need to grow to 135. a great way to see the new sophomores in the club. While current demand for membership in Cap could allow us to grow to this number, and our expanded facility could actu- The spring semester has not been solely fun and games for all ally accommodate a sizable part of this increase, we know that of the members. The study areas of the club have been full of our culture and popularity result from offering an intimate and seniors working diligently on their theses and getting through personal experience for our members. these daunting tasks. Our challenge is to continue offering the most valuable and en- However, the workload did not stop the Cap members of the joyable club experience for our members by managing the club men’s track team from helping Princeton to the indoor Ivy League professionally with a careful eye on revenue and costs. At the Championship in late February, their third championship in a row. same time, we need to continually grow our reserves through the The women’s team also had a great showing and many mem- annual support of our loyal alumni so we are financially sound for bers of the Illustrious achieved personal bests at the champion- all the years to come. ship meet. We are in an excellent position to continue to build from strength One of the highlights for the entire school was the winning of at Cap and Gown. We ask for your continuing support through the Squash National Championship. The Princeton team, led by the payment of annual dues and donations to the Annual Fund. Cap and Gown juniors Chris Greco and National Champion Todd Harrity, defeated Trinity at Jadwin Gymnasium in early March. The matches had the packed crowd on the edge of their seats and the victory was a huge feat for the Princeton Squad, giving this team their place in history. Tom Fleming ’69, Graduate Board Chair Another highlight for the club was Alumni Day held in late February. Many of you came and hung out with us at the club, enjoying a brisk afternoon while meeting and talking with Cap Task Force on the members both young and old. Thank you so much to all who stopped by and please know that anytime you are in the area, Eating Clubs we would love to see you at the club. In you haven’t yet read the report As we head into the end of the semester, we look forward to from the University’s Task Force House Parties and then onto Reunions. We hope y’all can join us on the Eating Clubs or viewed the in the festivities and I’m sure we will see y’all soon. video, visit www.princeton.edu/ectf. Alec Egan ’13, President 2 609.258.0799 I [email protected] Undergraduate Officers Cap Gear Hello Cap and Gown! My name is Nikhil Chervu, and I am the current Athletics/Gear Chair of the Illustrious Cap & Gown Club. I, like many of you, love my Cap & Gown gear — sweatshirts, flasks, and yoga pants (well, I would if I were a girl). Building off the great work of my predecessors Ines Sheppard and John Veras, we have continued to provide an online gear store President ................................. Alec Egan which is connected to our website Vice President ......................... Walter Snook (www.capandgownclub.org). This year, our webstore is provided by Active Imprints and, like last year, allows you to pay for orders Treasurer ................................