By Taylor Smith
This summer, give Stuart Country Day School of the Sacred Heart a try. Located at 1200 Stuart Road in Princeton, Stuart’s summer camps are open to children ages preschool through grade 12. Taught by Stuart Country Day School faculty, the offerings are fun, educational, rewarding, and diverse. Before/after camp can and lunch are also available. more
Photo courtesy of Arts Council of Princeton
From Nature to STEM, Area Camps Offer an Abundance of Options
By Laurie Pellichero
While it might still be cold and wintry outside, summer will be here before we know it. Now’s the time to start thinking about where to send the kids to camp – and make those reservations before they fill up. Here is just a sampling of the many options right here in our area, each unique in its own way.
ACTIVE
Camp Shriver – Special Olympics New Jersey
1 Eunice Kennedy Shriver Way, Lawrenceville
609.896.8000; www.sonj.org
What began as a fun backyard summer camp known as Camp Shriver has grown into Special Olympics, a global movement that has been changing lives and attitudes for more than 50 years. more
By Taylor Smith
Want to develop your creative craft or pen that novel that’s been living inside you? Do you have a passion for painting, drawing, sculpture, or film? Are you considering a teaching career in the arts? We’ve rounded up top Master of Fine Arts programs in the Northeast that can add an extra spark to your resume and potentially help you to make that career change or land the job you’ve been dreaming about. more
Rutgers University–Camden recently announced the appointment of Kimberly Mutcherson, a well-known bioethics and health law scholar, as co-dean of the Rutgers Law School in Camden.
With her appointment in early 2019, Mutcherson became the first woman, the first African American, and the first LGBT law dean at Rutgers University. more
By Taylor Smith
Governor Phil Murphy recently announced two initiatives — the STEM Loan Forgiveness Program and the NJ Career Accelerator Internship Program — to encourage individuals in STEM fields to make a long-term commitment to build and maintain a career within New Jersey. The initiatives were part of the Governor’s Fiscal Year 2019 budget message. more
By Taylor Smith
Rambling Pines has been serving Central New Jersey and Bucks County-area children with summer fun since 1976. Tuition includes endless daytime activities, lunch, ice cream, snacks, and door-to-door bus service for the following communities: Princeton, Plainsboro, South Brunswick, West Windsor, Robbinsville, Hamilton, Lawrenceville, Montgomery, Skillman, Belle Mead, Hillsborough, Hopewell, Pennington, Branchburg, Lambertville, Flemington, New Hope, Washington Crossing, and Yardley. more
By Taylor Smith
It’s the start of 2019 which means one thing — you’re probably assessing your New Year’s resolutions. While a gym membership and a trip to Whole Foods may help you to exercise and eat better, real change begins with a fresh perspective and more all-encompassing lifestyle habits. Here are a just a few books that might help guide the way to a new and improved you. more
By Taylor Smith
According to the World Health Organization, “an estimated 47 million people currently suffer from dementia and that number is expected to increase to 75 million by 2030. It is projected that the number will triple by 2050.” To put these numbers into perspective, the Alzheimer’s Association estimates that “the cost to care for an Alzheimer’s patient in a private room in a nursing home is around $97,455 per year.” This is where U.K.-based health care start-up Virtue steps in (https://www.virtue.io). With the goal to “empower the silver generation,” Virtue aims to “develop transformative solutions for aging well.” more
Photos Courtesy of Teach For All
Wendy Kopp, founder of the successful education access nonprofit organizations Teach For America, and more recently, Teach For All, was inspired by her time at Princeton University — as a 1989 graduate of the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs. She realized she had access to a good public and college education, but not everyone did. Since then, she has worked tirelessly to make a quality education accessible to all. more
By Taylor Smith
Photos courtesy of Girls Who Code
Girls Who Code was founded by Reshma Saujani six years ago with the aim of closing the gender gap in computing classes in schools across the nation. Girls Who Code is now 90,000 strong in all 50 states, building the largest pipeline of future female engineers in the United States. Its Clubs Program, Campus Program, and Summer Immersion Program help to create accessible pathways for Girls Who Code alumni to enter into university and workforce computing programs. The organization also offers continued learning opportunities for Girls Who Code alumni to enhance their professional computer science skills. more
By Ilene Dube | Photography courtesy of Princeton University Art Museum
At the heart of the Lewis Center for the Arts complex on the Princeton University campus — just south of Ai Weiwei’s Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads and Cargot Brasserie, the restaurant in the repurposed cargo shed of the old Dinky train — the earth undulates in wave-like craters.
Site plan courtesy of Maya Lin Studio
Like quirky hillocks with straight edges, they beckon a visitor of any age to climb to the top and roll down sideways, just as a child might. And I can’t help thinking that’s just what the earthwork’s artist, Maya Lin, hopes we’ll take away — not her name and bio as one of the most important artists working today, but rather a place to honor and connect with earth and grass. more
Photos courtesy of Foundation Academies Charter School
By Anne Levin
Every spring since 2007, Foundation Academies in Trenton holds a lottery to determine which children will attend the following fall. It is an emotional evening — at once joyous and mournful.
“It is one of the most gratifying, but also the saddest nights of the year,” says Graig Weiss, CEO of the charter school that teaches children from kindergarten through 12th grades. “We now have more than 800 kids on the waiting list. People go away either crying or screaming with joy.”
Interview by Taylor Smith | Photographs courtesy of The Wilberforce School
Immediately after receiving my undergraduate degree in computer science, I started working on ground system processing and satellite computer designs for the Strategic Defense Initiative (SDI) in Colorado in the late 1980s. While working on various space-related projects, I fell in love with designing satellites, but I wanted to work on remote sensing systems in the earth sciences. After working in defense contracting for five years, I moved to England to study ocean physics and satellite oceanography at the University of Southampton. After many adventures on the English Channel, I came back to complete my PhD under Dr. George Born at the Colorado Center for Astrodynamics Research (CCAR), using satellites to study ocean physics funded by NASA. Ironically, after graduating, I went back to work on a Navy satellite that uses radar altimetry to measure the ocean’s sea surface height. Finally, when The Wilberforce School started their high school in 2014, they needed someone who could teach physics and had experience using MATLAB (Matrix Laboratory Programing). My daughter was attending the Wilberforce lower school at the time, which is how they knew of me, and they asked if I would consider teaching at the high school since I had studied physics (oceanic and atmospheric), and I had experience with MATLAB. more
Interview by Taylor Smith | Photographs courtesy of Stuart Country Day School of the Sacred Heart
I have my doctorate in technology and learning, from Teachers College, Columbia University. Here at Stuart, I am able to apply my educational background and my academic research, which included topics on how we use technology to expand our creativity, and innovative thinking, into the work I do here at Stuart supporting high school students. The girls at Stuart are college bound, and in addition to learning context, the skills I integrate into my courses are grounding students with learning theories, ideas about how to make products, and the design thinking process. more
Interview by Taylor Smith | Photographs courtesy of Stuart Country Day School of the Sacred Heart
Describe your role at Stuart and give an example of some of the classes that you typically teach.My role of STEM/SIFE coordinator allows me to collaborate with teachers to infuse STEM, finance, and economics into the curriculum. As one of the three technology innovation specialists at Stuart, I work with the Upper School to integrate technology. Also, I teach computer science in the Upper School. My classes include Robotics, Design of Emerging Technologies, and AP Computer Science Principles. Design of Emerging Technologies is a project-based class where students utilize design thinking to build their own creation using programming, a microcontroller, and sensors. Students have created touch panels that work with LED boards, balls that record their velocity, virtual reality applications, and even built a piano staircase.
Interview by Taylor Smith | Photographs courtesy of Princeton Academy of the Sacred Heart
What subject matter do you teach at Princeton Academy of the Sacred Heart and what initially attracted you to the school?I teach Middle School art at Princeton Academy of the Sacred Heart, which includes grades 5 through 8. I first learned about Princeton Academy as the parent of a prospective student over nine years ago. My wife and I were looking for a school that prioritized individualized attention while embracing each student as part of a community. We were particularly concerned about our middle son, who didn’t receive teacher attention as a quiet and well-behaved student. As parents of boys, we wondered whether an all-boys environment would resonate with our son’s personality. So, we took the plunge. more
Photos courtesy of Michael Branscom
What fueled your passion to rework the science curriculum at Princeton Day School?While chair of the science department at a New Jersey boarding school, I connected with the highly regarded interim head of the science department at PDS, Dr. Leon (Lee) Rosenberg, to talk about what our science departments were doing and see if we could start a larger conversation about the future of science education in our respective schools. more
Interview by Laurie Pellichero | Photos courtesy of The Lewis School
Like the town of Princeton, The Lewis School is both traditional and progressive. We are housed in a 100-year-old mansion, but our learning canvas is the town. We’ve visited Princeton Plasma Physics Lab to advance our STEM program, and we’ve hosted artistic events at various locations in Princeton. We use the YMCA for our physical education classes and Princeton University gym for our athletics programs. We also use the many cafes and ice cream parlors for special celebrations in our Lewis Community! more
Interview by Taylor Smith | Photographs courtesy of Chapin School
Chapin School was founded by Francis Chapin, a woman dedicated to educating children. In the beginning, she taught reading in her home at 23 Chambers Street, Princeton. Francis Chapin’s contribution as an educator in the Princeton community grew, and so did school enrollment. In 1958, Chapin School moved to its current location at 4101 Princeton Pike. This location offered Chapin students exceptional options for learning then and it continues to do so today. Chapin proudly fulfills its mission to provide a richly-textured education that inspires academic achievement and builds strength of character.
By Donald Gilpin | Photos by Ben Solomon/Rutgers Athletics
Rutgers is embarking on its fifth year in the Big Ten Conference, and Athletic Director Pat Hobbs, in his third season with the Scarlet Knights, has a clearly defined goal in sight: the creation of a championship culture. Hobbs refers to his “five-year turnaround plan,” which he adopted when he arrived in November 2015, and he looks forward to exciting developments on the field, in the classroom, and in the institution as a whole as Rutgers’ impact on the Big Ten and the Big Ten’s impact on Rutgers continue to grow in the coming years. “One of the reasons I was attracted to the job was because Rutgers is now part of the Big Ten Conference,” says Hobbs, who had previously served as law school dean and athletic director at Seton Hall University.
The challenges are formidable, and the past two and a half years, on the field and off, have been difficult. In addition to overall winning percentages at just around .250 (about three losses for each win) in conference play since 2014, Hobbs also inherited a program afflicted by various scandals entangling two previous athletic directors, football players dismissed from the team for alleged criminal conduct, a suspended head coach, and more.
