Volume LXXVIII, Number 25
Athlete Hobey Baker is Subject of Three-Episode Podcast . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Three Generations Sing Together in Performance by Tim Keyes Consort . . . . . 7 Trial for Evan Gershkovich Scheduled to Begin June 26 in Russia . . . . 8 Celebrating an Uncut Gem: Frank Borzage’s Man’s Castle . . . . . . 12 Princeton Festival Presents Timeless Mozart Opera . . . . . . 13 Dracula: A Feminist Revenge Fantasy Opens Princeton Summer Theater Season . . . . . 14 Smoyer Park Field Dedicated in Honor of Tommy Parker as Event Draws Cross Section of Princeton Community . .25 Kane Stars for Princeton Supply in Summer Hoops As Defending Champs Top Lob City in Season Opener . . . . . . . . . . . 26
PU Field Hockey’s Beth Yeager Makes U.S. Team For Paris Olympics . . . 21 Art . . . . . . . . . . . . 18, 19 Books . . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Calendar . . . . . . . . . . 20 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . 29 Mailbox . . . . . . . . . . . 10 Obituaries . . . . . . . . . 28 Performing Arts . . . . . 15 Police Blotter . . . . . . . . 8 Real Estate . . . . . . . . 29 Sports . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 Summer Living . . . . . . 16 Summer Home. . . . . . . 17 Topics of the Town . . . . 5 Town Talk . . . . . . . . . . 6
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Restoration Underway at Monument Park Garden To Prepare for 250th Thursday, June 6 was the first official workday of a collaborative project aimed at revitalizing the garden beds surrounding the Princeton Battle Monument. Located just steps away from Morven, which is certain to be a focal point of the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Monument Park is likely to be a much-visited location once the celebrations begin. “Since one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence [Richard Stockon] lived at the Morven house, we expect many visitors to be coming through this part of town,” said Sarah Ringer, who with Jody Erdman led a group of neighbors, known unofficially as the Friends of Monument Park, on the project along with Sustainable Princeton, Friends of Princeton Open Space (FOPOS), and the Garden Club of Princeton. WildLawn of Bucks County, Pa., was hired to lead the project. “We want to take this opportunity to showcase our natural heritage, too,” Ringer added. “Native plants are part of our history. Adding these native plants is an homage to our past and future, as we hope to preserve this heritage for future generations.” The neighbors came together to raise funds and hire WildLawn to “renaturalize” the garden beds surrounding the monument and plaza. “The project really sold itself,” said Christine Symington, executive director of Sustainable Princeton. “When we talked to people about what our vision was, the response was overwhelming.” The municipality donated all of the native plants for the project. Among them: butterfly milkweed, fox hedge, river oats, wavy hair grass, white wood aster, JoePye weed, wild geranium, St. John’s wort, wood rush, foxglove beardtongue, hairy beardtongue, wreath goldenrod, and arrowwood. All were planted on the first day of the project. Since then, Symington and colleague Madeline Stahl have been watering the plants every two days to make sure they survive. “Especially during this heat wave, we’re keeping a keen eye on them,” said Symington. “Once natives get established, they don’t need a lot. But when they are new, they need to be watered Continued on Page 8
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Busy Summer, Many Projects Ahead for PPS Activity at the Princeton Public Schools (PPS) might look as if it’s winding down following last Friday’s Princeton High School (PHS) graduation, but two key administrative appointments and a slew of construction projects are two indications of a busy summer in preparation for the 2024-25 school year. Fifth graders at the district’s four elementary schools celebrated their movingon-to- middle school ceremony on Thursday morning last week; 257 Princeton Middle School (PMS) students, who will attend PHS in the fall, participated in a moving up ceremony on Wednesday; and on Friday, with the time moved up from 5:30 to 4 p.m. in order to outrun a major thunderstorm, 366 PHS seniors received their diplomas. Meanwhile, PPS staff who are working with building contractors, architects, and engineers; numerous teachers and administrators with summer projects; and two new administrators, in particular, are wasting no time in getting down to work. According to announcements made over the past week, Todd MacDonald, in a new position at PPS as the chief technology officer, will be part of the summer professional development team helping to establish PPS guidelines for students and staff on the appropriate use of artificial
intelligence, and Alicia Carsdale, a sixth grade math teacher, will be a new assistant principal at Princeton Middle School, taking over from Ebony Lattimer, who recently became the new principal of Slackwood Elementary School in Lawrenceville. Carsdale will be joining the administrative team that also includes Principal Jason Burr and Assistant Principal John McCann, who is starting his second year in that position. MacDonald has been part of the
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educational technology team at Hillsborough Township Public Schools since 2011. Prior to his career in education he was a senior geographic information systems (GIS) mapping specialist for a navigation software company for four years. He has also worked at Princeton University as a technical support specialist. “Todd MacDonald has a vision of how to implement technology solutions that will have a real impact on student learning,” said PPS Interim Superintendent Continued on Page 9
Pride Parade, “a Joyful Lovefest,” Is Ready to Step Out on Saturday
“Marchin’ in Solidarity” and “Dancin’ in Celebration” the flyer from the Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice (BRCSJ) reads, as Princeton prepares for its annual Pride Parade and After- Party on Saturday, June 22, stepping off from the Princeton Municipal Building on Witherspoon Street at 11 a.m. “The Princeton Pride Parade is a joyful lovefest of community celebration right here in Central Jersey,” wrote State Sen. Andrew Zwicker in an email Monday. “I am grateful to the Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice for their leadership and efforts to bring us all together and,
as always, look forward to marching, dancing, singing, and chanting in solidarity as we recommit ourselves to defending the liberties of the LGBTQIA+ community.” This year’s event, with a theme of “A Celebration of Queer Joy,” has been organized by the BRCSJ with support from Bristol Myers Squibb, the New Jersey Education Association, Kyowa Kirin, and the Leonard-Litz LGBTQ+ Foundation, as well as many other local businesses, community organizations, and individual donors. “I am happy to see that we continue Continued on Page 9
MOVING ON: Princeton High School saw 366 seniors graduate last Friday afternoon, going on to colleges and universities, into the workforce, or serving in the military. With the graduation season coming to a close, it’s on to summer academic and construction projects at Princeton Public Schools. (Photo courtesy of Princeton Public Schools)
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