Some hidden text, links, a slideshow, or other content can reside here ...

The eating clubs offer juniors and seniors the opportunity to become a part of a close-knit community. They reinforce existing friendships while also introducing you to a wonderful, new, and diverse group of Princetonians. The clubs offer a home on campus where students can come together to enjoy a great meal, take a breath to relax, and develop life-long
friendships.

Hannah Paynter ’19, President of the Interclub Council, President of Cloister Inn

You join the club because your friends are there, but then by the time you graduate you’ve also made dozens of new great friends for the rest of your life.

Liam Morton '02, Cap and Gown Club

Each of Princeton’s clubs is different and through the years has achieved a distinct personality and set of traditions. This is as it should be, for it will be a sorry day for the world if ever such distinctions and peculiarities, and the especial loyalties they invoke, are lost.

Struthers Burt, Class of 1904

By joining an eating club, I’ve gained a sense of home and community that keeps me grounded on campus. I’m incredibly grateful for the life-long friendships I’ve developed and the many opportunities it has given me to grow my community and enrich my Princeton experience.

Rachel Macaulay ’19, President of Tower Club

Eating clubs serve as the perfect bridge between your underclassman and upperclassman years. They reinforce the strong friendships you've established and encourage new relationships with a diverse new group of people. By spending time talking, eating, studying, and socializing, we find that we are surrounded by some of the most brilliant yet modest and talented yet compassionate people, all from incredibly diverse backgrounds with a wide range of different life experiences and stories to share.

Katrina Maxcy '14, Former President of Colonial Club

The eating clubs are so much more than where 70 percent of Princeton juniors and seniors take their meals. They are where students are studying, collaborating on assignments, and encouraging each other as they write the last page of that junior paper or senior thesis. They are where students are coming together at tables to discuss an interesting news story, a great movie someone has seen recently, a campus issue, or any of a cornucopia of possible topics. They are where students are socializing and celebrating the end of a stressful day or a stressful week at high-quality social events. They are where students are engaging in meaningful service to the community outside of the Orange Bubble. The eating clubs are unique to Princeton, and they exemplify what is unique about Princeton — a sense of always being able to come home, whether you're just joining as a sophomore or are coming for your 50th Reunion.

Jean-Carlos Arenas '16, Former President of the Interclub Council, Former President of Charter Club

Eating clubs are places in which to find a home on campus. More than just a building to socialize in, they exist to create that feeling of family and acceptance – somewhere where you’re free to just be yourself, and relax into a community that accepts and loves you for you. Being in an eating club allows you to meet so many great people that otherwise you might never have met – people from backgrounds and cultures that differ greatly from your own, but who will nonetheless become some of your closest friends on campus. Being a part of one of these groups enables you to have a community that will always be yours, and that you will continue to be a part of long after you graduate. I find that in my own experience, I am constantly and unerringly amazed by the people I have met through my club, and by the sheer kindness with which everyone treats one another. I wouldn’t trade my eating club experience for anything in the world.

Conor O’Brien ’19, President of Charter Club

The Eating Clubs
of Princeton University

Princeton Interclub Council hosts “Conversation on Diversity, Inclusion and the Eating Clubs”

IMG_7588  The Princeton Interclub Council (ICC) hosted a Conversation on Diversity, Inclusion and the Eating Clubs on February 28, 2016 at the Cap and Gown Club. The five major topics discussed were club demographics, socioeconomics, public perception of the clubs, admissions processes, and attrition. Attendees discussed these subjects and brainstormed potential solutions in small groups that included ICC representatives, and the small groups shared what they discussed with the larger group. The conversation ended with a general question and answer session, where all participants were able to pose questions and bring up additional comments to for all attendees to discuss.

The ICC debriefed about the conversation at its subsequent meeting, and some of the following recommendations from the event were discussed as potential action items for the ICC to work on over the next year included:

•    Have more events during the day open to freshmen and sophomores to increase accessibility.
•    Look into the feasibility of having RCAs and/or ICC representatives speak to freshman about eating clubs and thIMG_7589eir place in Princeton social life during orientation.
•    Offer more information regarding financial aid options.
•    As per The Daily Princetonian Editorial Board’s recommendation: ensure students are aware of financial obligations by putting sophomore and upperclass club dues on the ICC admissions website and require acknowledgment of financial terms when students register to join a club.
•    Provide better explanations from selective club presidents during panels to clarify the bicker process.
•    Have more interclub events.
•    Collaborate with student groups to host their events at the clubs.
•    Implement an eating club exit survey for students who decide to drop their club membership. This survey would give students an opportunity to provide feedbackIMG_7585 regarding their club experience, provide information on the causes of member attrition and potential improvements that can be made to the club membership experience.

The Conversation on Diversity, Inclusion and the Eating Clubs was sponsored by the ICC with the support of  ICC Advisor Spencer Jones ’12, GICC Advisor Lisa Schmucki ’74, GICC Chair Tom Fleming ’69, Vice President of Campus Life Rochelle Calhoun, Associate Dean of Undergradute Students Bryant Blount ’08, and Executive Director for Planning and Administration Christopher Burkmar ’00. Newly elected ICC President Samuel Smiddy ’17 will continue working on this initiative during his term.

  • 03/24/2016
© 2023 Interclub Council (ICC) | login