This years marks Princeton Adult School’s 75th anniversary, and the inaugural event is one not to be missed: a conversation with noted college presidents moderated by distinguished television news leader Charles Gibson.
The Sunday, September 29, event is the first of three conversations to occur over the next year. The program is a fitting way to honor Princeton Adult School and is illustrative of what the school has always been to adult learners.
“On one hand, Princeton Adult School teaches skills, like history, language, and computers,” said conversations co-chair Ingrid Reed. “On the other hand, the school has always given the community an opportunity to learn from local leaders in education and from the professions. Our conversations series is a way of doing that in an informal way with more than one leader at a time.”
Gibson, a Princeton University alumnus and trustee, will converse with former Princeton University presidents Shirley Tilghman and Harold Shapiro, Swarthmore College president Rebecca Chopp, and Cedar Crest College president Carmen Twillie Ambar, about “Higher Education: Past, Present and Future.” A reception with Gibson and the participants will follow.
“The topic is fitting for our inaugural conversation,” added co-chair Nancy Beck. “Princeton Adult School’s archives show in 1939 there was a lecture series on ‘Problems and Prospects of Democracy’ — this school has always been about helping people think about larger issues.”
The participants also are fitting to kick off this milestone year’s anniversary events. Gibson started his journalism career at Princeton University’s WPRB. As a trustee, he chaired the Community Relations committee, furthering his deep ties to the area. Tilghman and Shapiro both came to higher education leadership after non-academic experiences, she as a genetic biologist and he an economist. The current presidents, Chopp and Ambar, represent diverse fields: Chopp has a master’s in divinity and also is a professor of religion, while Ambar is an attorney and holds a master’s in public policy.
There will be three conversations this anniversary year. The second is Sunday, December 8, moderated by Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Barton Gellman, and focusing on international relations. The third, touching on the arts, will be scheduled in early 2014.
The September 29 Conversation will run from 4 to 5:30 p.m. at Princeton University’s Friend Center at Olden and William streets. Patron tickets with reserved seating for the three Conversations is $100. Single Conversations tickets are $25. All proceeds benefit the Princeton Adult School 75th Anniversary Fund. Tickets and more information may be found at www.princetonadultschool.org or by calling 609-683-1101.
Princeton Adult School, Box 701, Princeton. 609-683-1101. info@princetonadultschool.org.
