Q&A with Princeton University President Christopher L. Eisgruber

Interview by Wendy Greenberg | Photography Courtesy of Princeton University, Sameer A. Khan/Fotobuddy

In its 275th year, Princeton University has a lot to celebrate. As students return for the fall semester, two new residential colleges have opened — Yeh College and New College West — with the goal of increasing the number of undergraduates by about 10 percent. This past year ground was broken across Lake Carnegie for the Lake Campus Development, which will include graduate student housing, athletics, and recreational facilities. Add to the campus development an engineering and environmental studies complex, and a new art museum, anticipated to open in late 2024.

At the helm of all the activity is Christopher L. Eisgruber, a 1983 alumnus, who will continue in his role as the 20th president of the University for at least the next five years. On April 9, the board of trustees extended his presidency as the school looks toward the expansion of its undergraduate student body, increasing investments in emerging areas of science and innovation, gains in philanthropy, and the ambitious building program. Trustees cited “transformational gains” in student body diversity and philanthropic support, accomplishments that have enhanced the University’s teaching and research, and historic campus expansion as reasons to extend Eisgruber’s tenure.

Eisgruber received his A.B. in physics from Princeton in 1983, graduating magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa. He then earned an M.Litt. in politics at the University of Oxford as a Rhodes Scholar, and a J.D. cum laude at the University of Chicago Law School, where he served as editor-in-chief of the law review. After clerking for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge Patrick Higginbotham and U.S. Supreme Court Justice John Paul Stevens, Eisgruber taught at New York University’s School of Law for 11 years.

Joining the Princeton University faculty in 2001 as the director of the Program in Law and Public Affairs, he served as the Laurance S. Rockefeller Professor of Public Affairs in the School of Public and International Affairs and the University Center for Human Values. He directed Princeton’s Program in Law and Public Affairs from 2001 to 2004 before being named provost in 2004. He has served as president since July 2013. more

By Taylor Smith

Julia Breen Wall

Discuss your own background and beliefs in the benefits of an all-girls education. How has this impacted your personal and professional career?

I have lived and breathed students, schools, and school leadership my whole life. As the daughter of two school principals, our family’s social life was going to school games, plays, and community events. I have always felt at home in the adaptive rhythm and joyful energy of a school; there is so much magic that is created within its walls. It is a breathing organism in every sense of the word.
I came to first understand the mission of girls’ education through the lens of my teaching experience. Teaching English to a classroom of girls in a community intentionally designed with their empowerment at the center articulated so clearly the benefits of that affinity space — where all doors remain open, where girls fill all leadership seats, and where girls are the center of the story. I was hooked! My mission as an educator was clear: to build and support schools that lift up high-achieving girls and young women who will fulfill their potential and lead our world into the future. And I have never looked back.

In what ways does faculty excellence play a role in creating a positive environment for young women to learn and grow?

The faculty of a school are its heart center. The research is clear: students who feel connected to their teachers are more likely to be engaged. Now, this requires a teacher to know each student, and to identify her own personal gifts and talents. One of the things that most excites me about leading Stuart’s faculty is that our small size allows time and space to know every girl and to support her journey. In getting to know our faculty, this aspect is one of their favorite qualities of working here.

In my mind, a true mark of faculty excellence is a deep and demonstrated commitment to professional development. We live in a rapidly changing world, and our investment in curricular and program innovation is fueled by significant investment in our faculty’s continued education. This ensures that the entire school community is continuously learning. I can’t think of a better way to model learning and leadership for our students than a teacher learning and adapting alongside their students, even (and especially!) when it feels risky, uncharted, and difficult. more