Academic Excellence, Justice, and Honor: Cum Laude Society 2003
April 30, 2003

Pingry’s junior and senior students gathered in the Hauser Auditorium on Tuesday, April 29 to welcome the new members of the Cum Laude Society. Pingry inducted 13 juniors and 13 senior students into its chapter. Each student was chosen for his/her academic excellence. Arete (excellence), Dike (justice), and Time (honor) signify the qualities that members should have as personal goals as well as the pursuit of true scholarship in the spirit of selflessness and sharing. Before the induction began, a representative from Prudential Financial Corporation introduced David Page (VI) as a finalist for the Prudential Spirit of Community award for his outstanding work in community service. David, who was inducted into the Cum Laude Society in his junior year, has raised more than $35,000 to preserve the Watchung area buildings. After David accepted his award Lydia Geacintov, Pingry director of studies and president of the school's chapter of the society, welcomed the current Cum Laude members onto the stage, where they then shook hands with present members and were introduced to the community. Membership into the Cum Laude Society is primarily given to students, whose main goal is to recognize the achievement of their peers. In addition, a faculty member, Fred Fayen, serves as secretary, and teachers who were elected to Cum Laude in high school or college are also members. In the Pingry chapter, juniors and seniors are eligible for membership if they have earned a B+ average, been on the honor roll from the 10th grade on, and carry a college preparatory course selection. New inductees receive 50% of their votes from present members of the society, and membership is limited to 10% of the junior class, with a total of 20% of the senior class. As Lydia Geacintov said during the assembly, "The primary goal of the Cum Laude Society is to recognize scholarship. As with all honors, recognition by peers is the greatest honor one can achieve." Recently Inducted Members Include: Seniors Kate Coyle Katie Corrigan Sarah Saxton-Frump J Andrew Heyman Doug Hirsch Anna Hsu Allison Kluger Jeremy Massler Jennifer Maxwell Thomas Rosenberg David Salz Katie Towt Jane Wang Juniors Ben Blonder Susannah Bragg Athena Christakos Douglas Ellwanger Christine Hsu Amit Kumar Marisa LaValette Katie Lawrence Noah Mamis Rajiv Mehta Andrew Schlesinger Sonam Sharma Seniors Elected in 2002 (as juniors) Mila Dunbar-Irwin Brad Feldman Karen Giangreco David Harris Kristin Kicenuik Meredith Lammertse Rebecca Livengood Sarah Miller David Page Priya Srivastava Jennifer Wu Stephanie Yen Yvette Zimering © 2003 The Pingry School