Mission, Values, and Community Expectations

Mission

The mission of Rockefeller College is to foster an inclusive residential community of care and responsibility that welcomes students from diverse backgrounds, perspectives, nationalities, and identities. All of our community members – staff, faculty, and fellow students – take an active role in supporting each other’s intellectual academic and personal well-being and growth, and help each other to realize their full potential at Princeton.  Together, we create and steward a space to facilitate meaningful and enduring engagement among community members. We learn from each other thoughtfully and respectfully, and we authentically connect with people across difference, and we support the movement towards agency and empowerment: we believe that these activities create the foundation for a transformative educational experience.

Community Expectations and Values

Rocky’s caring community members devote much effort and talent to creating the welcoming atmosphere of our college: dining staff create nourishing and satisfying meals and a sense of home; the custodial staff maintain clean and comfortable buildings; the college office staff help students thrive by reaching their empowering them to reach their potential and maintaining balance the academic and social aspects of their Princeton experience; our student leaders support their peers and foster their growth. It is important to appreciate the contributions of those who work to maintain Rockefeller College, and to contribute to this community yourself. We challenge you to leave this home even better than you found it.

University-wide policies, procedures, and community standards applicable to all aspects of campus life can be found in Rights, Rules, Responsibilities as well as policies concerning harassment, discrimination, and academic integrity.

We encourage everyone to take the following actions to get the most out of their time in Rocky and to sustain our community:

  • Appreciate and respect the members of this community. This means everything from picking up your dishes in the dining hall, laundry in the laundry rooms, and trash in common spaces to seeing every student, staff member and faculty member in our community as a whole person.

  • Engage. Please make time to talk to each other and participate in shared experiences. When we commit to genuinely getting to know each other through dialogue, we begin to understand the experiences of others and how friendship can sustain us.

  • Be an upstander. If you encounter a situation or behavior that conflicts with community values, say something. Our community is based on inclusivity and respect for everyone (regardless of identity, gender, race, sexuality, religion, etc.), and the way that we speak to and act towards each other should reflect those values. It is our collective responsibility to speak up when we witness behavior that contradicts those values. Speaking up can also help someone who may be struggling!

  • Seek out resources. The Rocky college staff and our extensively trained student leaders (RCAs, PAAs, Fields Center Fellows, LGBT Educators, SHARE Peers, and PHAs) care about you, your experiences and ideas, and about our community. We are all here to support you and are happy to talk with you should you have questions, concerns, or wish to discuss anything that is on your mind. 

  • Show up. Just as we do for you, we expect that you will keep the commitments you make to each other and to your community to be present when you say that you will be present, and that you will bring your whole self to every conversation and experience.