Community Action and Outdoor Action1

By Betty Liu

每個(gè)大學(xué)都會(huì)精心設(shè)計(jì)迎新活動(dòng)，普林斯頓大學(xué)就為新生們準(zhǔn)備了限量版入校驚喜。若你動(dòng)如脫兔，可以選擇更具挑戰(zhàn)性的戶外活動(dòng)：驚心動(dòng)魄的野營(yíng)、悠閑自得的垂釣、放松自我的徒步、激情澎湃的漂流……若你靜為仁者，則可選擇更具人文關(guān)懷的社區(qū)活動(dòng)：學(xué)習(xí)輔導(dǎo)、貧困救助、社區(qū)涂鴉……前者親近自然，后者體驗(yàn)社會(huì)，但兩者都能讓你很快了解同學(xué)、融入環(huán)境。

Princeton has a slew of different activities on campus, such as theater productions, sports teams, book clubs, guest speaker lectures, and so on.2. Princeton: 普林斯頓大學(xué)（Princeton University），美國(guó)一所享譽(yù)世界的私立研究型大學(xué)，八所常春藤盟校之一；a slew of: 大量的；theater production: 戲劇制作；guest speaker: 特邀演講者。However, most of these events occur during the school year, so as a rising freshman,3. rising: 成長(zhǎng)中的，成熟中的，此處指即將入學(xué)的；freshman: 大一新生。I still have to wait a while before I can participate. The good news is that Princeton also offers two events that occur before classes officially start: Community Action and Outdoor Action. These are two events that occur one week before the official start of the school year, so that the rising freshman (or “pre-frosh”as the upper classmen call us) have a chance to get to know each other and make friends before officially attending school together.4. pre-frosh: 準(zhǔn)大一新生，frosh為美國(guó)口語(yǔ)，指大學(xué)新生；upperclassman:（高中、大學(xué)的）高年級(jí)學(xué)生。The activities that we participate in are exactly what they might sound like: Community Action consists of service activities and volunteer work in the Princeton community, while Outdoor Action consists of outdoor activities focusing on enjoying the natural world through activities like backpacking or canoeing.5. backpacking: 徒步旅行；canoeing:劃獨(dú)木舟。Around the end of May, students are given access6. access: 接近（或進(jìn)入）……的機(jī)會(huì)。to an application where they can choose in which activity they want to participate.

For me, making the choice was easy. While I love trying new things, I don’t really consider myself an outdoor person. This is actually very ironic because I live in one of the most gorgeous areas in the United States (just outside the Great Smoky Mountain National Park).7. ironic: 諷刺的；gorgeous: 極好的，十分宜人的；the Great Smoky Mountain National Park: 大霧山國(guó)家公園，又稱大煙山，位于美國(guó)田納西州與北卡羅林那州交界處，是美國(guó)游人最多的國(guó)家公園。In my hometown, camping, fishing, hiking, and white-water rafting are some of the most popular pastimes.8. white-water rafting: 激流漂流；pastime: 娛樂(lè)，消遣。While I can enjoy the occasional hiking or fishing trip, the idea of camping out for a week scared me for a bit.9. 偶爾出去遠(yuǎn)足或者釣魚(yú)我覺(jué)得還行，但為期一周的野營(yíng)讓我有些害怕。occasional: 偶爾的。Camping means bugs, and I doubt my soon-to-be classmates would take kindly to me screaming in the middle of the night if a spider managed to crawl into my tent.10. 野營(yíng)就意味著有蟲(chóng)子，如果我半夜被試圖爬進(jìn)我?guī)づ竦闹┲雵樀眉饨?，我覺(jué)得我的那些準(zhǔn)同學(xué)們可能就不會(huì)喜歡我了。bug: 小蟲(chóng)；soonto-be: 即將成為……的；take kindly to: 對(duì)…有好感；scream: 尖叫；crawl: 爬行。So, I decided on the other option11. option: 選擇。: Community Action.

Community Action is a program from the Pace Center for Civic Engagement that encourages Princeton University students to become a more active part of the community. The Pace Center was founded in 2001 by alumni12. alumni: 校友。John Pace Jr., John Bogle, and Professor Burton Malkiel. Their goal was to further Princeton’s tradition of service, which has been a longstanding part of Princeton University since former president Woodrow Wilson’s speech “Princeton in the Nation’s Service” was given nearly a century earlier.13. 他們的目標(biāo)是傳承普林斯頓大學(xué)為人民服務(wù)的悠久傳統(tǒng)。一個(gè)世紀(jì)前，當(dāng)時(shí)的美國(guó)總統(tǒng)伍德羅·威爾遜在此做了著名演講《普林斯頓——為國(guó)家服務(wù)》。Woodrow Wilson: 伍德羅·威爾遜（1856—1924），美國(guó)第28任總統(tǒng)；Princeton in the Nation’s Service:《普林斯頓——為國(guó)家服務(wù)》，伍德羅·威爾遜在普林斯頓大學(xué)150周年演講的題目。The programs that make up Community Action allow entering Princeton students to learn more about the community they will soon be a part of and provide a chance for them to engage in meaningful volunteer work that can make a difference in the area.14. 社區(qū)活動(dòng)的項(xiàng)目讓即將進(jìn)入普林斯頓的學(xué)生可以更加了解社區(qū)，不久之后他們就會(huì)成為其中的一分子，通過(guò)有意義的志愿者工作，他們將為社區(qū)帶來(lái)積極改變。Throughout the program, there is a diverse15. diverse: 多種多樣的。variety of activities to participate in. There are activities that are traditionally associated with community service, such as Education and Literacy,where Princeton students tutor local children, and Hunger and Homelessness, where students go and assist in local food banks.16. literacy: 識(shí)字，讀寫(xiě)能力；tutor: 教授，輔導(dǎo)；homelessness: 無(wú)家可歸；food bank: 食物銀行，領(lǐng)取捐給窮人或無(wú)家可歸者食物的地方。However, there are also more unconventional programs such as Arts and Humanities, where students use art to better the surrounding community.17. unconventional: 非傳統(tǒng)的；humanities: 人文；better: v. 改善。Some examples of this include projects like CityStep,where Princeton students bring dance to students in Trenton, and Music is Medicine, which uses music to help pediatric patients.18. Trenton: 特倫敦，美國(guó)新澤西州首府；pediatric: 小兒科的。In total, there are nine different programs. Including the ones mentioned above, there is also Community Development, Entrepreneurship and Innovation, Environment and Sustainability, Health and Human Services, International, and Law and Justice.19. entrepreneurship: 創(chuàng)業(yè)；sustainability:可持續(xù)發(fā)展；justice: 司法，審判。Each activity consists of a small group, so throughout the week there is plenty of time to get to know each other.

In the other vein20. vein: 風(fēng)格，特征，此處in the other vein指“另一方面”。, Outdoor Action is a program that focuses on learning diversity and leadership skills in the outdoors while getting to know future classmates. The program first began in 1979,as a response to students feeling isolated21. isolated: 被孤立的。when they first arrived on campus. Members of the Dean of Student’s Office came up with the idea of Outdoor Action to allow entering freshman to be able to bond with each other.22. Dean of Student’s Office: 學(xué)生處主任；bond with: 團(tuán)結(jié)在一起。The first year was met with resounding23. resounding: 巨大的，徹底的。success,which is why the program has continued to today. As previously mentioned, the programs in Outdoor Action focus on outdoor activities. For some students who have lived their entire lives in the city, Outdoor Action is the first taste they have of hiking and camping.Students say that looking at the gorgeous scenery can bring about a sense of awe and accomplishment,24. awe: 敬畏；accomplishment: 成就。while working together with their future classmates helps to create a sense of community that will continue on for their next four years at Princeton. The Outdoor Action program also consists of nine different activities: Backpacking, Bike Touring, Canoeing, Sustainable Farming, Base Camp and Service,Backpacking and Rock Climbing, Nature and Mindfulness25. mindfulness: 專注力，正念。, and Outdoor Adventure. Most of these activities involve hiking in the woods and camping out,but each has a focus that makes it different.

Students from both programs say that these activities were some of the best introduction to Princeton that they could have had. Along with the opportunity to make lasting connections, students also say that the programs have helped them grow and develop as an individual. The programs can really push students out of their comfort zones, allowing them to have new experiences and to learn new skills. Students in Outdoor Action learn how to work together as a team, they learn about diversity through their interactions with new people, and of course they are able to challenge themselves as they take on the outdoors every day for a week. Students in Community Action also learn new skills and grow through the program, learning many of the same lessons that the students in Outdoor Action do. However, instead of challenging themselves with the outdoors, they engage in service activities that immerse them in26. immerse in: 全神貫注于，沉浸于。the community that will soon be their new home. In the end, no matter which program students choose, they are bound to find the experience both enlightening and fun.27. bound to: 一定的；幾乎肯定的；enlightening: 有啟發(fā)（或啟迪）作用的。

Betty Liu 1997 年出生于美國(guó)洛杉磯，現(xiàn)就讀于美國(guó)普林斯頓大學(xué)，曾出版青春散文集《蛹》、《貝蒂帶你看名校》、《舌尖上的美國(guó)》等書(shū)。博客地址是http://blog.sina.com.cn/u/2671967925，歡迎大家和Betty一起交流和學(xué)習(xí)。