Nine members of Princeton University’s Class of 2026 were commissioned as officers in the U.S. Army and Air Force on May 26 during a ceremony led by Brigadier General Grant S. Fawcett, a 1996 alumnus who was himself commissioned through Princeton’s Reserve Officers’ Training Corps program.
Fawcett, currently serving as Deputy Director for Politico-Military Affairs (Europe, NATO and Russia) in the J-5 Directorate of the Joint Staff in Washington, D.C., delivered the commissioning address at the event held in Nassau Hall following Princeton’s Commencement. This year’s group included two students who became the first from Princeton to be commissioned into the U.S. Space Force.
Princeton President Christopher L. Eisgruber addressed those assembled, highlighting Nassau Hall’s historical significance and its ties to American constitutional tradition. “As a student of our country’s Constitution, I find myself inspired by a singular fact about this ceremony every time that I participate in it,” Eisgruber said to the soon-to-be officers. “In a few minutes, each of you will make a solemn promise to defend the Constitution of the United States — not our land, not our wealth, not even our people, but our Constitution.”
Eisgruber also described them as “worthy inheritors of the history and ideals that course through this building,” adding: “This University takes great pride in you and in what you have accomplished. We are proud of your learning. We are proud of your courage. We are proud of your commitment to our Constitution, to the United States Armed Forces, and to the intertwined traditions from which they emanate.”
The newly commissioned officers represented various majors including sociology; ecology and evolutionary biology; mechanical and aerospace engineering; computer science; chemical and biological engineering; and economics. Their campus activities ranged from athletics to involvement with student organizations such as Outdoor Action and OrangeHat Cybersecurity Collective.
Brigadier General Fawcett told graduates, “You are joining a legacy of service greater than any individual, and you do so at a time of great consequence for our nation and for the world,” citing technological change such as drones impacting warfare dynamics. He added: “Yet despite this uncertainty we can be sure of one thing: The American armed forces will always be built around people… It demands leaders of character.” The ceremony concluded with family members pinning rank insignia on graduates’ uniforms before they performed traditional Silver Dollar Salutes.
