Princeton University Names Dorms After Black and Latino Donors For The First Time in 275 Years

Two housing units on Princeton University’s campus have been named after a Black and Latino donor.

According to a news release, Princeton University hosted a dedication and ribbon-cutting ceremony for Kwanza Jones and José E. Feliciano Hall on May 5, named after Kwanza Jones Hall and José E. Feliciano.

The brand-new dorms are the first buildings named after donors of color in Princeton’s 275-year history.

The accomplished married couple are prestigious alums, Jones, a 1993 graduate, and Feliciano, a 94’ grad. Jones is a Billboard charting artist and CEO of SUPERCHARGED, while her husband is the co-founder and managing partner of Clearlake Capital. The duo received the honor after donating $20 million to their alma mater in 2019. Experiencing racism as students, they hope to promote campus diversity and support high-achieving students from all backgrounds. “We see this gift as the color of commitment,” Jones said. “It also demonstrates that people of color belong and we are at the table to help the university to continue to do the work of anti-racism, diversity, and inclusion.”

Fellow Princeton alum professor Michael Eric Dyson attended the ribbon-cutting ceremony, The Grio reports, and applauded Jones and Feliciano for establishing “a building that is a lasting monument to the beautiful creativity of equity.” At the ceremony, Princeton University President Christopher Eisgruber said the dorms represent “what it means to belong” before calling the couple “two very special members of the Princeton community.”

Both Jones and Feliciano, who allegedly had their first date at the very spot the dorms were built, have been strong advocates for rewriting the racist legacy Princeton holds. They wrote “An Open Love Letter to Princeton” to Eisgruber and Vice President for Advancement Kevin Heaney, requesting the school remove Woodrow Wilson’s name from the Residential College and the School of Public and International Affairs.