Wu Hall, therefore, serves as something like the poster-child of the residential college system. Even its location, masterfully tucked into a narrow site adjacent to Wilcox Hall, artfully speaks to the architectural legerdemain of the "Campaign for Princeton." Wu Hall was built on ground reclaimed from dumpsters and loading docks, in a sense, renovating a lost corner of the campus.

But equally important, Wu was a vibrant, stimulating building. Designed by the eminent architect Robert Venturi '47, GS'50, Wu was an immediate success with both architectural critics and undergraduates alike. This critical acclaim was something new for the University, which had been castigated for years for the stylistic timidity of its modern buildings -- especially when compared to the architectural daring of its peers in New Haven and Cambridge.