TIPS Training Comes to Nassau Club of Princeton

Last Friday I had the opportunity to train the bartending and wait staff from the Nassau Club of Princeton in responsible beverage training (TIPS).  The focus of TIPS training is to empower participants to follow accceptable standards of practice for serving alcohol beverages.  It is a skills-based training program designed to prevent intoxication, underage drinking, and drunk driving.  Mercer Council is able to offer TIPS training at no cost to alcohol licensees throughout Mercer County through grant funding from both the state (Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services) and through the federal government (Drug Free Communities/SAMHSA).  The close-knit staff were engaged and participated actively during the five hour training, and I was impressed that management also attended, recognizing the value of TIPS training through the benefits of lowered risk and a safer, more responsible work environment.  

The Nassau Club of Princeton was founded in 1889 by, among others, Woodrow Wilson as a town-and-gown club to bring the townspeople of Princeton and the University faculty together.  It is now a private social club and moved to its currrent location on Mercer Street in 1903.  The current location was once the home of Samuel Miller, the second professor of the Princeton Thelological Seminary.  The club provides dining and social spaces, as well as guest rooms for visiting members.  The rooms are filled with history, photos and letters, many from Woodrow Wilson himself.  Originally formed as a men's club, it has allowed both male and female members for several decades.   There are about 700 members from around the United States, and several hundred international members.