Since the construction of the University's first building, Nassau Hall, in 1756, the Princeton University campus has been continuously evolving. In the campus' 250-year history, six major campus plans, beginning in the early 1800s, have been created to guide campus growth and development. The last master plan, completed in 1996, guided growth for 10 years but the development that it projected is now near completion.

With major new initiatives in academics, residential colleges, and building construction under way, the campus needs a new plan for the next 10 years and beyond. The rapid expansion of the 1960s demonstrated the challenges of maintaining the landscape and pedestrian network of the older campus areas. Today's Princeton Campus Plan seeks to provide a vision and flexible framework to guide the growth of the University in responsible, innovative, and sustainable ways.