March 19, 2019 Volume 65 Issue 27

The University of Pennsylvania recently announced a $6 million gift to launch the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Paideia Program (Paideia) for its undergraduate students. The Program will reimagine the ancient Greek ideal paideia, which translates into “education of the whole person” and “educating citizens”—for the 21st century and beyond, with courses focusing on wellness, service and citizenship. Paideia will place a particular emphasis on informed civil discourse and deliberation and will incorporate co-curricular experiences through which future civic leaders and members of local, national and global communities practice productively engaging across ideological divides. Penn will begin Paideia as a five-year pilot program, building on and collaborating with existing programs and organizations on Penn’s campus.

“Among the many aims of a great university, none is more essential than fostering the free exchange of ideas and the robust civil expression of divergent views,” said Penn President Amy Gutmann. “The Stavros Niarchos Foundation Paideia Program at the University of Pennsylvania will be dedicated to doing just that, and more than that. Paideia will combine courses and co-curricular activities that focus on the role of dialogue across divides in enabling students both to serve others and to thrive themselves. This charge of fostering wellness, citizenship and service has never been more important than it is today, with social, cultural, economic and political divides—and the inability to talk across them in constructive ways—straining the very fabric of civil society and democracy.”

Beginning in the fall of 2019, the Paideia Program will serve as Penn’s central hub for developing courses, events and co-curricular activities around a robust civic education for undergraduates from their first year on campus through their senior year. Built around a core of 12 new, interdisciplinary courses taught by leading faculty from across Penn’s 12 schools, the program will also identify and curate existing courses and co-curricular activities that address topics of relevance to Paideia’s mission from across all of Penn’s four undergraduate and eight professional schools. The Paideia Program ultimately aims to provide as many Penn undergraduates as possible with the knowledge and skills, ethical frameworks and experiences necessary to be informed, engaged and effective citizens.

“The Stavros Niarchos Foundation is committed to supporting civil discourse, civic engagement and informed leadership, and we believe that educational institutions have a crucial role to play in each,” said Andreas Dracopoulos, co-president of the SNF. “The concept of ‘paideia,’ of educating young people not only to become successful professionals, but also active and engaged citizens, who are part of something greater than themselves, has particular resonance today. We are excited to partner with the University of Pennsylvania in helping educate citizens who will contribute to—and have faith in—fair and thriving democracy.”

For smaller cohorts of student leaders selected as Paideia Fellows, the program will provide a more structured experience. The program will also sponsor and cosponsor events designed to model civil, informed and solutions-oriented deliberation on major public issues of the day; serve as a networking hub for other Penn programs and organizations that focus on issues of wellness, service and citizenship; and provide internships as part of its mission.

The Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) is one of the world’s leading private, international philanthropic organizations, making grants in the areas of arts and culture, education, health and sports, and social welfare. Since 1996, the Foundation has committed more than $2.75 billion, through more than 4,400 grants to non-profit organizations in 124 nations around the world.

The SNF funds organizations and projects, worldwide, that aim to achieve a broad, lasting and positive impact, for society-at-large, and exhibit strong leadership and sound management. The Foundation also supports projects that facilitate the formation of public-private partnerships as an effective means for serving public welfare.

The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania announced the establishment of the Stevens Center for Innovation in Finance with the support and partnership of 1991 undergraduate alumnus Ross Stevens, founder and CEO of Stone Ridge Holdings Group. The center will stimulate cutting-edge teaching and research as well as student and industry engagement focused on the revolutionary impact of information technology on financial services. The Stevens Center will hold its inaugural event with global FinTech leaders, including Wharton alumni Jackie Reses, Head of Square Capital, and David Klein, CEO of CommonBond, on campus on the afternoon of April 3.

“We are so grateful to Ross for his visionary leadership that will enable Penn and Wharton to continue to innovate at the vital intersection of finance and technology,” said Penn President Amy Gutmann. “From its founding to today, Penn’s unique mission has always been to take on the biggest real-world challenges and opportunities through knowledge-based and data-driven innovation. The mission of the Stevens Center is precisely this: to ensure that innovations in finance make the greatest positive contributions to businesses and communities across the globe. The Stevens Center will catalyze Penn’s world-leading research and industry engagement and enrich the opportunities available for our outstanding students.”

Led by faculty director David Musto, Ronald O. Perelman Professor in Finance, the Stevens Center will work with FinTech companies to provide faculty and students the opportunity to analyze how technology is transforming the business models of financial services through the collection and curation of innovative datasets, hosting business leaders on campus, providing students curricular opportunities for FinTech research, and working with the student-led Wharton FinTech clubs on new career pathways in financial services.

“Wharton has always defined the state of the art in finance teaching and research,” said Wharton Dean Geoff Garrett. “With FinTech morphing from a buzzword into the rocket fuel of financial innovation, information technology is poised to revolutionize financial services—from mobile payments to microcredit, from lending to insurance, from cryptocurrencies to financial planning and more. The Stevens Center will bring together the best thinkers from academia and industry to ensure that Wharton continues to chart the future of finance. I am very grateful that Ross has graciously agreed to chair and help recruit an advisory board of FinTech leaders for the Center.”

The Stevens Center will expand student programming in financial innovation through applied FinTech research courses and mentorship. Companies will work with Wharton to develop research projects for small teams of students, who will integrate and apply what they have learned to current research challenges and business opportunities. Global leaders in FinTech will engage with students inside and outside the classroom as practitioners in residence.

“I am thrilled that the Stevens Center will make it possible for Wharton to greatly expand the ways we study and shape the FinTech revolution,” said Dr. David Musto. “I have known Ross since we were classmates in graduate school together and I am very much looking forward to working with him again to make the Stevens Center a game changer both for Wharton and for financial services.”

Each year, US News & World Report ranks graduate and professional schools in business, medicine, education, law, engineering and nursing. Seven of Penn’s schools are in the top 10 list. In the latest rankings (2020) US News also ranked social work and veterinary medicine. Those in the top 25 are below; for more, see www.usnews.com

Ishmail Abdus-Saboor has joined Penn as the Mitchell J. Blutt and Margo Krody Blutt Presidential Assistant Professor of Biology. Dr. Abdus-Saboor’s research aims to increase the basic understanding of the mechanisms governing somatosensory encoding, with a particular focus on pain. He uses an integrative approach spanning molecular optogenetics, quantitative analysis of kinematic behavioral movement features, neural circuit tracing, in vivo calcium imaging and electrophysiology.

Dr. Abdus-Saboor is the recipient of several major grants and fellowships, including a Burroughs Wellcome Fund grant and a K99/R00 Pathway to Independence Award from the National Institutes of Health. He received his PhD in cell and molecular biology from Penn in 2012  with Dr. Meera Sundaram, and he also served as a postdoctoral fellow with Dr. Wenqin Luo in the Perelman School of Medicine.

The Mitchell J. Blutt and Margo Krody Blutt Presidential Professorship is one of three Presidential Professorships established in 2017 by Mitchell J. Blutt (C’78, M’82, WG’87) and Margo Krody Blutt. Mr. Blutt is the chief executive officer of Consonance Capital, an investment firm focused on the health-care industry. He was formerly the executive partner of J.P. Morgan Partners, the private equity investment fund of J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. and one of the largest private equity and venture capital activities in the world. He is also an adjunct professor of medicine at Weill Cornell Medical College.

At Penn, Mr. Blutt is a member of the Board of Overseers of Penn Arts & Sciences and a former member of the Penn Medicine Board, where he served on its Executive and Finance Committees. He previously served as a University Trustee, Chairman of the University Trustees’ Committee for Strategic Initiatives, and Vice Chairman of both the Trustees’ Diversity Committee and the University Committee for Undergraduate Financial Aid. He received Penn’s Alumni Award of Merit in 2018.

The Blutt’s past Penn giving has benefitted undergraduate scholarships, graduate fellowships, internships and professorships in Penn Arts & Sciences, the Perelman School of Medicine, and the Wharton School. The Blutts also support music at Penn through the Blutt Band Slam, a popular live music competition held each year at Homecoming; a music program that provides instruction to undergraduate students and supports professional performances, master classes, and other musical events; and a singer-songwriter symposium held each year at Kelly Writers House.

Aurélie Ouss, assistant professor of criminology, has been named Jerry Lee Assistant Professor of Criminology. Dr. Ouss came to Penn in 2017 following a post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Chicago Crime Lab, having received her PhD in economics from Harvard University in 2013. Her research, which has received support from J-PAL North America, the Robert R. McCormick Foundation, and the MacArthur Foundation, examines how good design of criminal justice institutions and policies can make law enforcement fairer and more efficient.

The Jerry Lee Assistant Professorship in Criminology was established in 2003 by Jerry Lee through The Jerry Lee Foundation to support the recruitment of faculty in the field of criminology. Mr. Lee was the founder and president of 101.1 FM radio in Philadelphia.

Marion Leary has been named Penn Nursing’s first director of innovation. In this role, Ms. Leary will design and execute innovation programs and projects through Penn Nursing’s Office of Nursing Research (ONR) and will work to keep the School at the forefront of innovation in nursing. The appointment was effective February 1.

Prior to this appointment, Ms. Leary was an Innovation Specialist on a part-time basis in ONR, where she had been central to moving forward Penn Nursing’s strategic priorities in innovation. She joined Penn Nursing full time from the Penn Center for Resuscitation Science where she has worked since 2007 as a resuscitation science researcher.

Penn Nursing’s innovation priorities are to create, cultivate and grow new strategic partnerships, test new methods to improve health and the outcomes of health care and to prepare students as the next generation of nurse innovators. Ms. Leary will support Penn Nursing faculty and staff with fundamental knowledge regarding innovation and design thinking. She will also engage the University of Pennsylvania community, representing Penn Nursing as leaders in health and health-care innovation and engaging students around innovation and entrepreneurship. Ms. Leary will design and execute programs to establish Penn Nursing as a leader in innovation.

Ms. Leary has established herself as a nursing leader in the field of CPR quality and post-cardiac arrest, resuscitation care. She is an international Fellow of the American Heart Association and served on the American Heart Association’s Emergency Cardiovascular Care Science subcommittee.  In 2017, she was named Geek of the Year by Geekadelphia, Generocity and Technical.ly Philly for her outstanding achievements in Philadelphia’s vibrant geek community in the areas of innovation, technology and activism.

As a service to moms and babies alike, Penn Dental Medicine recently unveiled a freestanding Mamava lactation suite, the first site within the University of Pennsylvania to acquire one of the specially designed units, according to the Vermont-based manufacturer.

Penn Dental Medicine has had a dedicated lactation space within the School for use by faculty, staff and students for some time; the Mamava suite is a supplemental resource for the nursing mothers within the Penn Dental Medicine community that is also open to patients.

The 26-square-foot, self-contained, mobile “pod” at Penn Dental Medicine features two benches, a fold-down table, a mirror, a power outlet for plugging in a breast pump, a USB port, occupancy-activated lighting and ventilation, and a lock indicating if vacant or occupied. While meant for individual use, it can fit a stroller and more than one person to accommodate mothers with other children in tow. The suite is located on the second floor of the School’s Robert Schattner Center, near a main patient waiting area and convenient to other clinical care areas, making it readily accessible to patients.

The suite can be accessed via the Mamava app (free for iOS and Android). The app unlocks the pod via Bluetooth technology and once a mother is inside and locks the dead bolt, the pod registers as “in use” on the app. The Mamava app also showcases the location of other Mamava suites nationwide (there are more than 600 across the US and Canada, including a handful in public venues around Philadelphia) and notifies users when they are in the immediate vicinity of a pod. Nursing mothers at Penn Dental Medicine can also gain access to the nursing pod via an access code available at the School’s security desk.

“We want to ensure Penn Dental Medicine is a welcoming, supportive environment for all,” said Morton Amsterdam Dean Mark S. Wolff. “This innovative space offers a comfortable, clean and stress-free environment for breastfeeding mothers while here at the School.”

Coinciding with the unveiling of the Mamava suite, the existing nursing/lactation space at Penn Dental was relocated to the lower level of the Evans Building and upgraded as well—it now features two private nursing areas and a refrigerator.

Other Nursing/Lactation Locations on Campus

There are facilities for nursing and lactation throughout the Penn campus, many of which have hospital grade Medela pumps. For a list of all locations, with details about the equipment in each room, visit the HR website (https://www.facilities.upenn.edu/sites/default/files/pdfs/3_15_2019_lactation.pdf). Individuals can also contact their school’s/center’s human resource office to determine if their building has a dedicated facility. A select number of Medela pump parts that fit the pumps available around campus are available through the Penn Women’s Center; call (215) 898-8611 for information.

Janet E. Burns, who worked in Penn’s department of mathematics for more than 40 years, died March 6. She was 83.

Ms. Burns graduated from Collingdale High School in Collingdale, Pennsylvania in 1954. She joined the staff at the University of Pennsylvania as an administrative assistant in the department of mathematics in 1974. She received several promotions before retiring in 2014.

Ms. Burns was an active member of the First Baptist Church of Collingdale for 56 years. She was also a Den Mother of Cub Scout Troop 288.

She is survived by her children, William (Pat), Kenneth (Kathy), Paul (Mary), and daughter-in-law Peggy; grandchildren, Fred III, Kenny, Jimmy, Brittany, Katie, Elizabeth, Kevin, Kelly, Paul Jr., Tim, Kris, Kerri and Emily; great-grandchild, Aubrey; and sister, Nancy J. Bellantine.

G. Maurice Harton, a first-year doctoral student in art and archaeology of the Mediterranean world, died from an unknown cause in his off-campus residence on March 3. He was 35.

Mr. Harton earned a BA in art history and classics from the University of Maryland, College Park, and a master’s of divinity from Capital Bible Seminary in 2009.  He was appointed to ministry service in Belem, Brazil, as secondary teacher at Amazon Valley Academy. In 2018, he earned a master’s in art history from the University of Texas and wrote his master’s thesis from the perspective of slaves working in the Roman palaces of Nero and Augustus.

“In the short time that Maurice was with us, he made a deeply positive impression on all of us as a highly intelligent, hard-working and affable young person,” said Tom Tartaron, chair of the graduate group in art and archaeology of the Mediterranean world. “Maurice was particularly interested in studying the architecture of the Hellenistic and early Roman East, and was busy making plans for summer fieldwork and reading German. He was a cherished member of the AAMW community, and we will miss him very much. Our hearts and prayers go out to his family and friends.”

Mr. Harton is survived by his father, George Maurice Harton IV; sisters, Ruth Kennedy, Yvonne Towfighi and Wendy Benner; step-mother, Margie; and 15 nieces and nephews.

To Report A Death

Almanac appreciates being informed of the deaths of current and former faculty and staff members, students and other members of the University community. Call (215) 898-5274 or email almanac@upenn.edu

However, notices of alumni deaths should be directed to the Alumni Records Office at Suite 300, 2929 Walnut Street, (215) 898-8136 or email record@ben.dev.upenn.edu

University Council Meeting Agenda

Wednesday, March 27, 2019, 4 p.m.

Bodek Lounge, Houston Hall

I.    Appointment of a new Moderator. (1 minute)

II.    Approval of the minutes from January 30, 2019. (1 minute)

III.   Follow up comments or questions on Status Reports. (5 minutes)

IV.   Reports on budgets and plans for the next academic year. (45 minutes)

V.    Open Forum. (Topics will be published in next week’s issue.) (60 minutes)

VI.   New Business. (5 minutes)

VII.  Adjournment.

Research being conducted at the University of Pennsylvania’s Borders and Boundaries Project at Perry World House can help put border walls into a global and historical perspective. Beth Simmons, the Andrea Mitchell University Professor of Law and Political Science and a PIK Professor, and Perry World House postdoctoral fellow Michael Kenwick have begun collecting data on “border orientation”: a country’s visible commitment to filter people and goods entering the nation. In particular, they are working to document the drive to place security architecture at international borders.

The research team has systematically evaluated every place on earth where a major road crosses an international border. Using publicly available satellite images, the researchers have inspected these crossings for barriers, inspection lanes and official stations. They are finding unmistakable evidence the world over, but especially in North America, the Middle East and the outer edge of the European passport-free zone, that border crossings are more physically guarded by state agents than ever before. The research also confirms existing studies that have found an increasing number of border walls in the world.

Based on the research, gross domestic product per capita predicts which borders will be fortified, especially when one’s neighbor is relatively poor. Most notable, their evidence shows that, even after accounting for wealth, border fortification is associated with more autocratic regimes; free societies tend to favor more open borders. However, the research team believes heightened demands for border security within the US and Europe threaten to buck this trend, potentially reshaping the contours of democratic life.

Drs. Simmons’ and Kenwick’s research group is also finding that globally, reported human trafficking ties between two countries are likely reduced when border crossings in destination countries have been strengthened with inspection capacity. Their research suggests that to stop human trafficking, border crossings, rather than long expanses of border, should be the primary focus of border security.

A new study from researchers at Penn Medicine could help inform hospitals’ efforts to reduce future gun-related injuries in their communities.

Of the roughly 74,000 emergency department visits for gunshot injuries in the US every year, one third are treated in community hospitals that are not trauma centers, according to the research published in JAMA Surgery.

“Most people would expect that these injured patients are taken to trauma centers, but we found out that one in three are not. That’s fairly surprising given that there is much greater chance of survival of critical injuries if treated in a trauma center based on the expertise, resources and protocols that exist in these centers,” said M. Kit Delgado, an assistant professor of emergency medicine and epidemiology in the Perelman School of Medicine and Penn’s Injury Science Center.

Among trauma centers in the US, only 25 have established hospital-based violence intervention programs aimed at preventing recurrent firearm injuries, which occur in about one in 10 patients. These programs have shown not only to lower non-fatal injuries and save lives, but also cut down on health-care costs. Expanding the coverage of violence intervention programs across all trauma centers would cover most assault victims, the authors said, but these programs would benefit from engaging the high volume of patients treated and released directly from the emergency department.

“Another striking finding is that while only two percent of firearm deaths in the US are due to unintentional causes (such as a toddler picking up an unlocked gun), we found that 36 percent of gunshot victims that actually make it to an ER are injured by unintentional causes, and the majority of this group is actually treated and released from non-trauma center emergency departments,”  Dr. Delgado said. “The findings suggest an urgent need to develop effective counseling programs, which include safe-storage interventions that could be adopted in a broad range of emergency departments, including those in community hospitals.”

The researchers analyzed data from the 2009-2014 Nationwide Emergency Department Sample (NEDS), a stratified national sample from over 900 emergency departments across the US, including both trauma and non-trauma centers, such as community hospitals. Over the five years, they found a total of 445,915 emergency room encounters. Most of the firearm injuries in the study pool were due to assault/violence (49 percent) followed by unintentional injury (36 percent) and self-harm (5 percent). The researchers also found that only one out of five firearm injuries were assault injuries admitted to trauma centers.

The ability to detect extremely rare proteins in blood could make a life-saving difference for many conditions, such as the early detection of certain cancers or the diagnosis of traumatic brain injury, where the relevant biomarkers only appear in vanishingly small quantities.

Commercial approaches to ultrasensitive protein detection are based on expensive optics and fluid handlers, which make them relatively bulky and expensive and constrain their use to laboratory settings. Engineers at Penn have developed a test that uses off-the-shelf components and can detect single proteins with results in a matter of minutes, compared to the traditional workflow, which can take days.

The researchers, led by David Issadore, assistant professor in Penn Engineering’s department of bioengineering, and graduate student Venkata R. Yelleswarapu, demonstrated their system in a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Dr. Issadore’s approach works by measuring one protein at a time by breaking apart the sample into microdroplets, each of which contain either a single protein or none at all. His lab has produced microchips etched with hundreds of microdroplet generators, all working in parallel. Microdroplets that contain the protein in question are tagged with a fluorescent marker.

“Normally, you’d have to measure very precisely how much a sample changes color or fluoresces, but here we’re turning it into tens of millions of yes-or-no questions,” Dr. Issadore said. “Digitizing that question brings down the cost of the camera and the surrounding fluid handling equipment, but shifts the problem into how to process tens of millions of those questions, in a way that is reproducible, accurate, inexpensive and portable.”

Existing digital droplet detectors line the droplets up so they can be measured one at a time. To speed up the process, the researchers flow droplets into hundreds of channels that pass by the camera at the same time.

A typical cell-phone camera is too slow, Mr. Yelleswarapu said, “but you can use that camera if the light source you’re using to illuminate the droplet strobes a thousand times faster than the frame-rate of the camera.”

Dr. Issadore’s team encodes a strobing light with a signal that allows them to tease apart one microdroplet from its neighbors. “We’re strobing the light in a very specific pattern that never repeats itself, which is a technique we borrowed from radar,” Dr. Issadore said. “As the signals are going across the screen they get imprinted with this barcode. So even though they overlap with one another, we can tell them apart by which strobe pulse illuminated each droplet.”

More than 67 percent of all new HIV infections in the United States in 2016 occurred as a result of transmission through sexual contact among men who have sex with men (MSM). Young gay, bisexual, and other men who have sex with men (YGBMSM) are particularly at risk, accounting for 81 percent of new HIV infections among people ages 13 to 24. YGBMSM’s risks for HIV coincide with developmental milestones as they transition into adulthood, including their exploration and pursuit of sexual and romantic relationships.

Now, an innovative online intervention tool developed by a team led by José Bauermeister, Presidential Professor of Nursing and director of the Program on Sexuality, Technology, & Action Research (PSTAR) at Penn Nursing, shows promise in decreasing sexual risk-taking and promoting HIV/STI prevention behaviors among YGBMSM as they meet partners online. Dr. Bauermeister’s team designed the myDEx tool to address cognitive and emotional factors that influence YGBMSM sexual decision-making when seeking partners online. myDEx was pilot tested in a randomized trial over 90 days with 180 YGBMSM participants. Results of the study were recently published in AIDS & Behavior.

“Preliminary results suggest that the YGBMSM who used myDEx reported greater trends in sexual risk reduction, improvements in HIV prevention behaviors, and noted positive changes in their emotional and cognitive decision-making,” said Dr. Bauermeister. “This intervention highlights the need for supportive digital environments where YGBMSM can access and practice how to integrate HIV prevention behaviors in their online dating practices.”

Compared to those in the control group, participants who used myDEx reported that the intervention made it easier to live a healthier life, found the intervention provided useful HIV prevention information, helped them make better choices about relationships, improved their communication skills, and improved their ability to meet the type of partner they look for.

Talks

21    Balancing Life and Career; panel discussion; noon; Meyerson Conference Room, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library; RSVP: https://tinyurl.com/yypfpovo (Penn Forum for Women Faculty).

        Evolving Perspectives on Energy Storage; panel discussion; noon; Kleinman Center Energy Forum, 220 S. 34th St.; register: https://tinyurl.com/y5yz4mo7 (Kleinman Center for Energy Policy).

27    Growing Women’s Success in STEM; panel discussion and keynote speaker Horace M. Delisser, PSOM; noon; rm. G50, Huntsman Hall; register: www.upenn.edu/affirm-action/offerings.html (VPUL, OAA-EOP, South Asia Center).

28    Conversation about Employee Resource & Affinity Groups in Today’s Workplace; noon; Pavilion Room, New College House, register: https://tinyurl.com/y435hbnz (Office of Affirmative Action).

AT PENN Deadlines

The March AT PENN calendar is now online. The April AT PENN will be published next Tuesday. The deadline for the May AT PENN is April 15.

The Graduate Student Symposium on the History of Art, now in its 24th year, brings together graduate students from nine mid-Atlantic colleges and universities to present current research in the field of art history. This year’s symposium will take place Friday, March 29 from 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. at the Barnes Foundation, 2025 Benjamin Franklin Parkway. Each session includes presentations followed by a moderated discussion.

For the schedule and to reserve tickets, visit www.barnesfoundation.org/whats-on/graduate-student-symposium-history-of-art-2019

Developed and presented in partnership with the Shabahang Iranian Cultural Society of America and the Middle East Center at the University of Pennsylvania, the Penn Museum will celebrate spring with CultureFest! Nowruz, Saturday, March 30, from 1-8 p.m.

Part of the Penn Museum’s new CultureFest! series, which features family friendly activities in the afternoons and adult-focused programming in the evenings, includes Nowruz. “New day” in Persian, Nowruz is an ancient festival that marks the beginning of spring, a season of rebirth, and good luck in the Persian New Year.

Nowruz has its beginnings in Zoroastrianism, an ancient Persian religion that traces its roots to long before the rise of Christianity or Islam. Observed by millions of people in the Middle East, Central and South Asia, southeastern Europe, Africa and other locations around the globe, Nowruz varies from region to region, but it all begins with an intense “spring cleaning” of the home.

In the afternoon, families will enjoy:

• Cultural performances from the Silk Road Dance Company
• Art making, including “egg” decorating and “goldfish” designs
• Storytelling with Arsia Rozegar, the author of Shahnameh for Kids
• Brief “flash talks” with researchers about topics like “Iran in the 21st Century”
• Tours of the Middle East Galleries featuring a Global Guide originally from Iraq or Syria
• Choir performances from the Turkish American Friendship Society of the US
• A calligraphy-for-beginners workshop and a bazaar with vendors selling art, snacks, henna tattoos and much more.

These activities are included with Museum admission.

After 5 p.m., CultureFest! Nowruz continues with adult-focused programs, including live music with DJ Rana Ransom, who mixes all genres while incorporating Middle Eastern music elements into her sets, and cocktails until 8 p.m. Admission is $15.

“The ‘After 5’ portion of the festival is a great way to come together to share music and cocktails before hitting the town for a late dinner,” says Kate Quinn, director of exhibitions and Public Programs. “We are thrilled to co-develop the Nowruz Festival events with our friends and colleagues at Shabahang and the Middle East Center. Programs like CultureFest! embody part of the Penn Museum’s purpose—to create a platform for shared understanding of the human experience.”

On April 18, celebrate the 125th running of the Penn Relays with an opportunity to compete on historic Franklin Field. Penn faculty and staff are invited to register teams for the Penn Relays Campus Cup on Thursday, April 18, 5 p.m. at Franklin Field.

The Penn Relays Campus Cup is a campus-wide field day challenge for all Penn faculty and staff. Teams will compete for prizes and the chance to be Campus Cup champion! All participants will receive a commemorative T-shirt for competing. Prizes include apparel, Penn Relays tickets and more. Family, friends and fans are welcome to spectate. A full food and drink menu, as well as beer and wine for those 21 and older, will be available for purchase.

Registration: Visit https://fs28.formsite.com/GoPennAthletics/pennrelayscampuscup/index.html to register your team today and learn more about the events. Registration is open now until April 1.

What We Know about Race—For Sure is the topic of this year’s Penn Faculty Teach-In. It will be held on Wednesday, April 10, 6-8 p.m. at the Free Library–Central Parkway Branch, 1901 Vine St. in the Skyline Room on the 4th floor. It is free and open to all.

The Teach-In is supported by the Free Library of Philadelphia and the Penn Faculty Senate. See www.upenn.edu/teachin For more info, write senate@pobox.upenn.edu

This is an encore of 2018’s very popular Teach-In event, the event will be a repeat of the very compelling 90-minute panel discussion that included professors John Jackson, Jr., Dorothy Roberts and Sarah Tishkoff speaking about race and the creation and dissemination of knowledge. It will again be moderated by WHYY’s Tracey Matisak.

How should the University engage with the community and the nation in the 21st century? Penn’s 2019 “mini Teach-In” will be taken from the campus into the community. It will again feature a spirited and open discussion with three distinguished panelists who bring unique perspectives on these issues.

• John Jackson, Jr. has drawn from the power of storytelling through image and sound to generate new perspectives across traditional categories: technology and religious studies, culture and economics, anthropology and new media, and Africana studies and linguistics.
• Dorothy Roberts’s head-turning critique of race-based genomic science—an argument that racial identity is a social and political invention, not a biological fact coded in DNA—has helped change the national conversation and led to powerful insights at the intersection of law, social justice, science and health.
• Sarah Tishkoff has created the world's largest database of African diversity derived from genetic samples of more than 9,000 people from 200 distinct ethnic groups and brought it to bear in novel integrations of research in linguistics and anthropology.

Together the panelists will bring into sharp focus, using anecdotes viewed through the prisms of their own wide-ranging investigations, the rigors of knowledge creation in this fluid century, the particular challenges of communicating it in an era of social media and fake news, and the dramatic and exaggerated impacts it can have in a time of instantaneous communication. The conversation will once again be moderated by WHYY's award winning journalist, Tracey Matisak, who brings to bear wide-ranging experience as anchor, reporter, and broadcaster through two decades of work in major market radio and television including Fox Philadelphia, PBS, NPR, and WHYY and KYW Newsradio.

Benefits Open Enrollment Information Sessions and Fairs

Open to faculty and staff.
Register at www.hr.upenn.edu/registration

Open Enrollment Information Sessions; faculty and staff have the opportunity to learn details and ask questions about their benefits options. Benefits Specialists will give a full overview of your choices and what to expect for the next plan year. Presentations will run for 45 minutes, followed by Q&A time.

• 4/1; 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Bodek Lounge, Houston Hall
• 4/2; noon-1:30 p.m., Room 108, The ARCH
• 4/4; 12:30 p.m.-2 p.m., Ben Franklin Room Houston Hall
• 4/9; 1-2:30 p.m., Room 108 The ARCH
• 4/17; 12:30 p.m.-2 p.m., Gaulton Auditorium, BRB 2
• 4/18; 11:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Golkin Room, Houston Hall
• 4/22; 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m., Bodek Lounge, Houston Hall
• 4/30; 11 am-12:30 p.m., Room 209, Steinberg Dietrich Hall

Wellness and Enrollment Fair; 4/23; 9:30-1:30 p.m.; Hall of Flags Houston Hall. Representatives from Penn’s health-care providers and wellness partners will be on-site to share information. Learn about medical plans, prescription drug coverage, dental plans, vision coverage, flexible spending accounts, and the Penn Benefits Center. You can also take advantage of free health-related screenings and activities, plus learn about year-round wellness offerings for faculty and staff.

Wellness and Enrollment Fair; 4/25; 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; New Bolton Center, Kennett Square. See above for detailed description.

Professional and Personal Development Programs

Open to faculty and staff.
Register at http://knowledgelink.upenn.edu/

Ted Talk Tuesday: How to Use Others’ Feedback to Learn and Grow; 4/1; 12:30-1:30 p.m. Most efforts to improve individual and organizational learning focus on teaching people how to give feedback. In this Ted Talk, Sheila Heen explains why, if you want to improve learning in your organization, the smart money is on figuring out how to receive feedback and use it to fuel growth.

Fundamentals of Strategic Planning; 4/1; 12:30-1:30 p.m. In today’s work environment, complex tasks and projects are more common than ever. By utilizing strategic planning skills, you’ll be able to set yourself and/or your team up for success. Participants of this course will learn to identify the foundation for creating a strategic team, discover strategic values, participate in strategic planning efforts and avoid common pitfalls that derail strategic plans.

SMART Goals; 4/23; 12:30-1:30 p.m. SMART is an acronym for the five characteristics of well-designed goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, Time-bound. It’s a simple tool used to go beyond the realm of fuzzy goal-setting into an actionable plan for results. Put yourself on the fast-track of success by applying the SMART principles to every project or goal on your plate.

Models of Excellence 20th Anniversary Celebration; 4/23; 4-5 p.m.; Irvine Auditorium. This year, the Models of Excellence Program recognizes 92 outstanding staff members who play key roles in the University’s successes every day. President Amy Gutmann, Provost Wendell Pritchett, Executive Vice President Craig R. Carnaroli, and Vice President for Human Resources Jack Heuer will present the awards to staff members. To celebrate two decades of staff recognition, audience members will receive a commemorative 20th Anniversary gift bag with cheer items and a commemorative gift. A reception follows the ceremony. Visit www.hr.upenn.edu/models to learn more about this year’s honorees.

Creative Problem Solving; 4/30; 9 a.m.-noon; $75. While problems come in all shapes and sizes, knowing how to overcome them in a creative way can help find new solutions in various situations. This program will identify roadblocks that prevent creative thinking, rediscover your creative ability, learn techniques to recognize and identify problems, and explore ways to manage creative people.

Work-life Workshops

Open to faculty and staff.
Register at www.hr.upenn.edu/registration

Guided Meditation; 4/2; 12:30-1:30 p.m. Practice mindful breathing that focuses your attention on the present moment with kindness, compassion, and awareness. Self-massage and gentle mindful movements that promote relaxation and reduce stress may also be included in the workshop. No experience necessary.

Prepare and Prevent: Assisting Leaders with Behavioral Tools to Better Support Employees Webinar; 4/11; 11 a.m.-noon & 3-4 p.m. Join us to learn about the benefits of our EAP program and the managerial assistance available to you. Guest speaker Bert Alicea, vice president of EAP+Work-Life for Health Advocate and a licensed psychologist, will cover topics including employment performance issues, supervisor issues, enabling employees and more.

Guided Meditation; 4/24; 12:30-1:30 p.m. Practice mindful breathing that focuses your attention on the present moment with kindness, compassion, and awareness. Self-massage and gentle mindful movements that promote relaxation and reduce stress may also be included in the workshop. No experience necessary.

Take Your Children to Work Day; 4/25. Penn understands the importance of providing children with positive, productive experiences in their formative years. That’s why we host the annual Take Our Children to Work Day, an event that encourages and inspires youngsters and introduces them to the workplace. Each year Penn provides an exciting array of activities on campus for children ages 9-15. Please note, all participants must have supervisory approval and must accompany their young guests to all activities. Registration opens April 11.

Admissions Brown Bag—Making the Most of the Campus Visit; 4/29; 12:30-1:30 p.m. Faculty and staff with college-age dependents are invited to join Penn’s undergraduate admissions office to discuss the importance of the campus visit. The session will cover helpful information to assist you and your child in planning and making the most of campus visits.

Penn Healthy You Workshops

Open to faculty and staff.
Register at www.hr.upenn.edu/registration

Gentle Yoga; 4/4 and 4/18 , noon-1 p.m. Let your body reward itself with movement! Join us for this Gentle Yoga session and explore the natural movements of the spine with slow and fluid moving bends and soft twists. During this session, you will flow into modified sun salutations that loosen those tightened muscles and joints of the lower back, neck, shoulders, and wrists. And as an added bonus, you’ll get a workout in the process. Mats and props will be provided.

April Wellness Walk; 4/5; noon-1 p.m. It has been proven that spending more time outside reduces stress, increases energy levels, and boosts immunity. We would like to help you achieve these goals by inviting you to join us for our first outdoor wellness walk of 2019! Meet the Center for Public Health Initiatives staff at noon in front of College Hall by the Ben Franklin statue for a 2-mile walk (you may exit the walk at any time). We hope you will be able to join us. Bring a colleague, your water bottle and don’t forget your sneakers!

Get to Know What Is Healthy at Houston Market Tour; 4/11; 11:30 a.m.-noon. Join Dan Connolly, Bon Appétit’s registered dietitian nutritionist, on an interesting tour of the many delicious, healthy options in Houston Market. You will meet Mr. Connolly at Houston Hall’s Information Desk, where he will give a brief history of Bon Appétit and explain the elements of a healthy meal. Then, you’ll follow him downstairs to Houston Market, where he’ll walk you through the various food stations and explain how you, too, can eat healthy at Houston Market!

Zumba; 4/11; noon-1 p.m. Perfect for everybody and every body! Each Zumba® class is designed to bring people together to burn calories. We take the “work” out of workout, by mixing low-intensity and high-intensity moves for an interval-style, calorie-burning dance fitness party. Once the Latin and World rhythms take over, you’ll see why Zumba® Fitness classes are often called exercise in disguise.

Oral Health 101: All You Want to Know About Your Teeth and More; 4/18 and 4/30; noon-1 p.m. Healthy mouth, healthy body: The link between them may surprise you. Taking care of your teeth isn’t just about having a nice smile and pleasant breath. The condition of your mouth is closely tied to your overall health. Find out how oral health is linked to diabetes, heart disease, cancer, and more at this interactive seminar with experts from Penn Dental Medicine. Lunch will be served. If you have any dietary restrictions, please contact Richard Le at rle@upenn.edu

Spin; 4/29; 11:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m. Pedal your way to a fantastic workout indoors! With the use of stationary cycles, each class is led on a “virtual” outdoor road, complete with a variety of exercises. This class will give you an energizing, calorie-burning, fun workout and it is great for all fitness levels because you will always ride at a self-directed pace.

­—Division of Human Resources

The University of Pennsylvania Police Department Community Crime Report

Below are the Crimes Against Persons, Crimes Against Society and Crimes Against Property from the campus report for March 4-10, 2019. View prior weeks' reports. —Ed.

This summary is prepared by the Division of Public Safety and includes all criminal incidents reported and made known to the University Police Department for the dates of March 4-10, 2019. The University Police actively patrol from Market St to Baltimore and from the Schuylkill River to 43rd St in conjunction with the Philadelphia Police. In this effort to provide you with a thorough and accurate report on public safety concerns, we hope that your increased awareness will lessen the opportunity for crime. For any concerns or suggestions regarding this report, please call the Division of Public Safety at (215) 898-4482.

03/05/19         2:29 PM           3701 Walnut Ave                    Wallet taken from locker

03/05/19         4:47 PM           3601 Walnut St                      Merchandise taken without payment/Arrest

03/05/19         5:24 PM           3744 Spruce St                      Unauthorized charges made on credit card

03/06/19         5:10 PM           4000 Baltimore Ave                Complainants threatened by male with gun

03/07/19         2:58 PM           3601 Walnut St                      Wallet taken/unauthorized charges made on card

03/08/19         4:02 AM          3400 Spruce St                       Unsecured cell phone stolen

03/08/19         8:50 AM          3400 Civic Center Blvd           Currency taken from envelope and wallet

03/10/19         4:25 AM          2929 Walnut St                       Domestic assault by male/Arrest

03/10/19         2:31 PM           3945 Chestnut St                   Unsecured package stolen

18th Street

Below are the Crimes Against Persons from the 18th District: 8 incidents (1 homicide, 1 rape, 2 aggravated assaults, 2 domestic assaults and 2 robberies) with 2 arrests were reported between March 4-10, 2019 by the 18th District covering the Schuylkill River to 49th Street & Market Street to Woodland Avenue.

03/04/19         12:44 PM         4800 Pine St                          Domestic Assault

03/05/19         11:43 PM         3700 Chestnut St                   Rape

03/06/19         6:49 PM           4931 Hazel Ave                      Aggravated Assault/Arrest

03/06/19         8:54 PM           4558 Baltimore Ave               Robbery

03/07/19         3:30 AM          4913 Catharine St                  Homicide

03/07/19         3:34 PM           4000 Baltimore Ave              Aggravated Assault

03/10/19         4:25 AM          2929 Walnut St                     Domestic Assault/Arrest

03/10/19         9:10 PM           522 S Melville St                  Robbery

Here is another Power Down Challenge event, in addition to those noted in last week’s issue of Almanac.

As part of the 24-Hour Energy Reduction Challenge, turn off your lights, unplug your devices and head outside for a Zumba class, March 20, 11 a.m.-noon, at the Picnic Grove in Penn Park (by the picnic tables).

Visit www.bit.ly/pennpowerdown for more information on the annual Penn Power Down Challenge.

Another tip in a series provided by the Offices of Information Systems & Computing and Audit, Compliance & Privacy

Many users are overwhelmed with creating and remembering strong passwords for many online accounts they access at work and at home. Consequently, users tend to reuse the same passwords for multiple accounts, which could jeopardize accounts that use the same shared password if an account were to become compromised.

If you think creating complex passwords is tasking, there is a solution. Use a password manager.

Password managers store passwords and other sensitive data in an encrypted vault accessed with a master password – you have only one password to remember.

What else can a password manager do for you?

1. Generate unique passwords that meet complex password rules.
2. Access password-protected accounts in seconds, no typing required.
3. Save sensitive information like security questions or notes in an encrypted format.
4. Access your passwords using multiple email addresses: Penn and/or a personal email address.
5. Auto-fill information in online forms.
6. Save passwords when accessing an online account automatically after you install the plugin feature.
7. Automatically back up and sync your passwords across all your desktop and mobile platforms.

If you don’t already use a password manager, we recommend LastPass. The University supplies LastPass Premium password management to eligible affiliates of the Penn community. It is free, secure, and provides you with the features mentioned above and more. To start using LastPass, visit https://www.isc.upenn.edu/how-to/lastpass

For questions on LastPass or using password managers, contact your school or center’s IT support staff.

For additional tips, see the One Step Ahead link on the Information Security website: https://www.isc.upenn.edu/security/news-alerts#One-Step-Ahead

Change Drive Now Through March 22. This is a non-tuition scholarship donation to benefit a graduating high school student accepted at an accredited college or university. The program has been in existence for over 20 years and has made a difference in many students’ lives; the program name was changed to the Marie K. Bogle Scholarship in 2017. Students have been able to use the funds to buy books and the many other items needed to make a home away from home. Contact Isabel Mapp at sammapp@pobox.upenn.edu for additional information.

The following sites are available for your convenience to make your donation:

Reorganizing? Do you have furniture no longer needed by your department? Local non-profits are in need of your items! Do you have any computers to donate? Had a conference? Do you have left-over bags, T-shirts, tchotchkes? Need to empty out your storage space? Please donate them to Penn VIPS. We will put them to great use by donating them to community members, many of the students we work with, and we will also use them to say thank you to our many volunteers. Contact Isabel Mapp at sammapp@pobox.upenn.edu to donate your items.

Join Penn VIPS Drives Committee. Penn volunteers provide a drop-off location to collect the many donated items we receive during our annual drives. A variety of drives are conducted during the course of the year to partner with and help support local schools, families and agencies. Dropsite volunteers  are located throughout campus. Volunteers post the events, set up collection sites and help select the recipients for the donations. They also participate in an annual thank you luncheon. Drives are held during the following times:

    School Supplies Drive                  August

    Food Drive                                    November

    Gift/Toy Drive                                December

    Coat Drive                                     December

    Change Drive                                March

Contact Isabel Mapp at sammapp@pobox.upenn.edu for additional info.

Become a Mentor. A 7th grader needs you! The Penn’s WorkPlace Mentoring Program has been in existence since 1993. The program is designed to bring 7th graders from area middle schools to the University of Pennsylvania campus where they interact with faculty and staff.

The goal of the program is to expose mentees to a college campus and to help the mentees set goals for their future. Mentors form positive relationships with their mentees and talk to them about the importance of an education, how to set goals, and they also talk to students about how attending college can make a difference in their lives. Mentors provide resources. The mentor shares information about their career and they provide information on what is necessary for the mentee to achieve their goal. They direct mentee to searches on the web or looking up information in books or they set up interviews with persons who may be able to provide resources/information to the mentee. A mentor in the Penn’s WorkPlace Mentoring Program is a friend. Contact Isabel Mapp at sammapp@pobox.upenn.edu for additional info.

UACS Nights. Teach adult learners your expertise. Teach resume writing, interviewing skills, computers, employment prep, dance, hair braiding, cooking and/or a subject you are passionate about. Teach once a week for a one- or two-hour period for four to six weeks.

We also welcome classes that can be taught in one session. Classes are held on Wednesdays and/or Thursdays, 6-8 p.m. at West Philadelphia High School located on 49th and Chestnut Streets. Contact Isabel Mapp at sammapp@pobox.upenn.edu for additional info.

Create Your Own Volunteer Activity. Would you and your colleagues or friends like to participate in a volunteer activity? Penn VIPS is happy to connect you to an activity or help you develop one of your own.  Contact Isabel Mapp  at (215) 898-2020 or send an e-mail to sammapp@pobox.upenn.edu for additional information and /or to make a donation.

—Isabel Sampson-Mapp, Associate Director, Netter Center for Community Partnerships

Dear Penn Community,

Thank you for your continued generosity. It is especially notable during the holiday season, but evident at all times. There are no words to adequately describe your generosity. Many continue to benefit from your  willingness to give. Here are examples of various efforts:

Thank you to President Amy Gutmann for hosting her Annual Holiday Party where over 300 toys and gifts were donated. These toys along with many others were donated to Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell’s Annual Holiday Party for the Homeless.

We were very pleased to be able to extend our Adopt A Family Program to the Steven A. Cohen Military Family Clinic and Veteran’s Upward Bound in our efforts this year.

Thank you to the following departments; they brought joy to families during the holidays by “adopting” them:

• African American Resource Center coordinated by Valerie Allen and Colleen Winn
• Career Services coordinated by Jamie Grant
• College Housing and Academic Services coordinated by Linda M. Kromer
• Contact Center and Concierge Reception coordinated by Yvonne Giorgio
• Fisher Fine Arts coordinated by Patricia Guardiola
• Division of Finance coordinated by Margaret Heer
• General Counsel coordinated by Helen Logan
• Graduate Education CPRE Consortium coordinated by Katarina Suwak
• Graduate School of Education Urban Teaching Residency coordinated by Lori Noll
• Iwamoto Family coordinated by Ellen Iwamoto
• Netter Center for Community Partnerships coordinated by Deb Sokalczuk
• Office of the Comptroller coordinated by Celestine Silverman
• Office of Gift Planning coordinated by Lorleen Finor-Maxwell
• Office of the Provost coordinated by Carolyn Raft
• Penn Champions Athletics Development coordinated by Blair Weber
• Penn Communications coordinated by Lauren Summers
• Penn Employee Solution Center coordinated by Stephanie C. Brown
• Penn Fund coordinated by Joshua Nay
• Penn Medicine Development & Alumni Relations coordinated by Brittany Maxwell
• Pulmonary, Allergy and Critical Care coordinated by Susan Turbit
• Research Services coordinated by Lauren Oshana and Tina Nemetz
• SAS Programs and Events coordinated by  Danielle McNinch
• Training and Development HR coordinated by Holly Morrone
• University of Pennsylvania Libraries coordinated by Jeanne Shuttleworth
• Wharton Customer Analytic coordinated by Colleen Keaveney
• Wharton Executive Education coordinated by Anne Corcoran-Petela
• Wharton External Affairs coordinated by Karen J. Hamilton
• Wharton External Affairs coordinated by Cristina Diaczuk
• Wharton Fund coordinated by Monty Harris
• Wharton Major Gifts coordinated by Lisa Balogh
• Wharton Marketing Department coordinated by Erica Burnett
• Wharton McNulty Leadership Program coordinated by Amanda Zimmerman
• Wharton School Dean’s Office coordinated Jennifer O’Keefe
• WPPSA coordinated by Marcia Dotson & Rosa M. Vargas

*Several departments adopted multiple
families.

**Additional families adopted because of generous donations of gift cards.

Thank you to the following families; they brought joy to families during the holidays:

• The family of Carolyn Henry
• The family of Ellen Iwamoto

Special thanks to:

• Carisma Therapeutics coordinated by Kara Collins who generously participated in our program
• The Department of Cell and Developmental Biology coordinated by Stephanie Yuhasz for their generous donation of gift cards that increased our capacity to partner with local agencies.
• The Smilow Center for Translational Research coordinated by Patricia Mericko and Stephanie DerOhannessian for the generous donation of gift cards that helped to adopt additional families and provide holiday dinners.
• Helen Logan and the Office of General Counsel for adopting several families.
• Human Resources coordinated by Syreeta Gary, and others from across the University for their large donation to the Annual Coat Drive. We provided coats to Project Home, Salvation Army and various local families.
• Business Services for their Annual Warm Me Up, “Gloves with Love” Drive that benefitted many local families, students in the Penn WorkPlace Mentoring Program and the People’s Emergency Shelter.

Thank you to the entire University community for donating over 1,200 gifts and toys.

Thank you to the Dropsite Volunteers who collected all the toys/gifts and made it possible for us to respond to request for donations from our neighbors listed below:

• Councilwoman Blackwell’s Annual Holiday Party for the Homeless
• Earth’s Keepers, Inc.
• Authentic Minds
• Potter’s Mission House
• Parents Against Drugs
• Baring House
• Project Home
• People’s Emergency Shelter
• Salvation Army and local families

Additionally, the following pantries benefitted from the University’s Annual Food Drive:

• People’s Emergency Shelter
• Project Home
• Baring House Crisis Nursery

Thank you to all the special persons both named and unnamed for their remarkable generosity.

—Isabel Sampson-Mapp, Associate Director, Netter Center for Community Partnerships