June 30, 2020 Volume 66 Issue 41

June 25, 2020

A Message to the Penn Community:

The events of the past four months have shown us, more than ever before, the profound importance of our shared communities. In March, our on-campus community became a virtual community, dispersed across the world. We began to live literally apart, our faces covered. Then we were powerfully reminded of the fragility of our human community, of the bonds that can both bring us together and tear us apart, in relation to the most significant issues of social equity and racial justice.

In this context, we are writing to you today about our plans for the fall semester. We are one Penn community and we look forward to coming together on campus as soon as we can. In the meantime, we have a communal responsibility to preserve our shared health and safety, all the while sustaining our commitments to teaching, learning, research, and service. We are asking every member of our community to do your part, as we will too, to uphold these ever more essential missions.

To develop our plans for the fall, the University convened a Recovery Planning Group (RPG), made up of representatives across all the major areas of our campus. Their planning has been guided by the latest medical information and governmental directives, and we want to thank the RPG members and all who supported them for their tireless work in addressing the myriad details involved in bringing students back to campus and in restarting our research enterprise.

Based on the meticulous recommendations of the RPG, we are announcing today a fall semester that will be a hybrid model. It will allow many students to return in a limited and careful way by incorporating online and virtual learning with on-campus classroom instruction where it can be provided safely and when it is essential to the academic needs of the course curriculum.

Campus life under this new model will need to be different for the fall semester. Large lectures will all be online, as will some graduate and professional programs. Gatherings will be limited in size. Housing accommodations will be at lower density. Everyone on campus will need to practice physical distancing, wear face coverings, and agree to testing and contact tracing. Administrative and academic support functions that can do so will continue to operate remotely. We are confident that we can provide our students with both a world-class education and also a campus experience that will be rewarding and meaningful. With everyone on campus affirming their willingness and doing their part to help themselves and others stay safe, we can provide a robust and meaningful Penn education in a manner that is as safe as possible for all involved.

There will be more specific details and communications to come before the start of the semester. It is possible that some plans could change, depending upon the progression of the virus and/or applicable state and local government guidance, but here is the current summary of steps we are implementing to enable as many people who wish to come back in the fall as possible, while also minimizing person-to-person transmission and making the campus work well during this pandemic:

Campus Life

A Student Campus Compact has been developed so that together we can maintain a safe, educational, and vibrant learning environment for all members of our Penn community. The Compact outlines specific behaviors expected of all who are on campus, including:

• Wearing a face covering at all times when in public places.
• Maintaining physical distancing (6 feet or more) at all times and avoiding crowds greater than 25.
• Frequent washing of hands.
• Participating in student clubs, performances and recreational activities in accordance with physical distancing guidelines and safety protocols.

On-Campus Student Residences. To ensure as safe a housing environment as possible, all students (including those in Greek housing) will be housed in private bedrooms with a maximum ratio of 6 students per shared bathroom. The College House system will make housing available for all first-year undergraduates, transfer undergraduates and second-year undergraduate students who applied for housing. We anticipate being able to accommodate a percentage of third- and fourth-year students and have developed a priority process for assignment. The University is also leasing additional space off campus to make housing available to third-and fourth-year undergraduate students who applied for on-campus housing but are unable to be accommodated. For those returning graduate students who already have confirmed placements in University housing in Sansom Place East, existing placements will be honored. Additional specific information about housing assignments will be forthcoming.

Campus Dining. Self-serve options such as salad bars will not be offered in campus dining facilities during the pandemic. Students will be offered take-out and pre-packaged meals, which can be pre-ordered. Consistent with government guidelines, we anticipate limited indoor and outdoor seating at dining facilities, and meals can be eaten in students’ rooms, designated small gathering spaces in College Houses, and other locations around campus.

Penn Athletics. A final decision on fall athletic competition has not yet been announced by the Ivy League. That announcement is expected in July. The Athletic Department will communicate directly to student athletes when more information is available.

Measures to Promote and Sustain Campus Health and Hygiene

Testing and Contact Tracing. All students will be tested for COVID-19 when they first arrive on campus. Additional testing will be available throughout the year for students, faculty and staff in the Hall of Flags at Houston Hall. We also ask that, if at all possible, students get tested before they depart home for campus and stay home if they test positive. To lower the risk of COVID-19 spread on campus, we are developing a digital approach that includes:

• Daily symptom checking for everyone on campus using texting or a mobile app as a condition for entry into buildings.
• Contact tracing efforts facilitated by a digital platform that stores GPS location data in users’ smartphones to serve as a memory aid when they are speaking to contact tracers. Information collected will remain the property of the phone owner.
• Quarantine space in Sansom West for students testing positive while on campus.

Classroom Reconfiguration. All large lectures will be delivered online. In-class instruction will involve greater physical spacing of students, as well as plexiglass separators at lecterns where appropriate.

Enhanced Cleaning Protocols. In addition to normal cleaning procedures, enhanced cleaning and disinfection protocols will be employed in all campus buildings.

Fall Semester Calendar

Start and End of On-Campus Undergraduate Instruction. The academic semester will start as scheduled on Tuesday, September 1. Due to the inherent disease transmission risks associated with travel to and from campus, there will be no Fall Break and the last day of instruction on campus for undergraduates will be Friday, November 20. Classes will only be offered online on Monday, November 23 and remain online through the end of the semester, including final exams which conclude on Tuesday, December 22. To be clear, undergraduate students will leave campus and not return to campus after the Thanksgiving break. On-campus housing fees for the fall will be prorated consistent with the shortened on-campus schedule.

Move-in, Orientation and Other Dates. To ensure less density during move-in, student arrival will be staggered. Exact move-in dates for the College Houses and other University residences will be sent to students in the coming weeks. New Student Orientation will be predominantly delivered online and program content will become available Monday, August 24, with activities continuing until Monday, August 31 with Convocation held later that day.

Academics and Instruction

Hybrid Instruction. Our hybrid model of instruction will allow students the maximum flexibility in meeting their academic requirements and will ensure that students who choose not to return to campus are afforded the same high quality education from our world-renowned faculty. For those students who are unable to return to campus (for example, international students who cannot travel, or students with health conditions) or others who prefer, for personal reasons, to remain off campus, fall course offerings will be accessible remotely, with predominantly online delivery. In-person academic experiences will be offered for some courses across those curricula that demand them, but accommodations will be provided for those students who cannot participate in person. 

Enhanced Online Experience. Since moving classes online for the end of the spring semester, Penn has undertaken extensive work through its Online Learning Initiative (OLI), Center for Teaching and Learning (CTL), and several faculty working groups across campus to enhance online course delivery for the fall. Penn is a pioneer in online learning and new forms of teaching and learning, and OLI and CTL are working together with our schools and programs to actively support faculty needs and will continue to do so.

Academic Policies and Grading. All regular academic policies in the four undergraduate schools will be unchanged from typical fall terms, including those that govern grading and deadlines. Graduate and professional programs may make policy changes depending on the specific needs of individual programs.

Libraries. Penn Libraries will follow the University’s guidelines for population density within each library. The library staff will be available to assist all faculty and students remotely, and the libraries will prioritize Faculty Express (with home delivery instead of office delivery); restart Books by Mail for all other members of the Penn community; and offer a new service, Pickup@Penn, for members of the Penn community to request books and pick them up outside Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center.

Graduate and Professional Programs. Graduate and professional programs, while following all University, state, and city public health guidelines, will organize their fall semesters in ways specific to their disciplines and individual curricular needs. For example, unlike the University as a whole, some programs will operate completely online in the fall. Students will be provided with details directly by their programs.

Faculty, Staff and Postdocs

Workforce Return to Campus. In consultation with the relevant personnel, the schools and centers will determine which work must be conducted on campus and which can be done at home and develop a plan to make it possible for work to be done well in both environments. To ensure that their return to campus is as safe as possible, individuals whose work is being done remotely will only return to campus when notified by their school or center leadership that it is appropriate to do so. Those who return to campus in any capacity must follow the Penn COVID-19 prevention guidelines outlined in the Penn Guide to Return to Work, which will be mailed to all employees’ homes in early July, and also posted on the Human Resources website. The current plan is to return staff to campus in three phases. Accommodations will be made for those with medical conditions who are unable to return to campus and need to continue working remotely.

• Phase 1: Those whose jobs can only be performed on campus. They will be relatively few in number and will help test and refine procedures and practices to minimize the spread of COVID-19. Population density restrictions will be enforced.
• Phase 2: Increase to the numbers of those reporting to campus. More people will return to campus, in positions where they need to report to campus to complete certain tasks; other tasks can still be done remotely.
• Phase 3: Telework will continue to be utilized where possible. Faculty and staff who do not need to be onsite to perform their job functions may be able to return to campus if they wish and their school or center leadership conclude it is safe and desirable to do so.

Travel. Very limited business-related travel will be permitted and only as authorized. To be authorized, any University-related travel will need to be essential and to facilitate work that can be done in no other way. All travel will require pre-approval. Students will also commit to stay on or close to campus between the beginning of the semester and the Thanksgiving break.

Face Coverings. Faculty and staff returning to campus will be required to wear a face covering. All faculty and staff members will receive a cloth face covering when they receive the Penn Guide to Return to Work.

Restarting Research

Research. We have already begun a phased implementation to open research labs at Penn. Presently the research resumption has successfully welcomed nearly 800 people back to campus who opted in and are working productively as part of Phase I. The goals of restarting research are to sustain the highest levels of research excellence and continue to prioritize research related to COVID-19, while mitigating risks to the health and safety of the Penn community and minimizing any adverse impacts on Penn’s research enterprise, especially the most promising early-stage research. It will proceed in three phases:

• Phase I: Increase of prioritized research, with enforced population density restrictions and telework.
• Phase II: Expanded scope of research operations, increasing the population with social distancing enforced, telework.
• Phase III: Return to full research operations, with new awareness and hygiene practices as the norm and telework utilized where possible.

Support for Students, Faculty, Postdocs and Staff

All support services will continue to be available for both students and Penn employees. Two key programs to remember in challenging times are:

Counseling and Psychological Services. CAPS can connect with students either via phone or video conference, as well as in person. If students have been receiving care through CAPS, their counselor will continue to communicate with them about their needs moving forward. For students who are looking to initiate care, CAPS remains committed to offering free and confidential support as the need determines. You can visit CAPS at: https://caps.wellness.upenn.edu

Employee Assistance Program. Penn has a robust Employee Assistance Program available to help faculty, staff, postdocs and their loved ones with resources to help navigate situations that can be emotionally troubling.

Updated Information, Questions and Future Communications

Information and Further Communications. Updated information about the Fall Semester can be found at the fall semester planning website as it becomes available. Please refer to this site, which will have FAQs and links to other important information, as questions arise. We will also be sending further information about the fall semester to the entire Penn community, and individual schools, centers and programs will be communicating directly with those who are impacted by any changes in their operations.

Questions. For questions that cannot be answered in the Penn Guide to Return to Work, the Campus Student Compact, fall semester web site and FAQs, department or school websites, or other University Communications, you can email: Coronavirus@upenn.edu

What makes this plan robust—and what will maximize its success in among the most trying of times—is nothing less than the resourcefulness, resilience and responsiveness of every member of the Penn community in carrying out our uplifting historic mission. We have grown and thrived for more than 250 years, and this is the way we will continue to do so in the months and years to come. This is the strength and power of the Penn community.

The most critical factor in this plan—for all its important details—is the most human one of all: that every member of the Penn community do our best to maximize its success. Keeping our beloved University and community healthy and educationally vibrant is a goal we all share.

We welcome your feedback and questions. We will monitor the pandemic and any impact it could have on our plans, and will continue to provide updated information in the weeks ahead.

—Amy Gutmann, President
—Wendell Pritchett, Provost
—Craig Carnaroli, Executive Vice President

All of us in the Penn community have a communal responsibility, as we continue to navigate these challenging and unprecedented times, to balance the health and safety needs of our community with the University’s core missions. To carry on the educational, academic, research, and service missions of our University while minimizing person-to-person transmission of COVID-19 and protecting those most vulnerable to the disease, Penn puts forth this 2020-2021 Student Campus Compact that outlines our behavioral expectations for Penn students in re-opening living and learning in our campus community. By joining us in Philadelphia during the 2020-2021 academic year, you agree to adhere to the expectations for physical distancing and public behavior detailed below. Further, you agree to adhere to strict physical distancing and use of facial coverings for the 14 days prior to your return to Philadelphia and/or the University of Pennsylvania campus community, and we ask parents and families to discuss health and safety as it relates to off-campus spaces and personal relationships.

I understand, as a member of the Penn community during the 2020-2021 academic year, that I am an important part of the Penn community and that we are stronger as a community when we all do our part to keep our campus safe. I understand that the health and safety measures I am being asked to undertake are necessary to protect the health and safety of others in my community and beyond. I agree to abide by all federal, state, city, and University of Pennsylvania mandates, policies, protocols, and procedures related to COVID-19, and I agree to participate in any required training.

I understand that violations of this Compact will be handled by a Compact Review Panel, whose process is described below. I agree that, should the panel determine that my behavior jeopardized the health and safety of others in the Penn community, I may be directed to refrain from participating in any on-campus activities (while permitted to continue my academic program remotely), my access to campus buildings may be restricted, and my PennCard may be deactivated for a period of time as determined by the panel. I further agree that violations of the Compact may also be grounds for disciplinary review and action by the Office of Student Conduct.

Health and Wellness

I Agree:

• To collaborate with Penn on daily wellness checks with the new PennOpen Pass mobile app (details to be distributed), monitoring for symptoms, being tested as recommended by health professionals, and tracking my contacts should I test positive, as part of my public service to protecting my fellow students and Penn community members.
• To maintain appropriate (6 feet) physical distance from others whenever possible.
• To wear a facial covering when I leave my place of residence.
• To wash my hands frequently for at least 20 seconds throughout each day and before and after interactions with others.
• To use alcohol-based disinfectant wipes provided throughout campus buildings to clean surfaces with which I come into contact, including but not limited to desks and seats in classrooms.
• To be up-to-date on all vaccines.
• To receive a flu shot.

Campus Movement

I Agree:

• To congregate only in designated outdoor and indoor areas of campus, wearing a facial covering, maintaining adequate physical distance, and complying with all signage.
• To sit only in seats designated and clearly marked as available in classrooms and other campus buildings.
• To follow procedures for entering and exiting classrooms and for entering and exiting rows of seating in classrooms, which will be clearly marked on signs in and around classrooms.
• To follow procedures for entering and exiting campus buildings, which will be visible on signs near the entrances and exits of campus buildings.

Travel and Guests

I Agree:

• To refrain from having guests, including family members, in my campus residence.
• To refrain from allowing individuals without a green “go” screen on the PennOpen Pass mobile app to enter campus buildings.
• To limit all unnecessary personal travel and adhere to the University’s most current guidance on Penn-affiliated travel, found here: https://global.upenn.edu/travel-guidance/travel-guidelines-and-procedures
• To comply, if I must travel, with quarantine and testing requirements based on guidance of the Philadelphia Department of Public Health and the public health agency of my travel destination.

Social Life and Recreation

I Agree:

• To participate in student clubs, performing arts groups, intramural and club sports, and any other University-sponsored student life activity virtually as much as possible and, when not virtual, to observe the physical distancing guidelines and other COVID-19-related safety protocols adopted by the University.
• To refrain from organizing, hosting, or attending events, parties, or other social gatherings off-campus that may cause safety risks to me and other members of the community.
• To acknowledge that drinking alcohol and using other drugs will increase my risk of engaging in risky behavior and/or needing medical treatment, including the increased risk of being exposed to higher-risk contact with others. Alcohol consumption and recreational drug use will not be considered an excuse for unauthorized risky COVID-19-related behavior.

Core Values

The expectations for Penn students in the Compact are guided by core values essential to every member of the Penn community in the 2020-2021 academic year. We recognize that these challenging and unprecedented times call for changes in how we conduct both our institutional operations and our own lives. Penn’s core values remain constant, but these very values call for temporary changes which are necessary to protect everyone—our students, faculty, staff, postdocs, and community—to the best of our abilities. To provide everyone on campus with a reasonable sense of security, we must all agree—and know that everyone else on campus has agreed—to abide by certain behavioral guidelines. These guidelines may be modified and further specified over time as changes require.

Penn is committed to the health, safety and well-being of our students, staff, faculty, postdocs, and surrounding community. Therefore, all members of the Penn community and visitors will be required to wear facial coverings and to maintain appropriate physical distance in campus buildings, on campus, and in the broader Penn community. These spaces include all administrative, academic, housing/dining, and recreational buildings on campus, as well as outside green spaces, Locust Walk, Walnut Street, Spruce Street, and all cross streets within the campus. Individuals experiencing symptoms of illness (fever, coughing, shortness of breath, etc.) will be required to follow recommendations of the Student Health Service or other health professionals.

Penn is committed to exceptional higher education. Students will continue to be challenged intellectually and engage in world-class scholarly opportunities. For the Fall 2020 semester, classes with more than 25 students will be recorded and have an online foundation. Classes with fewer than 25 students may have an in-person option, as space allows, and will be held in larger auditoriums or spaces with identified seating. Procedures for entering and exiting classrooms, as well as for entering and exiting rows of seating in classrooms, will be clearly posted in all classroom buildings. Class meetings will be recorded for students who need to engage in asynchronous learning for any period of time during the Fall 2020 semester.

Penn recognizes the importance of extra-curricular, social, and recreational activities as part of our educational experience, as long as they can be conducted safely both for their participants and for those with whom they may come into contact during and after those activities. To help ensure this safety, these activities must be conducted in accordance with all University safety protocols, including guidelines for physical distancing. Outdoor and indoor spaces across campus will provide a physical blueprint for students to safely gather and connect. Buildings will have signage with further information for students, designated social areas will be identified, and outdoor spaces will have identified seating and social configurations designed to maximize social connectivity while maintaining physical distance. Outdoor activities will be available to students as weather permits throughout the semester.

Compact Review Panel

As a public health response group, the panel will be comprised of staff and faculty members with expertise in public health and student life. Any member of the Penn community may bring an alleged violation of the Compact to the panel for its review. The panel will gather the information it needs to assess whether a violation of the Compact occurred, the seriousness of the violation, whether prior violations have taken place, and other relevant circumstances to determine the appropriate public health response. As part of this information-gathering process, one or more members of the panel will interview the student charged with a violation, as well as any witnesses, and may also review relevant documents and other available information.

The panel will act quickly after completing its review of the information. There is no appeal of the public health response determined by the panel, as these decisions are being made to protect the health and safety of the community as a whole. A student who is found to be in violation of the Compact may also be referred to the Office of Student Conduct for possible disciplinary action pursuant to the University’s Code of Student Conduct.

https://fall-2020-planning.upenn.edu/content/student-campus-compact

President Amy Gutmann and Provost Wendell Pritchett are pleased to announce the appointment of Charles L. “Chaz” Howard as the University of Pennsylvania’s first-ever vice president for social equity and community. Dr. Howard, who has served as University chaplain since 2008, will assume his new role on August 1.

As vice president for social equity and community, Dr. Howard will lead programs and initiatives that promote and support communication, collaboration, research and innovative programming within the Penn community that deepen awareness and help to advance the University’s mission of fostering social equity, diversity and inclusion. He will focus especially on bringing diverse groups of students, faculty and staff together to build out and support the University’s culture of inclusive understanding and social impact while also working to help overcome historical and structural barriers to advancing that mission.

“Chaz has made it his life’s mission to bring together diverse groups of people,” said President Gutmann. “Where some see division, Chaz sees common ground; where some see despair, he sees hope; where some see hate, he sees love.  As our campus, our community and our country resolve to find better ways forward to understand and address systemic racism, social inequity, and justice, I can think of no one better suited than Chaz Howard to fill this critically important and impactful new leadership role.”

“I couldn’t be more pleased that Chaz Howard is taking on this dynamic new leadership role, one that is crucial to realizing our Penn Compact 2022 goals,” said Provost Pritchett. “Chaz has long been recognized as one of our community’s most thoughtful and engaged members, and he has worked closely with me as chaplain to promote wellness and inclusive excellence. I am eager to begin working with him in this new capacity to make Penn a model for social equity.”

Dr. Howard will design and oversee the University’s recently announced Projects for Progress (Almanac June 9, 2020), a new fund intended to encourage students, faculty and staff to design and implement pilot projects based on innovative research that will advance Penn’s aim of a more inclusive University and community. He will also work with University leaders, including the SVP/chief diversity officer and VPUL to expand successful initiatives across campus, prominent among them Penn’s ongoing Campaign for Community, as well as convene University events and other programming centered around social equity and community themes. Dr. Howard will continue to serve as University chaplain, with Senior Associate Chaplain Stephen Kocher assuming a greater role in the day-to-day administration and functioning of the University Chaplain’s office.

“I am profoundly grateful to President Gutmann and Provost Pritchett for this opportunity to further serve an institution that has given me so much over the years,” said Dr. Howard. “I learned as a student here and as University chaplain that in order to truly be a community, the individuals and institutions that comprise that community must always work for justice, healing, and social equity. We see this in every facet of our University: in our classrooms and labs, through the work of our student groups, centers and hubs, and through the example of our alumni. I am deeply grateful for the opportunity to amplify and nurture this critical work.”

Since becoming University chaplain in 2008, Dr. Howard has supported religious life across campus, working closely with diverse faith communities to provide resources and support. A 2000 graduate of Penn’s College of Arts and Sciences, he received his MDiv from Andover Newton Theological School and his PhD from Philadelphia’s Lutheran Theological Seminary, concentrating in practical theology and liberation theology. He has taught in Penn’s College of Arts and Sciences and Graduate School of Education, and at Lutheran Theological Seminary, with courses focused on such diverse topics as intercultural relations, social change, Black theology, Black history and Hip-Hop culture.

Dr. Howard is the editor of The Souls of Poor Folk, a text that explores new ways of considering homelessness and poverty, and the author of The Awe and The Awful, a poetry collection; Lenten Devotional, Black Theology as Mass Movement, a call to theologians to expand the reach of their theological work; Pond River Ocean Rain, a collection of brief essays about going deeper with God; and the forthcoming The Bottom: A Theopoetic of the Streets.

June 24, 2020

The United States is at a moment of national reckoning, confronting a long history of racist policies and practices that have perpetuated heinous injustices and have prevented our nation from achieving the ideals of justice, freedom, and equality we proclaim to the world. In particular, the terrible and needless deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, Tony McDade, Tamir Rice, Rayshard Brooks and so many others bring into stark relief the tense and too often dysfunctional relationship between police departments and communities of color in cities and states across the country.

Penn’s Division of Public Safety (DPS) personnel are trained to ensure the safety of our community. Their mission is nothing less than to provide a safe and welcoming environment to all people in support of the University’s goal of creating a caring community of learning, clinical care, research and innovation in close collaboration with our neighbors and local businesses. Penn’s campus and the city that is our home are not static environments. They are dynamic, diverse and vibrant communities that grow, evolve and change socially and economically over time. We are committed to ensuring that our DPS professionals grow, evolve, and change to meet the needs of the community they serve. Specifically, they must continually be current in policing best practices, adept at building partnerships, and sensitive to every member of our campus community.

There is much about Penn DPS in which we can take pride. Among campus security organizations they are a national model, and like every other aspect of our University, always strive to embody excellence. As such, we recognize the vital necessity of continuous review to ensure all programs within the Division remain current and responsive to the changing needs and demands of our society and our communities.

With that goal foremost in mind, we are announcing today that we have commissioned an independent review of Penn DPS by the Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice at Penn Carey Law School. The Quattrone Center is a nationally recognized research center that conducts independent reviews of police procedures. Integrating world-class expertise from across the University with the perspectives of nationally prominent practitioners, the Center will employ a systematic, interdisciplinary, and data-driven approach to reviewing and analyzing all aspects of our safety and security programs. When this thorough and expert review is completed, we look forward to sharing its recommendations with the Penn community.

In response to the University’s relationship with the Philadelphia Police Foundation: Over the past several years, Penn has offered the Foundation nominal support in the form of purchasing tickets to attend annual fundraising events. The University, including Penn Medicine, will no longer do so.

We forthrightly acknowledge the situation we as a society find ourselves in today. There are some police departments that do not properly train their officers in conflict resolution, de-escalation, cultural awareness and other forms of education that must always govern professional police response. Further, there are law enforcement agencies that fail to conduct independent reviews of their policies and procedures and do not ensure accountability when officers fail to follow polices and violate the sacred trust they are granted by society. That trust is critically important in all communities, but most especially in communities of color that too often bear the brunt of myriad economic and social inequities.

Penn is absolutely committed to ensuring that those all-too-common problems never take root in our Division of Public Safety and to learning what can be done better so that every member of our community is fairly treated and fully respected.

—Amy Gutmann, President
—Wendell Pritchett, Provost
—Craig R. Carnaroli, Executive Vice President

June 18, 2020

We are enormously pleased that the Supreme Court today has preserved the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, a program that we have long supported and consistently advocated for. DACA students have had great success at Penn and have gone on to make invaluable contributions to our community and nation. We are proud to have them as students and alumni, and to support their aspirations to share in the American Dream. I am so pleased that this decision will relieve them of the burden of doubt that they have been forced to carry for the past few years. This is a great victory for human rights and for the future of America.

—Amy Gutmann, President

June 23, 2020

We are deeply troubled by the Administration’s recent moves to restrict entry of certain international students and scholars into the United States. This is a major setback not only for higher education, but for our country as a whole. We need to welcome the widest range of individuals to our shores. For almost two centuries, we have unequivocally welcomed an impressive array of international students and scholars to Penn. It is simply a fact that global engagement is beneficial to our Commonwealth and nation, and certainly to our University. With specific regard to students and scholars from China, the message they are hearing is that their goals and objectives for studying or researching in the United States are generally suspect. Over the course of our history—since Dr. Chaun Moon Hun, our first Chinese student, enrolled in 1896—Chinese students, postdocs, staff, and faculty members have been essential to our world-leading research and education. They will always be valued members of our community, and we are determined to do everything we can to continue to welcome scholars and students from China, as well as from the entire international community.

—Amy Gutmann, President

June 18, 2020

It is always bittersweet when a treasured and respected colleague announces plans to move on from Penn, and today we share news on just such a decision by our Dean of Admissions, Eric Furda. After providing inspired leadership of our Admissions Office for 12 years, Eric has announced that, effective December 31, he will officially leave his role at Penn.

Eric’s work at Penn has been exceptional. Under his visionary and strategic leadership, the diversity and academic excellence of our classes have grown each year. Among his many achievements, Eric has been instrumental in supporting our priority of bringing more low-income, first generation students to Penn, and this is notably reflected in the most recent class, which includes approximately 20% Pell students, an accomplishment of great significance given the size of Penn’s incoming class.

Eric is a 1987 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania, and he later earned a master’s degree from Columbia University. While a student at Penn he was a four-year letterman on the varsity lightweight football team, and captain and MVP his senior year. Anyone who knows him (or occasionally catches him in the stands at an Eagles game) knows his passion for football and all sports.

Over his career, Dean Furda has served on or led committees for the Ivy League and the Consortium on Financing Higher Education (COFHE). A nationally recognized authority on college admissions, he has served on the Board of Directors for the Common Application where he was also Chair of the Board. He also currently serves as a member of the scholarship selection committee for the Lenfest Foundation and hosts a show on college selection called  The Process on SiriusXM Radio. Among many recognitions, he is most proud of receiving the A. Philip Randolph Award for Diversity and Inclusion from student leadership at Penn.

Eric’s decision to leave is a very personal one. His two children will both be enrolled at William Penn Charter School this year, and when he noticed that an opportunity was available to join the college counseling team at Penn Charter, he jumped at the chance to be able to align his daily schedule and school calendar with their lives. After spending so much of these past years on the road recruiting our incoming classes, the opportunity at Penn Charter proved irresistible.

We will announce plans for the formation of an advisory committee to assist us with the search for Eric’s successor and will keep the campus apprised as that process unfolds. We hope you will join us in thanking Eric for a job very well done, and in wishing him great success and much happiness as he steps into this new role. We expect to continue seeing him at Franklin Field and the Palestra, cheering on our Quakers!

—Amy Gutmann, President
—Wendell Pritchett, Provost

Dyer Alfred Lindsay (Lindsay) Falck, former lecturer and department of architecture associate chair in the University of Pennsylvania’s Weitzman School of Design, died at his St. Marks Square home in Philadelphia on May 18 of kidney failure. He was 86.

Born in Sea Point, Cape Town, South Africa, Mr. Falck spent his early years at the mining outpost of Koegas. He attended boarding school starting at the age of 5, first St. John’s College in Johannesburg and then St. Andrew’s College in Grahamstown, graduating in 1950. Mr. Falck earned his bachelor of architecture in 1956 from the School of Architecture at the University of Cape Town (UCT). While at UCT, he won the school’s Helen Gardner Travel Prize.

Mr. Falck went to work for Thornton-White as an assistant (later senior assistant) preparing working drawings for the new School of Architecture building (the Centlivres Building) for the UCT campus. Mr. Falck then became one of the first employees of Revel Fox, a leading modern architect of South Africa. He left Mr. Fox’s firm, Revel Fox and Partners, temporarily, then returned as chief assistant, becoming a partner in 1965. Four of his projects with Revel Fox received Bronze Medal Awards for Design Excellence from the Cape Provincial Institute of Architects. In 1966, Mr. Falck received a Ford Foundation Travel Grant through the Institute of International Education’s Young Artists Programme, and he traveled through the US and Europe, visiting architects’ offices. He completed his master’s thesis, “Technology and Urban Form, Chicago 1830-1972,” in 1972.

During this time, Mr. Falck also began teaching at UCT, first as a part-time lecturer. After leaving Revel Fox and Partners in 1968, he became a full-time associate professor at UCT. He received UCT’s Distinguished Teacher Award in 1983. From 1968 to 1985, he also maintained an independent practice.

In 1983, Mr. Falck became a visiting critic for University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Fine Arts. He split time between UCT and Penn for several years before moving to Philadelphia in 1986 and becoming a full-time lecturer at Penn. He served as associate chair for the department of architecture from 1986 to 1995, and as assistant dean for facilities planning from 1995 to 2003. For 29 years, he also taught part-time at Drexel University’s Westphal College of Media Arts and Design as an adjunct professor.

Mr. Falck taught across Penn’s programs in architecture, landscape architecture and historic preservation. He received Penn’s G. Holmes Perkins Award for Distinguished Teaching twice (Almanac May 10, 2005 and May 7, 2013). Mr. Falck also designed the silhouette of the Addams Family outside of Charles Addams Fine Arts Hall (Almanac October 15, 2019). Mr. Falck retired from full-time teaching at Penn in June 2018 but continued teaching part-time until March 2020.

Professional collaborations with Professor Frank Matero and Penn’s Architectural Conservation Laboratory included the design and construction of a series of dig-shelters and viewing platforms in support of archaeological excavations at Çatalhöyük and Gordion in Turkey, and for sites at Chiripa, Bolivia, and Angkor Wat, Cambodia. For the Aga-Khan Trust, Mr. Falck brought his expertise in building technology to the conservation of a series of 125 houses and other structures in the historic Aslam Mosque neighborhood of Cairo, Egypt. At the former 1964 World’s Fair site in Flushing Meadows, New York, he designed and developed a method to safely extract the terrazzo mosaic components of the “Texaco Road Map” art pavement of the New York State Pavilion for conservation.

Mr. Falck is survived by his wife, Karen; their children, Ailsa and Toren; his children with his first wife (Rose), Carl, Kevin, Ingrid and Alan; and nine grandchildren.

Memorial gifts are currently being accepted to establish the Lindsay Falck Fellowship Fund at the Weitzman School. Those interested in contributing to the Fund may do so through the Weitzman School Annual Special Projects Fund—please mark your gift “in memory of Lindsay Falck;” see https://leadbydesign.org/give

Howard M. Snyder III, emeritus professor CE of surgery at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, died June 4. He was 76.

Born in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, he earned his BA in biology from Princeton University in 1965. He went on to earn his MD from Harvard University in 1969. He did his residency at Boston Children’s Hospital and then was chief resident for Tufts–New England Medical Center, also in Boston. He also spent a year overseas, at the Hospital for Sick Children in London (now Great Ormond Street Hospital) and Alder Hey Children’s Hospital in Liverpool.

Dr. Snyder was a clinical assistant in surgery at Boston Children’s Hospital from 1978 to 1980. In 1980, he joined the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine as an assistant professor of urology in surgery. He became an associate professor of urology in surgery at CHOP in 1986 and full professor in 1992. He also served as associate director of the department. Dr. Snyder retired in 2009 and earned emeritus status at that time.

Dr. Snyder also had a notable career in military service. From 1976 to 1978, he served as a general and pediatric surgeon for the US Army, stationed at Fort McPherson in Atlanta. He retired from active duty until 1984, when he became a colonel in the active reserves, serving as chief of surgical services at the 348th Army General Hospital in Pedricktown, New Jersey. In 2003, he served in Operation Iraqi Freedom in the US Army Medical Corp.

Dr. Snyder received several awards, including the Distinguished Service Award from the National Kidney Foundation and the Barry Goldwater Service Award for exemplary service by a reserve medical officer to the department of surgery at the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Maryland. He also served on the boards of various journals throughout his career.

He is survived by his wife, Mimi; children, Emily Queenan (Rick), Laurence (Nicole) and Jonathan (Ann Marie); his brother Thomas; and 10 grandchildren.

Donations may be made in his memory to the Urology Program at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia online at bit.ly/drhowardsnyder

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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 St., (215) 898-8136 or email record@ben.dev.upenn.edu

Zeyu Chen (C’21) has been selected as a Key into Public Service Scholar by The Phi Beta Kappa Society. The award recognizes students who have demonstrated interest in working in the public sector and possess a strong academic record in the liberal arts and sciences.

Mr. Chen is one of 20 scholars chosen from over 600 applicants across the nation. Each scholar received a $5,000 undergraduate scholarship and took part in a virtual gathering in late June to provide them with training, mentoring and reflection on pathways into active citizenship in the tradition of Phi Beta Kappa’s founders.

Mr. Chen, from Beijing, China, is majoring in philosophy, politics and economics (PPE) and mathematical economics in the College of Arts & Sciences. His academic interests include monetary and fiscal policies and political institutions. He is a peer advisor for PPE and is involved in student activism around education justice, political science research, peer advising and club water polo. After graduation, he intends to further study political science or macroeconomics in a PhD program.

Two of the three law students chosen to participate in the prestigious Don H. Liu Scholars Program are members of Penn Law’s Asian Pacific American Law Students Association (APALSA). Grace Cho (L’22) and Raymond Magsaysay (L’22) will each receive a scholarship of $15,000 as well as mentorship and assistance with their career development, including guidance in pursuing potential internships.

The Don H. Liu Scholars Program was founded by two past presidents of the Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY), Jean Lee and Mike Huang, to “identify, cultivate and inspire future Asian American leaders within the legal profession in order to address the single most important reality facing Asian American professionals today—the barrier to advancement.”  The Program’s selection committee chooses students who excel in the classroom and show great potential to succeed in a top law firm or Fortune 500 corporation.

Ms. Cho was born in South Korea and moved to the United States at age eight. She received her undergraduate degree in English and comparative literature from Columbia University.

Mr. Magsaysay, one of three inaugural First Generation Professionals Fellows, hails from the Philippines and has called San Francisco, California, home since immigrating to the United States at age 12. He holds a master’s degree in teaching from the Universidad de Alcala in Spain and an undergraduate degree from Vassar College, with general and departmental honors, in sociology, with correlates in English and Spanish.

In the Annual Best Children’s Hospitals rankings, Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) ranked #2 overall, #1 in pediatric cancer, #1 in pediatric orthopedics, #1 in pediatric diabetes and endocrinology, #2 in pediatric pulmonology and lung surgery, #3 in pediatric urology, #3 in pediatric gastroenterology and GI surgery, #4 in pediatric neurology and neurosurgery, #5 in neonatology, #6 in pediatric nephrology and #7 in pediatric cardiology and heart surgery. 

The 2020-2021 rankings were created from data collected through a clinical survey sent to nearly 200 hospitals and a survey sent to thousands of pediatricians nationwide. RTI International, a North Carolina-based research and consulting firm that also generates the Best Hospitals rankings, administered both surveys and analyzed the results. More than 100 pediatric medical experts provided input on what information to collect and how to analyze the data. The clinical data used in the rankings reflect a period of time that ended before the coronavirus outbreak became a pandemic. The top 50 medical centers are ranked in 10 specialties.

Whether and how high a hospital was ranked depended on how well it performed in clinical outcomes, efficient coordination of care, and providing care-related resources. Results from the survey of pediatric specialists contributed up to 15% of a hospital’s score, depending on specialty. Doctors were asked to name up to 10 hospitals they consider best in their specialty for children with serious or difficult medical problems. Their responses were combined with those from similar surveys conducted in 2018 and 2019.

Perry World House selected 31 Penn undergraduate students for its fellows program for the 2020-2021 academic year. Although the students represent a range of majors and concentrations, they share a passion for global affairs.

Student fellows participate in a weekly seminar and collaborate in small groups on a year-long policy-based research project. They normally travel to Washington and New York to learn from leaders working on some of the most significant global policy challenges. At the end of each year, Perry World House hosts a conference for them to present their projects to real-world policymakers.

The fellows are (* denotes returning fellow):

• Frida Aloo*, rising senior, business economics and public policy, international studies and German, Huntsman Program
• Alexandra Breckenridge, rising senior, history and philosophy, politics and economics, SAS
• Archit Dhar*, rising senior, bachelor’s and master’s degree in systems science and engineering, SEAS 
• Guilherme Grupenmacher, rising junior, philosophy, politics and economics, SAS
• George Hollyer*, rising junior, materials science and engineering, SEAS 
• Annie Hsu*, rising senior, international relations and history, SAS 
• Ali Khambati*, rising junior, finance and Ddecision-making, minoring in data science, Wharton
• Sarah Ko*, rising junior, international relations and economics, minoring in French, SAS
• Rachel Lambert, rising junior, international relations and the Pre-Med track, SAS 
• Cara Mahoney, rising senior, double major in Hispanic studies and English, with a law and literature concentration, SAS
• Andrea Makamba, rising senior, systems science and engineering, SEAS, minoring in French, SAS
• Harry Markham*, political science, SAS, and business analytics, Wharton
• Ben May*, rising senior, international relations, minor in economics, SAS
• Abenezer Mechale, rising senior, business analytics and development economics, Wharton, minor in psychology, SAS
• Carlos Montes, rising sophomore, political science, and Russian and Eastern European studies, SAS
• Gloria Mpundu, rising junior, health policy, School of Nursing
• Natalie (Natasha) Napolitano, rising junior, nursing and healthcare management, School of Nursing, operations management and healthcare management and policy, Wharton 
• Jimena Nestares*, rising senior, physics and astronomy, SAS 
• Zuha Noor, rising sophomore, international relations, SAS
• Chinaza Ruth Okonkwo*, rising junior, history and philosophy, SAS
• Sam Orloff, rising senior, history and political science, SAS 
• Andrew Orner, rising junior, double majoring in Economics and Political Science, minor in Hispanic Studies, SAS
• Chonnipha (Jing Jing) Piriyalertsak, rising sophomore, philosophy politics and economics and history, SAS
• Gabriella Rabito, rising junior, international relations, SAS, minor in American public policy, Wharton and SAS
• Vita Raskevciute, rising sophomore, philosophy, politics, and economics, minor in Russian and Eastern European studies, SAS
• Carisa Shah, rising junior, Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology (M&T), bioengineering SEAS, and entrepreneurship, Wharton
• Claire Sliney, rising senior, gender, sexuality & women's studies and philosophy, politics & economics, SAS
• Sriram Tolety, rising sophomore, computer science, finance, and business economics and public policy, Jerome Fisher Program 
• Gabrielle (Gaby) Utomo, rising senior, architecture, Weitzman, minor in political science, SAS 
• Josh Weiner, rising sophomore, SAS  
• Kevin Xu, rising junior, computer science, SEAS

Assembly (GAPSA) and the Office of the Provost announced their Spring cohort of GAPSA-Provost Fellowships for Interdisciplinary Innovation, which includes a $6,000 research grant.

The highly competitive fellowship is designed to foster an interdisciplinary graduate and professional environment at the University of Pennsylvania and strives to promote original, student-derived initiatives that integrate knowledge across diverse academic disciplines. The fellowship is also meant to help the project-leader(s) develop, pursue, and complete their proposed interdisciplinary initiatives.

• Do Eon Lee, Annenberg School 
• Kristina Lewis, GSE
• Jaqueline Maasch, SEAS
• Karen Nershi, SAS
• Kimberly Noronha, Weitzman

Join the Arthur Ross Gallery and Common Press for their third Pop-Up Market celebrating Philly printmakers, taking place online July 11, 10 a.m., through July 19, 5 p.m. 

This year’s market features artist vendors working in an array of techniques: letterpress, lithograph, monotype, risograph, silkscreen and multi-process prints. Artists will offer artworks priced from $5-$150, and you’ll find two-dimensional prints on paper as well as totes, zines, t-shirts, and more!

Paying homage to the in-person event, their event website will offer virtual “tables” linking directly to artists’ sites. You can also follow along on Instagram and Facebook: #printmakerpopup; @arthurrossgallery; @commonpress 

On July 17 from 10 a.m.-10 p.m., Printmaker Pop-Up Market will host a day of live and recorded events honoring the work that Philadelphia artists continue to make at home and in the studio. For full list of events, visit www.arthurrossgallery.org/printmaker

Participating Artists:

• BSMT Press
• Candy Alexandra González
• Celia Jailer
• Golden Collier
• Heather McMordie
• Huldra Press
• Ivanco Talevski
• Josh Graupera
• Kah Yangni
• Kariebi Andrews Studios LLC
• Katie Garth
• Kite Curiosities by Alice Thompson
• Maria Tina Beddia
• Mary Tasillo
• Mike Romeo, Toosdees Screenprinting Collective
• Nicole Rodrigues
• Noelle Egan, Toosdees Screenprinting Collective
• Papo Letterpress
• Peter Bloomfield
• Rebecca Gilbert
• Sam Spetner
• Soumya Dhulekar

For more information, visit https://guides.library.upenn.edu/commonpressnews/posts/Printmaker-Pop-Up-Market

Fitness and Learning

7/6   Penn Summer Coding Camp for High School Students; build websites and games while gaining foundational programming and problem-solving skills; children of Penn faculty and staff can apply a $500 discount to the cost of tuition. https://www.sas.upenn.edu/summer/programs/high-school/coding-camp (LPS). Through July 24. 

Sports

Fridays at 2:30 p.m., Quaker Classics will feature live rebroadcasts of Penn victories; info: https://tinyurl.com/quakerclassics; to watch: www.youtube.com/PennSportsNetwork

7/3   (M) Basketball vs. Princeton; original broadcast: January 6, 2018.

7/10  Field Hockey vs. Syracuse; original broadcast: October 22, 2017.

Talks

7/1   Pharmaceuticals, Plastics, PFAS and Partnerships: Three Problems and a Solution to Water Pollution; Pam Lazos, EPA; noon; RSVP: www.eventbrite.com/e/virtual-water-matters-speaker-series-tickets-105593914240 (The Water Center).

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AT PENN Deadlines 

The Summer AT PENN calendar is online. The deadline to submit virtual events for the July 14 issue is July 1. There will be no issue July 7. Happy 4th of July!

University of Pennsylvania Police Department Crime Report

Below are the Crimes Against Persons, Crimes Against Society and Crimes Against Property from the campus report for June 15-21, 2020. 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 June 15-21, 2020. 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.

18th District

Below are the Crimes Against Persons from the 18th District: 9 incidents (5 robberies, 2 domestic assaults, 1 aggravated assault and 1 indecent assault) were reported for June 15-21, 2020 by the 18th District, covering the Schuylkill River to 49th Street & Market Street to Woodland Avenue.

In consultation with the University’s Recovery Planning Group and Research Resumption Taskforce, the Penn Libraries has built a phased plan for re-starting library services on campus. Beginning July 7, the Libraries will launch a number of essential services to support teaching, research, and learning, and to connect Penn faculty, students and staff with physical collections.

Find additional information about these forthcoming services in the Phased Re-Start FAQ at www.library.upenn.edu/blogs/libraries-news/covid-19-faq

For information about services and access prior to July 7, see COVID-19: Libraries Access and Information at www.library.upenn.edu/blogs/libraries-news/covid-19-libraries-policies-and-information

Over time, as public health guidance and building logistics allow, the Libraries will introduce additional services and will continue to share updates.

There will be no issue on July 7. 

Volume 67 will begin on July 14. The deadline to submit content for that issue is July 1. 

After the July 14 issue, Almanac will publish as needed throughout the remainder of the summer.

Like the last few months’ issues, this edition of Almanac is digital-only. Please distribute to your colleagues and encourage them to subscribe to receive the E-Almanac by visiting https://almanac.upenn.edu/express-almanac The email will include links to the newly posted material. 

No issues were printed to distribute across campus because of COVID-19. Almanac is distributed electronically each Tuesday.