November 17, 2020 Volume 67 Issue 19

Bioethicist and oncologist Ezekiel (Zeke) Emanuel has been tapped as a member of a team of leading public health and scientific experts to advise on the Biden-Harris COVID-19 response. Dr. Emanuel, vice provost for global initiatives and chair of the department of medical ethics and health policy at Penn’s Perelman School of Medicine has been named by President-elect Joe Biden to the 13-member coronavirus task force. The Biden-Harris transition team made the announcement Monday, November 9, soon after former Vice President Joe Biden became the president-elect of the United States.

Dr. Emanuel served as former adviser to the Obama administration on the Affordable Care Act and as a special adviser for health policy to the director of the White House Office of Management and Budget between January 2009 and January 2011. Since 1997, he has served as chair of the department of bioethics at The Clinical Center of the National Institutes of Health.

“It is a great honor to serve President-elect Biden and Vice President-elect Harris to help address this pandemic and get the country moving again,” Dr. Emanuel said of the appointment.

The task force is made up leading public health experts and will be co-chaired by David Kessler, Vivek Murthy, and Marcella Nunez-Smith.

“Dealing with the coronavirus pandemic is one of the most important battles our administration will face, and I will be informed by science and by experts,” said President-elect Biden in his statement.

Prior to running for President, President-elect Biden had been the Benjamin Franklin Presidential Practice Professor at Penn where he led the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement in Washington, D.C. and he had joint appointments in the Annenberg School for Communication and the School of Arts and Sciences, with a secondary affiliation in the Wharton School (Almanac February 14, 2017).

Photo by Candace diCarlo

The National Institutes of Health has selected two researchers from the Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania to receive its prestigious Director’s Awards, part of the NIH Common Fund’s High-Risk, High-Reward Research Program honoring exceptionally creative scientists.

Brian Litt, professor in Penn Engineering’s department of bioengineering and the Perelman School of Medicine’s departments of neurology and neurosurgery, was honored with a Pioneer Award for $5.6 million, supporting novel neurodevice research.

Gregory Corder, assistant professor of psychiatry and neuroscience, was selected as a New Innovator Award winner, receiving $2.4 million for research investigating the mechanisms of chronic pain.

This award supports Dr. Litt’s work to develop a new generation of autonomous neurodevices—implanted machines that can question, record, and combine learning algorithms based on neurological signals and feedback to act and alter human behavior on the fly.

In epilepsy, for example, these devices would predict and prevent seizures; in Parkinson’s patients, implants will measure and communicate with patients to improve mobility, reduce tremor, and enhance responsiveness. Other implants might improve hearing or psychiatric symptoms by querying patient perceptions, feelings, and altering stimulation patterns algorithmically to improve them. The loop is closed in real time, so the host can change their behavior based upon device feedback to improve their health.

The Pioneer Award is part of the agency’s High-Risk, High-Reward Research Program honoring exceptionally creative scientists. It challenges investigators to pursue new research directions and develop ground breaking, high-impact approaches to a broad area of biomedical or behavioral science. Dr. Litt’s neurodevice research represents a new frontier in addressing a wide variety of neurological conditions.

Dr. Corder’s goal is to identify which parts of the brain are important for pain perception and which circuits impact pain relief from opioids. He hopes to decode how this neural activity evolves during chronic pain. Once the brain circuits and pathways that contribute to the suffering and perception of pain are identified, they can be targeted for potential therapeutics which could be more effective at reducing pain and without the addictive elements of prescription opioids.

The New Innovator Award supports unusually innovative research from early career investigators who have not yet received a research project grant or equivalent NIH grant. The award will support Dr. Corder’s efforts to research the mechanisms of chronic pain—a major health crisis in the United States, affecting millions, and a driver of the opioid epidemic.

Provost Wendell Pritchett and Vice Provost for Faculty Laura Perna announce the appointment of Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw, associate professor of history of art in the School of Arts and Sciences, to the Class of 1940 Bicentennial Term Chair.

Dr. Shaw is an expert in art and visual culture of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries in the U.S., Latin America, and the Caribbean, with a focus on issues of race, gender, and class. She has served since 2019, on leave from Penn, as senior historian and director of history, research, and scholarly programs at the National Portrait Gallery. She is the author of Seeing the Unspeakable: The Art of Kara Walker (Duke University Press, 2004), the forthcoming First Ladies of the United States (National Portrait Gallery/Smithsonian Press), and a work in progress on 20th-century artist Sargent Johnson. She co-curated the landmark 2015 Philadelphia Museum of Art exhibit Represent: 200 Years of African American Art and has curated major shows at the Arthur Ross Gallery, Addison Gallery of American Art, and Montclair Art Museum.

She began at Penn in 2005, following five years at Harvard University, and has served as director of visual studies, undergraduate chair of art history, and faculty director of Gregory College House. In 2019, she received the Ira H. Abrams Memorial Award for Distinguished Teaching, the highest faculty teaching honor in the School of Arts and Sciences. She earned a PhD in art history from Stanford University and a BA with High Honors in art history from the University of California Santa Barbara.

The Class of 1940 Bicentennial Endowed Term Chair was established by the Class of 1940 at its fiftieth reunion to honor outstanding young professors at Penn.

Yue Hou, assistant professor of political science, has been named the Janice and Julian Bers Assistant Professor in the Social Sciences. Dr. Hou is an accomplished scholar of authoritarian politics and the politics of China. Her book, The Private Sector in Public Office: Selective Property Rights in China, addresses how China’s private sector manages to grow without secure property rights and proposes a new theory of selective property rights. Her work has appeared in a variety of academic journals, and has been featured in the New York Times, Boston Review, and South China Morning Post.

At Penn, Dr. Hou has served as an active faculty member at the Center for the Study of Contemporary China and the Penn Identity and Conflict Lab. She is also part of the new Penn Development Research Initiative. She received her PhD in political science from MIT and her BA in economics and mathematics from Grinnell College.

The late Janice Bers graduated from Penn with an education degree in 1939. Her husband, the late Julian Bers, graduated from Wharton in 1931. He received Penn’s Alumni Award of Merit in 1968 and served as a trustee of the University, while Mrs. Bers served as president of her class and on its 50th reunion gift committee. They established this chair in 1972 to recognize assistant professors who demonstrate outstanding promise as teachers and scholars in the social sciences.

November 11, 2020

The last nine months have tested everyone’s resolve and demonstrated your unwavering commitment to support the University’s mission of education, research, and service. We thank every member of the Penn community, whether working from home or on campus, for the hard work required in these unprecedented times to ensure strong and seamless operations. We are enormously grateful to the essential staff who have worked tirelessly on campus since day one of this public health crisis. We thank faculty for the complex tasks of planning for the spring semester while simultaneously teaching, advising, and grading in the fall semester. For those who have returned to work onsite, we cannot thank you enough for adhering to safety protocols by using PennOpen Pass and consulting the Return to Campus Guide for workplace expectations and guidelines.

To show our gratitude for this extraordinary work, the University is pleased to announce an extended winter break. This year, the Special Winter Vacation will also include December 24, 2020 and January 4 and 5, 2021. Essential staff required to work one or more of these days will receive comp time that can be used by March 31, 2021.

It is especially important, during these trying times, to take time off to recharge. We understand that most of you are working from home, balancing your professional duties with supporting your families, negotiating health concerns, and navigating the unpredictable schedules of schools and childcare. We greatly appreciate your efforts to maintain a remote work environment as we must limit the number of faculty and staff on campus. 

Working from home while juggling caregiving can be a challenge, and many of you have asked for neighborhood-based approaches to help meet your caregiving needs. In response, Penn has launched Caregiver Connections, a new online platform for faculty, staff, graduate students, and postdocs who are also caregivers to build connections and find support in our local neighborhoods. We welcome feedback on this pilot program as we aim to develop the most useful solutions for members of the Penn community.

We also encourage you to learn more about Penn’s COVID-19 Childcare Grant and other childcare resources, as well as Senior Care Solutions for benefits-eligible faculty and staff. During these uncertain times, please remember that Penn’s Employee Assistance Program and MindWell at Penn are always available to assist you with your mental and emotional wellbeing. 

We are heartened by how powerfully the Penn community has come together this year. We are confident that our collective strength and dedication will carry us forward in ways that are productive and inspiring. 

—Amy Gutmann, President
—Wendell Pritchett, Provost
—Craig Carnaroli, EVP
—Jack Heuer, Vice President for HR
—Laura Perna, Vice Provost for Faculty

Mayors for a Guaranteed Income (MGI), together with the University of Pennsylvania School of Social Policy & Practice (SP2), has established the Center for Guaranteed Income Research. The goal of the Center is to consolidate the key learnings from the pilots taking place in MGI member cities, to address knowledge gaps in the contemporary understanding of guaranteed income’s impact for Americans, and to allow the organization to layer data with anecdotal evidence in federal advocacy.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has exposed what we as Mayors have seen for a long time in our cities across the country—that people are working, but the economy isn’t,” said Mayor Michael Tubbs, founder of Mayors for a Guaranteed Income. “Our membership growth alone shows there’s a growing consensus that unconditional cash is the simplest, most effective solution to abolish poverty and begin to address the deeply linked issues of racial and economic injustice in America.”

The Center is co-led by Amy Castro Baker, assistant professor at SP2, and Dr. Stacia Martin-West, assistant professor at the University of Tennessee’s College of Social Work. The co-Principal Investigators of the first mayor-led guaranteed income pilot in Stockton, CA and leading academics in the space will guide pilot cities through a learning agenda and oversee the research design & implementation. After the conclusion of each demonstration, MGI partner cities will release preliminary outcome evaluations prepared in partnership with the Center. After the conclusion of all MGI demonstrations, the Center will release a final report of national findings of all sites and all key research questions.

MGI member mayors are signing on to the learning agenda with an eye towards moving the needle on poverty and matching the urgency of our current economic moment with evidence-based policy proposals. This agenda builds on the existing body of cash-transfer literature, as well as the implementation and research lessons learned in Stockton to build an evidence rich pilot-to-policy pipeline.

Following in line with SEED, the first mayor-led guaranteed income demonstration in Stockton, California, the Center will release early snapshot data including demographics, spending behaviors, photographs, and videos on a public facing data visualization website. The dashboard will feature city-level filters, such that residents, city leaders, and policy-makers will view snapshot data from all participants, and then select their own city data to compare nationally and to others. Similar to what was built for SEED, the public-facing dashboard will be a critical tool to engage the public, ensure transparency and accountability in the research process, and elevate the topic of guaranteed income.

“A growing body of evidence indicates the power of providing an income floor to stabilize households struggling with economic insecurity, but public conversation and the pressure created by the pandemic is moving faster than the evidence,” said Dr. Castro Baker. “The Center for Guaranteed Income Research will be a real-time and nimble research partner to Mayors, working in the same fashion across the country to meet the economic needs of their constituents.”

MGI has been awarded a $250,000 grant from Arrow Impact, a newly established private foundation focused on improving economic opportunity for low-income families and on improving the efficiency of the philanthropic ecosystem. The funds and leadership will support MGI as it builds capacity.

The Higher Education Opportunity Act requires universities to make available to students, for each course, the International Standard Book Numbers (ISBNs) and price information for required/recommended books and supplemental materials.

To comply with this requirement, the University of Pennsylvania has worked closely with Barnes & Noble, managers of the Penn Bookstore, to maintain a simple and cost-effective process to provide ISBNs to our students. Through the Bookstore’s online system, students will have access to a complete list of materials for all their courses, along with the ISBNs for each listed text.

As in the past, textbook information can be provided to other vendors, and students are in no way required to purchase their books at the Penn Bookstore.

Faculty are key to the success of the University’s efforts to act in accordance with this regulation. To that end, the efforts by Penn faculty members to work with the Bookstore to provide this important information for our students are both critical and appreciated. For additional information, or to submit your course materials directly, visit the Faculty Services Page at www.upenn.edu/coursematerials.

—Wendell E. Pritchett, Provost
—Beth A. Winkelstein, Deputy Provost

The fall Stated Meeting of the University of Pennsylvania Board of Trustees was held virtually on Friday, November 13.

During his invocation, the Rev. Charles Howard quoted President-elect and Penn professor Joe Biden who has said “keep the faith,” but the chaplain admitted that nothing has been harder in 2020.

Trustees chair David L. Cohen presented memorial resolutions for Madlyn K. Abramson (Almanac April 28, 2020) and David C. Auten (Almanac May 26, 2020). Mr. Cohen also mentioned that former trustee Larry Nussdorf died that morning. A resolution of appreciation for Charles B. Leitner III was also presented; all three passed.

The trustees also approved a resolution to amend the statutes to change from the term Board of Overseers to Board of Advisors as well as replace the terms chairman and vice chairman with chair and vice chair.

As part of the President’s Report, President Amy Gutmann presented a resolution of appreciation for Eric Furda for transforming undergraduate admissions since arriving 12 years ago (Almanac June 30, 2020). President Gutmann also presented a resolution to reappoint Antonia  Villarruel as dean of the School of Nursing effective July 1, 2021 through June 30, 2026 (Almanac September 22, 2020). Both passed.

Provost Wendell Pritchett mentioned in the Academic Report that as of November 5, the new ICA director is Zoë Ryan (Almanac August 25, 2020).

EVP Craig Carnaroli gave the Financial Report for the three months ended September 30, 2020. For the Consolidated University, he said the total net assets were $20.1 billion, an increase of $756 million, or 3.9% over September 30, 2019 and 4.7% above budget. The change in net assets from operations for the University (Academic Component) reflected a $42 million decrease. The change in net assets includes COVID-related revenue disruptions of $23 million in tuition and fees and $11 million room and board, offset by $27 million in travel and entertainment expense savings. The University finished the quarter in a stronger position than expected thanks to good expense management. For the Health System, the change in net assets from operations was $185 million, inclusive of $100 million in HHS Cares Act funding. Excluding Cares Act funding, operating income was $260 million above budget and $52 million below prior year.

In the Penn Medicine Report, Larry Jameson reported that Zeke Emanuel will be taking a leave of absence from his position as chair of medical ethics to join the President-elect’s COVID-19 task force. Dr. Jameson mentioned that five Penn faculty have been elected to the National Academy of Medicine (Almanac November 3, 2020)

The Budget and Finance Committee presented six Resolutions, which were passed:

• to authorize the Spending Rule for Endowments for FY21: to increase the target spending rate to 7.0% in FY21, retroactive to July 1, 2020. As a result, the effective payout rates for FY21, calculated on the basis of a three year moving average value of the June 30 endowment market value, lagged one year, will be 5.9% for financial aid endowments and 5.6% for non-aid endowments.
• to authorize a seven-year new lease for the Perelman School of Medicine, Gene Therapy Program; 411 Swedeland Road, King of Prussia; total lease obligation (Present Value) of $63,375,000, inclusive of $19,005,000 in capital.
• to authorize Stellar Chance Laboratories renovation for Environmental Health and Radiation Safety and Tandem Building demolition to clear space for the Vagelos Laboratory for Energy Science and Technology, in the amount of $14,000,000.
• to authorize design development phase of the Quadrangle College Houses renovation for an additional $5,100,000 (total revised budget of $11,250,000).
• to authorize Cyclotron Laboratory renovations and infrastructure modifications in the amount of $6,800,000.
• to authorize five-year master lease renewal for The Left Bank at 3118-3198 Chestnut Street; total lease obligation (present value) $6,453,000; space is occupied by Facilities and Real Estate Services, Business Services (Mail Services and the Penn Children’s Center), and Environmental Health and Radiation Service.

Resolutions of appreciation and designation as emeritus trustee were passed for James (Jamie) H. Greene, Jr. and Robert M. Levy.

Dhananjay M. Pai and Jill Topkis Weiss were elected as term trustees.

Michael J. Price and Richard W. Vague were re-elected as term trustees.

There were also numerous appointments to Penn Medicine and other Boards.

Nader Engheta, H. Nedwill Ramsey Professor in Electrical and Systems Engineering, Bioengineering and Materials Science and Engineering, has been awarded the 2020 Isaac Newton Medal and Prize by the Institute of Physics (IOP). The IOP is the professional body and scholarly society for physics in the UK and Ireland.

Dr. Engheta has been recognized for “groundbreaking innovation and transformative contributions to electromagnetic complex materials and nanoscale optics, and for pioneering development of the fields of near-zero-index metamaterials, and material-inspired analogue computation and optical nanocircuitry.”

“As one of the original pioneers of modern electromagnetic metamaterials, way ahead of his time, Engheta’s creativity has opened doors to numerous other new topics and innovations in nanophotonics and physics of light,” says the IOP. “His ideas of ‘materials that become analogue computers’ connect nanoscience of materials to ultrafast analogue computation with impacts in various fields of science and technology.”

Last year, Dr. Engheta published a study in Science that demonstrated this new form of computation, detailing a metamaterial device that can solve complex equations using electromagnetic waves.

As the recipient of the 2020 Isaac Newton Medal and Prize, Dr. Engheta will receive £1,000 (approximately $1,188) and a certificate, as well as an invitation to lecture at the Institute. Dr. Engheta is also the recipient of the Ellis Island Medal of Honor, Max Born Award, and IEEE Nanotechnology Council Pioneer Award in Nanotechnology, and was named a “Beacon of the Photonics Industry.“

Two Perelman School of Medicine professors were named to the 100 Inspiring Hispanic/Latinx Scientists in America list created by Cell Press.

Kellie Ann Jurado, Presidential Assistant Professor of Microbiology, and Arnaldo Díaz Vázquez, assistant dean for Research Training Programs and adjunct assistant professor of pharmacology in Penn Medicine, were chosen based on their scholarly achievements, mentoring excellence, and their commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion.

The list, announced in honor of National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15, aims to dispel the myth that there are not enough diverse scientists to give seminars, serve as panelists, or fill scientific positions. It highlights scientists encompassing careers within academia, government, and biotech and showcases individuals committed to serving diverse student populations. The full list can be viewed at http://crosstalk.cell.com/blog/100-inspiring-hispanic-latinx-scientists-in-america.

Penn Nursing Dean Antonia Villarruel is one of five recipients of the 2020 Globy Award from the Global Philadelphia Association. The award recognizes international significant achievements of Philadelphia leaders in medicine and business entrepreneurship. The awardees will be honored during a virtual celebration on December 14.

“Our 2020 innovative honorees represent the best of Philadelphia in terms of social responsibility, welcoming world heritages and the spirit of Philadelphia,” said Zabeth Teelucksingh, executive director of the Global Philadelphia Association. “They also are aligned with our efforts to support sustainable goals in America’s first World Heritage City.” Global Philadelphia Association members support The United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, which are a call for action by all countries to promote prosperity while protecting the planet.

“I am especially honored to receive the Globy award in 2020, designated by the World Health Organization as the Year of the Nurse and Midwife,” said Dr. Villarruel. “This award recognizes Penn Nursing’s global impact in teaching, research, and scholarship and celebrates the contributions of nurses everywhere—during this pandemic and beyond.”

Samuel Welborn, a graduate student in the lab of Eric Detsi, Stephenson Term Assistant Professor in the department of materials science and engineering, has won the “Most Stunning” category in the National Nanotechnology Coordinated Infrastructure’s Plenty of Beauty at the Bottom image contest. His entry, “Macroporoses,” depicts an intricate pattern of nanoscale pores in aluminum.

Paria Sadat Musavi Gharavi, a postdoctoral researcher co-advised by Eric Stach, director of the Laboratory for Research on the Structure of Matter and professor in the department of materials science and engineering, and Troy Olsson, assistant professor in the department electrical and systems engineering, has earned an Honorable Mention in the “Most Unique Capability” category. Her submission, “Desirable Atomic Defects,” also depicts sheets of aluminum, but at even higher magnification. There, potentially useful disruptions in the material’s crystalline lattice, become visible.

As the Mid-Atlantic Nanotechnology Hub, Penn’s Singh Center is one of NNCI’s 16 member sites.

Ben E. Black, Eldridge Reeves Johnson Foundation Professor of Biochemistry & Biophysics, is the recipient of this year’s Stanley N. Cohen Biomedical Research Award. Dr. Black’s research centers on understanding a major question in genetics: what defines human centromeres, the chromosomal loci that confer genetic stability at cell division? Among the questions being explored by his lab are how genetic inheritance works; how epigenetic information was transmitted to us from our parents; whether building new artificial chromosomes can help us understand how natural chromosomes work; and how the key enzymes protect the integrity of our genome specifically and potently activated by potential catastrophes like DNA beaks or chromosome misattachment to the mitotic spindle. In addition to his work to advance technologies for building synthetic chromosomes for research and medicine, an exciting new area of interest to emerge in recent years has been with the enzyme PARP-1: a key component for signaling DNA damage and an important clinical target for small molecule inhibition. He serves as co-director of the newly established Penn Center for Genome Integrity. Noting his seminal contributions as an international leader in his field, his nominators said of him, “What has allowed Ben to excel is his unique blend of scientific knowledge, exceptional creativity and combination of complimentary experimental expertise in biophysics and cell biology, thus allowing him to use truly innovative approaches and challenge traditional paradigms in the field.”

Douglas H. Smith, Robert A. Groff Endowed Professor of Research and Teaching in Neurosurgery, is the recipient of this year’s William Osler Patient Oriented Research Award. Dr. Smith is the foremost authority on diffuse axonal injury (DAI) as the unifying hypothesis behind the short- and long-term consequences of concussion. After realizing that concussion, or mild traumatic brain injury (TBI), was a much more serious event than broadly appreciated, he and his team have used computer biomechanical modeling, in vitro and in vivo testing in parallel with seminal human studies to elucidate mechanisms of concussion. The acute changes characterized by the Smith group have provided a pathway to develop novel diagnostic tools, and he has played a leading role in demonstrating that DAI can trigger long-term neurodegeneration that can persist for decades after injury. As the foremost expert in concussion and chronic traumatic encephalopathy, he was recently invited to serve as a founding member of the NFL’s Scientific Advisory Board and is also the Scientific Director of the Big 10/Ivy League’s Traumatic Brain Injury Research Collaboration. The U.S. State Department chose him to lead an investigation into neurological deficits induced in members of the embassy in Havana, which led to the development of diagnostic criteria for a newly discovered disorder, “Havana Syndrome.”

Peter P. Reese, associate professor of medicine and epidemiology, is this year’s recipient of the Samuel Martin Health Evaluation Sciences Research Award. Dr. Reese is an internationally-recognized leader in the areas of transplantation and nephrology. His research paved the way for the transplant field to make use of the thousands of discarded organs from donors infected with hepatitis C virus (HCV). Dr. Reese’s team recognized that new direct-acting antiviral medications created opportunities to offer these organs from deceased opioid epidemic victims to well-informed patients without HCV. His trials in the areas of kidney (THINKER), heart, and lung transplantation, designed with Penn colleagues, led to outstanding results, including 100% HCV cure rates, good allograft function, and manageable side effects. Through his collaboration with French researchers, Dr. Reese also paved the way for the use of organs from older and comorbid donors. He developed a widely cited ethical model of how centers should separate the interests of donors and transplant candidates and focus on donors with risk factors for kidney disease. He also made important contributions to health behavior change in transplantation and nephrology in the area of medication non-adherence. He is a winner of multiple awards, including the Presidential Early Career Award for Scientists and Engineers.

Donita C. Brady, Presidential Assistant Professor of Cancer Biology, is the recipient of this year’s Michael S. Brown New Investigator Research Award. Dr. Brady’s laboratory has been responsible for major conceptual advances in an entirely new field of oncogenic signaling that she herself helped to found. Her innovative research program centers on answering fundamental biological questions regarding the critical role played by metals, particularly copper (Cu), in oncogenic signaling and cancer biology. Her work involves a new paradigm in nutrient sensing and protein regulation in which redox-active metals control kinase activity, termed metalloallostery. The focal point of her research is the intersection of kinase signaling and Cu homeostasis and seeks to define the mechanistic regulating Cu-dependent kinases in order to target them via drug repurposing or development in the context of cancer. Her highly innovative and conceptually groundbreaking research has established her as a leader in her field, as evidenced by her numerous publications in high impact journals, her substantial extramural funding, her multiple invited talks, and the number of significant honors awarded to her. In addition, she co-founded Merlon, Inc. to enable targeting Cu-dependent activation of MEK1/2 and translate her findings to the clinic.

Meeta Prasad Kerlin, assistant professor of medicine, is the recipient of this year’s Marjorie A. Bowman New Investigator Research Award. Dr. Kerlin is internationally recognized as the world’s leading authority on how intensive care (ICU) physicians (“intensivists”) contribute to critically ill patients’ outcomes. Her primary research interests include optimizing the contribution of the ICU organization to outcomes of critical illness, implementation science with a focus on critical care interventions and understanding the role of the various clinicians involved in the care of ICU patients in quality of care and outcomes. Her work uses the tools of implementation science to reduce the knowledge-practice gap in ICUs in order to achieve the most cost-effective outcomes for hospitals’ sickest patients. She has successfully led complex secondary data analyses, randomized trials, experimental implementation studies, systematic reviews, survey studies, and qualitative studies. She led the only randomized clinical trial to evaluate the impact of intensivist staffing during nighttime hours on resource utilization and patient mortality. She also proved the more specific role of intensivists in the outcomes of patients who undergo mechanical ventilation. A colleague says Dr. Kerlin “is an exemplary physician and clinical educator and a uniquely talented research mentor,” and is an outstanding role model for women physician-scientists at Penn.

Neil D. Romberg, assistant professor of pediatrics at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and the Jeffrey Modell Endowed Chair of Pediatric Immunology Research at CHOP, is the recipient of this year’s Lady Barbara Colyton Prize for Autoimmune Research. Dr. Romberg’s research is born out of the clinical observation that patients with primary immune disorders also develop inflammatory diseases. He has leveraged this observation to dissect the immunologic pathways that drive human autoimmunity. His work focuses on how molecular interactions between different follicular cell types influence germinal center formation and function. He has developed several effector T-cell/B-cell and effector T-cell/regulatory T-cell/B-cell co-culture methods using primary human cells permitting additional manipulation including gene over-expression, knockdown and modeling patient mutations via genetic editing. More recently, he has developed competencies in modern high-dimensional single-cell phenotyping and epigenetic analyses. One of his key innovations is applying these powerful new technologies to rare patients’ samples to discover new human immunology pathways that drive immunologic disease. His impressive program at CHOP and Penn has identified three new inborn errors of immunity, placing him in the top 1% of all gene sleuths in immunology. His work bridges patient care and translational research, with the goal of improving patient outcomes with personalized therapies.

Matthew D. Weitzman, professor of microbiology, pathology and laboratory medicine, is the recipient of this year’s Arthur Asbury Mentoring Award. Dr. Weitzman has made wide-ranging contributions foundational to the fields of virology and DNA repair and has produced a number of highly successful trainees. One of his most significant contributions to the professional development of other faculty members has been his initiation of the Grant Proposal Success (GPS) groups. He began the first group in 2013 in the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) Pathology department, and in subsequent years expanded this model throughout CHOP and PSOM. The GPS approach creates a flexible, community-based learning experience to teach participants effective grant-writing skills through peer review and cascading mentorship, applying structure and best practices. To date, over 250 trainees and Penn faculty have been involved in these groups, including Richard’s Society for GPS, begun in 2017 for tenure-track junior faculty. Assistant professors from various departments across PSOM attend these weekly meetings, and members credit Dr. Weitzman’s guidance and mentorship with the funding of previously unsuccessful grant proposals. As one Richard’s Society member said, “Dr. Weitzman has set a tone for providing and receiving critical feedback, sharing innovative ideas, and setting ambitious research goal and he has instilled in each of us how to be strategic in our grant development, how to push each other as colleagues, and to focus on the passion for science that has drawn each of us to Penn.”

Carol M. Chou, professor of clinical medicine, is the recipient of this year’s Duncan Van Dusen Professionalism Award for Faculty. Dr. Chou is a nationally recognized expert in the field of relationship-centered healthcare communication, and her fundamental philosophy and approach to patient care and teaching is rooted in humanistic care. She holds a long-standing leadership position with the Academy on Communication in Healthcare, whose vision describes a health care system where all patients and providers feel valued, are treated equitably and with respect and compassion, and are actively engaged in healthcare decisions. Since her fellowship training at the Academy, she has worked to incorporate principles of relationship-centered care into daily behaviors, actions, and teachings. Dr. Chou applies this approach to her three teaching domains—clinical teaching of residents and students, serving as a personal coach for communication and professionalism, and didactic teaching in communication. In the medical student elective “The Healer’s Art,” she aims to instill those same values of respect for self and for others in her students. In her workshops on communication and professionalism topics, and as co-director of the Communication Curriculum for the Internal Medicine Residency Program, she creates dialogue and listens carefully to explore, honor, and respect her learners’ experiences.

David C. Metz, professor of medicine at HUP, is this year’s Louis Duhring Outstanding Clinical Specialist Award recipient. Dr. Metz’s areas of expertise include esophageal diseases (EoE, GERD, achalasia), gastric diseases (H. Pylori infection, PUD, NSAID gastropathy) and neuroendocrine tumors-NETs. For the latter he is nationally and internationally recognized, has among the largest practices in the country, and recently served as the President of the North American Neuroendocrine Tumor Society. Dr. Metz integrates pathophysiology, diagnosis and management in patient care. He has long been the go-to physician for unusual “orphan” GI diseases such as short gut, gastroparesis, sclerosing mesenteritis and eosinophilic gastritides. An experienced clinical investigator, he is the principal investigator on numerous clinical grants, resulting in widely cited publications in leading journals. Dr. Metz is an expert endoscopist for esophageal, gastric and duodenal diseases, interpreter of esophageal manometric tests, and a leading analyst of radiologic tests. He has been recognized annually as a Philadelphia “Top Doc” for 25 years, and his worldwide referral practice is testimony to his wealth of knowledge and expert care. In addition, he is a superb teacher and mentor, able to integrate theory and practice with great ease.

Louis M. DeStefano, clinical associate of family medicine and community health and Lead Physician, Penn Medicine Valley Forge, is the recipient of this year’s Sylvan Eisman Outstanding Primary Care Physician Award. For more than 20 years of his 33-year career, Dr. DeStefano has been one of the most respected primary care physicians in a busy Penn Medicine practice. He portrays all the qualities of an exemplary primary care physician, including outstanding clinical and diagnostic acumen, and the ability to provide care in a warm, compassionate and “patient centered” manner to a broad range of patients, always placing his patients’ needs above everything else. “Dr. DeStefano is unsurpassed as a primary care physician,” says one of his patients. “I’ve never come across anyone better.” “I travel to see him even with the location being over 45 minutes away,” says another. “I would never consider any other physician with my overall health.” He is described as a physician and colleague who exudes warmth and confidence in all his interactions, whether that be with other providers, staff, or his patients. Dr. DeStefano was the first physician chosen by Penn Medicine for the large, multi-specialty, clinical and teaching facility in Valley Forge, and the one selected to lead the implementation plans.

Christopher J. Miller, associate professor of dermatology at HUP, is the recipient of the Luigi Mastroianni Clinical Innovator Award. Malignant melanoma has traditionally been treated with excision based on the clinical appearance of the tumor, but more than 10% of patients with poorly defined melanomas on the head, neck, hands, and feet had incomplete excisions and required numerous surgeries. Dr. Miller recognized that doctors could assure complete melanoma removal and reduce the number of surgeries by treating specialty site melanomas with Mohs micrographic surgery and a relatively new immunohistochemical stain that highlights melanoma cells on frozen sections. This precise technique allows same-day excision, microscopic margin examination, and reconstruction with less than a 1% chance that the melanoma will recur. His team first published their technique and results in a landmark 2015 article, and they have since published a 0.3% long-term local recurrence rate in 1948 melanoma patients treated at Penn. Compared to the 10% historical rate of local recurrence after conventional excision, the high cure rates after Mohs micrographic surgery have spared hundreds of Penn patients unnecessary surgeries. Dr. Miller is at the forefront in the field of Mohs and reconstructive surgery, and he is the founder and Director of the highly regarded Penn Dermatology Oncology Center.

Ronald B. Barg, Penn Primary Care/Clinical Care Associates physician, is the recipient of the 2020 Alfred Stengel Health System Champion Award. After joining Clinical Care Associates in 1995, Dr. Barg was instrumental in reorganizing this primary care physician network to increase its efficiency and bring financial stability. He was named executive director of CCA in 2005, a position he held until June 30, 2020, when he stepped down to return to clinical practice. Under his leadership, CCA grew to over 300 physicians across the region, including both primary care and multiple specialties. In 2017, He was named as inaugural medical director to the Primary Care Service Line, where he coordinated over 500 primary care practitioners across general internal medicine, family medicine, Penn Primary Care, and six hospitals. With his launch of the Service Line, he was able to engage stakeholders across Penn Medicine and successfully weave together a common framework and structure to help integrate, align and strengthen Penn Medicine’s primary care services, building a strong organizational culture and driving improvements in quality, operations, and finance. In particular, he oversaw a major improvement in patient experience scores over the past several years that have set a high water mark for the organization.

A monumental sculpture by acclaimed artist Simone Leigh has been installed at the corner of 34th and Walnut Streets, the gateway to College Green at the University of Pennsylvania. 

Titled Brick House, the piece depicts a Black woman’s head atop a form that suggests a skirt or perhaps a building. It is the first large-scale piece in the artist’s Anatomy of Architecture series that merges human form with diverse architectural elements. Cast in bronze, the work stands 16 feet high, is 9 feet in diameter at its base, and weighs 5,900 pounds. Another edition of Brick House is on display on New York City’s High Line through spring 2021.

“Ms. Leigh’s sculpture brings a striking presence of strength, grace, and beauty—along with an ineffable sense of mystery and resilience—to a central crossroad of Penn’s campus,” said Penn President Amy Gutmann. “When Glenn and Amanda Fuhrman first approached Penn over a year and a half ago, I was absolutely delighted by the possibility of bringing this spectacular work of art to Penn. Its enthralling presence of Black beauty with artistic references to the African diaspora will draw the attention of everyone walking or driving past one of the most travelled corners in West Philadelphia. And how perfectly fitting it is that we welcome Brick House to our campus at the same time as we redouble our collective efforts to confront issues of racial justice. Brick House adds immeasurable depth to the public art accessible for viewing and studying across Penn’s campus. We look forward to it generating countless conversations about its meaning and significance.”

Penn alumnus Glenn Fuhrman earned an undergraduate degree from Penn in finance with a minor in art history in 1987, and an MBA from The Wharton School in 1988. He is the founder and CEO of his family office, Virtru Investment Partners. Previously, he co-founded MSD Capital, the private investment firm for Michael Dell, founded and was CEO of Dell Technologies, and served as managing director and head of the Special Investments Group at Goldman, Sachs & Co. Mr. Fuhrman serves as a board member of The Institute of Contemporary Art at the University of Pennsylvania, and as a trustee of The Museum of Modern Art and The TATE Americas Foundation. In 2008, he founded The FLAG Art Foundation in New York City as an independent exhibition space.

Amanda Fuhrman earned her undergraduate degree from Penn in 1995 with a concentration in diplomatic history and a law degree from Columbia University Law School in 2000. She went on to work at Simpson Thacher & Bartlett and as deputy executive director of Millennium Promise Alliance, both in New York. She is a trustee of The Brooklyn Museum and of Edible Schoolyard NYC.

“We first encountered Simone’s work in 2016 and immediately felt an almost visceral sense of both its historical resonance and incredible connection to our contemporary reality,” said Mrs. Fuhrman. “Because we were aware that Simone felt strongly about having this particular work reside on a university campus, we advocated for bringing it to Penn.”

Mr. Fuhrman added: “While I was a student at Penn studying art history, I gained a deep appreciation for the power and influence of artistic expression. I feel—and Simone agrees—that our urban campus is the perfect location for Brick House, where it can be seen by a large and diverse population.”

Simone Leigh has received numerous accolades for her work, most recently being named the American representative to the 2022 Venice Biennale—the first Black woman to represent the U.S. at this prestigious international exhibition. In addition, she has received a Creative Capital Award (2012), a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship (2016), and the Hugo Boss Prize (2018), among other honors. Her work has been displayed in solo and group shows at major museums, galleries, and exhibition spaces, including a solo exhibit at the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum in New York City (2019).

Ms. Leigh’s scholarly approach to her art imbues her work with historical relevance. After earning a degree in fine art with a minor in philosophy from Earlham College in Richmond, Indiana, Ms. Leigh was trained in traditional ceramic techniques. A post-college internship at the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington, D.C., sparked an interest in the African diaspora that is reflected in Brick House. The cowrie shells that adorn the braids on its subject simultaneously symbolize wealth and femininity, and also the African slave trade in which cowrie shells were used as currency. Global inspirations for the abstract skirt-like base come from Batammaliba architecture in Benin and Togo and the teleuk dwellings of the Mousgoum people of Cameroon and Chad, but also the restaurant Mammy’s Cupboard in Natchez, Mississippi.

“Brick House is part of my series called Anatomy of Architecture in which I conflate ideas concerning the body and architecture as well as gender and representation,” explained Ms. Leigh. “I operate in an auto-ethnographic way, in which I research African and diaspora art objects, material culture and philosophies. Often my work is sparked by underlining texts from Black feminist thinkers. Brick House is not a portrait. It brings disparate forms together in a way that collapses time. I would describe this way of building sculpture as ‘critical fabulation.’”

Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw, Class of 1940 Bicentennial Term Chair in the history of art department at Penn, believes that welcoming Brick House to a prominent new home at Penn is especially meaningful as the University community intentionally pursues dynamic ways of re-considering our nation’s past. “As an art historian and teacher who works at the intersection of race, gender, sexuality and class, I anticipate that this evocative sculpture will lead students toward new paths of exploration and understanding. I couldn’t be more excited to facilitate those conversations in the classroom.”

In its initial stages of construction, Brick House pushed the limits of Ms. Leigh’s favored medium of ceramics. She sculpted the massive ceramic prototype on a wire mesh frame using 9,000 pounds of clay; it was then cast using 6,000 pounds of bronze at a foundry located in Philadelphia. The first casting is currently on display at the High Line Plinth, a landmark destination for major public artworks in New York City. 

Brick House was transported to Penn on a flatbed truck and carefully hoisted into place by crane to a specially constructed concrete platform. “Brick House is an enthralling and powerful piece by one of the most consequential artists of our time,” said Frederick Steiner, Dean and Paley Professor at the Weitzman School, who co-chairs the design review committee charged with location of major projects on campus. “At a time of expanding awareness of the unique experience of Black people, this symbol of strong Black femininity is a striking and timely addition to our shared landscape.”

Simone Leigh's photo by Shaniqwa Jarvis

Conferences

20    Expanding Scope of Practice After COVID-19; symposium examining practice reform; 8:30 a.m.-12:15 p.m.; online event; register: https://penn-ldi.ticketleap.com/sop2020/ (LDI; Nursing).

Films

23    Mondays with Milford: In Performance Part 2; screening of rare footage from Milford Graves’s archives; 6 p.m.; online event (ICA).

Meetings

19    WPPSA Meeting; guest speaker Wydia Houston, CAPS; noon; more info and to register, email Mariel Featherstone at fmariel@upenn.edu (WPPSA).

Music

19    The Bach Project; movements from unaccompanied works by J.S. Bach; 8 p.m.; virtual event; register: https://tinyurl.com/bach-project-nov-20 (Music).
20    Cycles of My Being; performance of a song cycle written by Tyshawn Sorey; 8 p.m.; tickets: https://tinyurl.com/cycles-of-my-being (Music).

Sports

19   Penn vs Princeton; original broadcast: November 6, 1993; 8 p.m.; www.youtube.com/user/PennSportsNetwork (Penn Athletics).

Talks

18    Bioclimatic Double-Skin Façades; Mary Ben Bonham, Miami University (Ohio); 9 a.m.; Zoom meeting; register: https://tinyurl.com/bonham-talk-nov-18 (Graduate Architecture).
       Serving our Veterans: Moving Forward the Have You Ever Served Initiative; Linda Spoonster Schwartz, former Assistant Secretary of Veteran Affairs; noon; BlueJeans event; register: https://tinyurl.com/schwartz-talk-nov-18 (Nursing).
       The Global Ethics of Vaccine Distribution; Kok-Chor Tan and Michael Weisberg, philosophy; noon; info: https://tinyurl.com/vaccine-nov-18 (Penn Science Cafe).
       True Crime and the Case for Abolition Documentary; Pooja Rangan, Amherst College; Brett Story, Ryerson; noon; Zoom meeting; join: https://tinyurl.com/rangan-story-nov-18 (Cinema Studies).
       Photovoltaic Restoration of Sight in Age-related Macular Degeneration; Daniel Palanker, Stanford; 1 p.m.; Zoom meeting; info: eprince@seas.upenn.edu (BE; Neuroengineering).
       The Party of Lincoln?; Tara Setmayer, CNN; Rogers Smith, political science; 6 p.m.; Zoom meeting; register: https://setmayer-party-of-lincoln.eventbrite.com (Andrea Mitchell Center).
19    Emerging Technologies for Detection of Early Stage Bladder Cancer; Audrey Bowden, Vanderbilt; 3 p.m.; online event; info: be@seas.upenn.edu (BE).
       A Lifetime of Adventures in East Asia; Jerome Cohen, NYU; 4:30 p.m.; online event; register: https://tinyurl.com/jerome-cohen-talk-nov-19 (CEAS).
       Paintings of Fragmented Identities and Cultures at Odds, Harmony or Flux. Live from Indian Territory, USA; Micah Wesley, artist; 6 p.m.; Zoom meeting; join: http://bit.ly/Roadwarrior (PNACC).
20    Smart Beds, Homes and Robots: Emerging Tech Opportunities for Aging; panel of speakers; 10:30 a.m.; BlueJeans meeting; register: https://primetime.bluejeans.com/a2m/register/kpwaypsx (Nursing).
       Designing Energy Conversion Materials with Ab-Initio and Active Machine Learning Computations of Electron-Phonon and Ion Dynamics; Boris Kozinsky, Harvard; 2 p.m.; Zoom meeting; info: kathom@seas.upenn.edu (PICS).
24    Thanksgiving Myths and Indigenous Memories; Marge Bruchac, Native American & Indigenous Studies; 5:30 p.m.; Facebook event (Museum).

Economics
Info and to register: https://economics.sas.upenn.edu/events
24    Choice with Endogenous Categorization; Andrew Ellis, London School of Economics; 4 p.m.
25    Are Consumption Taxes Really Better Than Labour Income Taxes? Theoretical and Quantitative Implications of the Choice of Tax Base; Kris Shaw, economics; 4 p.m.

Sociology
Info and to register: https://sociology.sas.upenn.edu/events
18    Who Really Pays the Motherhood Wage Penalty? (And Why You Don’t Want to Use Quantile Regression to Answer This Question); Markus Gangl, Goethe University Frankfurt; noon.
20    “I’m Not Biracial, But Then Am I Mixed?:” Racial Categorization Patterns in Second-Generation Black-White Multiracials; Haley Pilgrim, sociology; noon.

AT PENN Deadlines

The November AT PENN calendar is online and will be updated throughout the month. The December AT PENN calendar will be published Tuesday, November 24. Submit events for weekly calendar updates at almanac@upenn.edu. Deadlines are Monday for the next Tuesday’s issue. The deadline for the January AT PENN calendar is Tuesday, December 1.

The next meeting of the WXPN Policy Board will take place Thursday, December 3, 2020.

For more information, contact tess@xpn.org.

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 November 2-8, 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 November 2-8, 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: 6 crimes against persons (2 assaults, 2 robberies, 1 domestic assault, and 1 indecent assault) were reported for November 2-8, 2020 by the 18th District, covering the Schuylkill River to 49th Street & Market Street to Woodland Avenue.

Each year, we see the outpouring of kindness and generosity from Penn’s faculty and staff in supporting the many worthy causes represented by the Penn’s Way campaign. Our partner organizations (The United Way of Greater Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey, Philadelphia Alliance for Change, and Penn Medicine) work closely with us to ensure that the Penn community’s contributions are used to address needs across our region.

This year is a time of unprecedented hardship at every level: families, nonprofits, local businesses are struggling to stay afloat. Community organizations and foundations, are being called upon to help people who have lost their jobs, health care, homes, etc., and the charitable organizations that used to assist people, are themselves struggling. The Penn community has demonstrated year after year that we can, and will, rise to meet the challenge. 

The theme for this year’s campaign is “Caring for Our Community.” We encourage the Penn community to bring home the message of caring, in this very challenging year, by contributing to organizations that support the three “Pillars of Need” identified by the Penn’s Way Campaign:  

• Health Care Disparity
• Food Insecurity
• Social Justice

This week we are highlighting organizations that focus on Social Justice:

If you have an organization within the campaign that you would like to support, whatever their mission, you can be sure that they need your contribution this year more than ever. Login at www.pennsway.upenn.edu to care for your community.

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

There have been several high-profile campaigns of cyber-criminal attacks against institutions like Penn recently. With this spike in attacks, you should be on high alert. 

Malicious and misleading emails, also called “phishing” emails, are the number one way that cyber-criminals begin their attacks. A hyperlink or attachment can attack and silently take over your computer when clicked, or a fake login screen presented when you click can be used to get you to provide your password without realizing it.  

Here are some specific things you can do to help protect yourself and to protect Penn: 

Verify the Sender. While fake emails can be made to look entirely like authentic messages by manipulating the sender’s name, often you can spot a malicious email by carefully reviewing the full email address in the “From” field to confirm the sender is who they claim to be.

Report Suspicious Events.  Modern attacks are subtle and may lack obvious signs like slowing down your computer or causing error messages.  If you receive a suspicious message, or if you click a link or attachment and the resulting content doesn’t make sense, don’t hesitate to reach out to your local computing support provider for help—these attacks are generally easy to clean up when reported right away. You can also send any suspicious email to phishing@isc.upenn.edu for analysis.

Safer Ways to Open Messages: If you are unsure whether a message is authentic, the best approach is to contact the sender using a previously established phone number to confirm.

If you need to open an attachment or link, it is safer to do so using an up-to-date mobile device or Chromebook rather than using a Windows or Macintosh computer.

If you are opening an unfamiliar Microsoft Word or Excel document, do not select the “Enable” option in the yellow banner for editing, saving, or macros, which can allow the document to attack your computer. 

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

Almanac will not publish an issue Tuesday, December 1, the Tuesday after Thanksgiving. We are accepting submissions for our December 8 and December 15 issues at almanac@upenn.edu. The deadline for the January AT PENN calendar is December 1.

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.