April 15, 2025 Volume 71 Issue 31

As the University monitors the timing and impact of federal policy changes, we are writing to share information about the mechanisms in place for recognizing the effects of external events on faculty work, especially for faculty in their probationary period. Additional steps will be taken, if necessary and appropriate, as the situation continues to evolve. 

Extension of the Probationary Period

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, the University extended the probationary period by one year for all faculty who were assistant professors and associate professors without tenure in the tenure, clinician-educator, and research tracks whose reviews had not already begun, who were not in their mandatory or terminal years, and who had not already received a COVID-related extension. This automatic extension was intended to recognize that, in response to the pandemic, Penn faculty made rapid changes to their teaching; experienced illnesses and deaths in their families; spent more time advising, mentoring, and supporting students; and experienced barriers to conducting and disseminating research, with limits on field research, lab and facility closures, loss of research subjects, conference cancellations, journal publication slowdown, and more. 

As implications of current and potential federal policy changes are still playing out, a universal automatic extension of the probationary period is not warranted at this time. However, current University policy now allows for an extension of the probationary period for non-tenured members of the standing faculty, standing faculty-clinician educators, and research faculty for a new child in the home, caregiver responsibilities, serious health conditions, military service, or a catastrophic personal or professional event. A catastrophic professional event is defined in the Faculty Handbook (Section II.E.3.A.4.ii.) as follows:

The destruction, loss, or unavailability of, or interference with access to, materials, data or research opportunities necessary for completion of a research project, such that the research project is unable to proceed or is disrupted for at least sixty days; or unforeseen interruptions in the availability of building facilities or suspension of laboratory operations that deprive the faculty member or appropriate members of the research team of access to a laboratory or the availability of other essential supports for at least sixty days. It is understood that a “catastrophic event” has a serious impact on the faculty member’s ability to pursue their area of scholarly focus or activity in a customary and timely fashion and occurs through no fault of the faculty member.

Section II.E.3.I of the Faculty Handbook outlines the procedures for requesting an extension of the probationary period because of a catastrophic personal or professional event. Faculty are encouraged to contact their Dean, department chair, or faculty affairs coordinator to discuss whether their situation qualifies for an extension.

Impact Statements

In spring 2021, the University added a “pandemic impact statement” to its faculty review process to recognize the impact of the COVID pandemic on the lives and work of Penn faculty. Both assistant and associate professors have since included pandemic impact statements in their promotion and tenure dossiers, and these statements have helped external consultants and internal reviewers recognize the short- and long-term implications of the pandemic on working conditions, productivity, and career trajectory when making their evaluations.

We are now modifying the current “pandemic impact statement” to allow faculty the option of disclosing and discussing how any unforeseen and disruptive event (including the COVID pandemic, federal policy changes, etc.) has impacted their teaching, advising, mentoring, service, research, or scholarship or created other challenges, including reducing access to resources to support research and scholarship. The impact statements should reflect a faculty member’s individual circumstances and experiences and may include the following:

• Teaching: Changes in course load and course delivery; learning, use, and incorporation of new instructional technologies.
• Advising and mentoring: Changes in advising load; support provided to students experiencing challenges. 
• Service: Engagement in efforts to make changes to curriculum, advising, lab access, etc.; engagement in initiatives related to external events for the department, University, professional association, and other organizations. 
• Research and scholarship: Restrictions on access to research funding, sites, labs, facilities, studios, and other venues; restrictions on professional travel and field research; loss of access to research subjects; need to pause, restart, or pivot research; cancellation of seminars, presentations, and opportunities to collaborate; slowing of publication and grant funding processes; redirection of funding.
• Other challenges: Resource constraints (e.g., internet, work space); caregiving and homeschooling responsibilities; health issues* (for self or family); visa restrictions. (*Personal health information is confidential and disclosure is not required.)

Evaluation Criteria

Impact statements are intended to encourage reviewers to evaluate a faculty member’s contributions in the context of available resources and opportunities. To further encourage this contextualized approach, the University has modified the prompts external consultants are asked to consider in their evaluations for tenure and promotion of standing faculty, appointment and promotion of standing faculty-clinician educators to the ranks of associate professor-CE and professor-CE, and appointment and promotion of research faculty to the ranks of research associate professor and research professor.

The prompts in the letter to external consultants that must be used by July 1, 2025 now emphasize the “impact and trajectory” of the candidate’s contributions and the candidate’s most distinctive contributions to their disciplines. Previous prompts that encouraged reviewers to rank the candidate relative to other scholars have been removed.

We have also modified the guidelines for the selection of external consultants to allow for inclusion of a consultant from a non-academic institution or non-academic role who may speak to the impact of the candidate’s scholarship on policy and practice, including community-engaged scholarship. External consultant solicitation letter templates, and guidelines for selection of external consultants, are posted here.

As you continue forward, please take advantage of the resources Penn offers to support mental health and emotional well-being. The University is also providing ongoing updates on federal policy changes. Thank you for all that you are doing to advance our shared mission and support other members of our community.

—John L. Jackson, Jr., Provost
—Laura W. Perna, Vice Provost for Faculty

The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has announced a new undergraduate concentration and MBA major, Artificial Intelligence for Business. Designed to address the world’s growing demand for AI-related skills and expertise, the Artificial Intelligence for Business major and concentration will equip students with a technical understanding of how AI systems can be used to solve business problems while also tackling the ethical, economic, legal, and societal issues AI raises.

“It is no longer a question of if, but how artificial intelligence will fundamentally alter every aspect of business and society, and business schools have a crucial role to play in ensuring that AI adoption leads to positive outcomes,” said Erika James, dean of the Wharton School. “At Wharton, we are simultaneously focused on harnessing AI’s transformative potential while also understanding and addressing its risks. Artificial Intelligence for Business represents a bold step forward in our mission to prepare the next generation to responsibly lead in an AI-driven world.”

The Artificial Intelligence for Business curriculum will include courses on applied machine learning, data science, neuroscience, data engineering, and statistics, plus a required ethics course, Big Data, Big Responsibilities: Toward Accountable Artificial Intelligence. This course is led by Kevin Werbach, director of the newly established Accountable AI Lab, which is dedicated to advancing the responsible development and governance of AI technologies.

With support from the Wharton AI & Analytics Initiative, courses will be directly informed by Wharton faculty research, giving students access to academically rigorous and practically relevant knowledge in real time. The Wharton AI & Analytics Initiative will also provide resources for faculty to augment, adapt, and reimagine how they incorporate AI into classroom instruction and course materials.

The concentration and major will be jointly administered by two Wharton departments: statistics & data science and operations, information & decisions (OID). Prasanna (Sonny) Tambe, an associate professor of operations, information & decisions and co-director of AI at Wharton, and Giles Hooker, a professor of statistics and data science, will serve as faculty advisors.

Over its nearly 150 years as a pioneer in business education, the Wharton School has continuously evolved its curriculum to match student interest and meet the growing needs of the global business landscape. The new Artificial Intelligence for Business major underscores Wharton’s enduring commitment to innovation and excellence in preparing future business leaders to address the needs of tomorrow.

“We are at a critical turning point where practical AI knowledge is urgently needed,” said Eric Bradlow, vice dean of AI & analytics at Wharton. “Companies are struggling to recruit talent with the necessary AI skills, students are eager to deepen their understanding of the subject and gain hands-on experience, and our faculty’s expertise on the adoption and human impact of AI is unmatched. Wharton is uniquely positioned to lead as we collectively confront the myriad of challenges and opportunities AI poses.”

Eligible students may declare a major or concentration in Artificial Intelligence for Business beginning in fall 2025.

For more information about Wharton’s undergraduate concentrations, visit https://undergrad.wharton.upenn.edu/concentrations. Further details on Wharton’s MBA majors can be found at https://mba.wharton.upenn.edu/mba-majors.

Morris Arboretum & Gardens has announced a new Certificate in Ecological Horticulture, aimed at helping individuals gain proficiency in creating and maintaining landscapes that are grounded in ecological principles and practice. The program will be introduced at a virtual open house on May 8, 2025, at 7 p.m. Learn more at morrisarb.org/certificate.

Geared toward avid home gardeners and landscape professionals who are looking to develop a deeper understanding of sustainable landscape design and management, this classroom- and field-based program is a series of 12 courses that are open to the public. The program is self-paced and can be completed in one year of intensive learning or up to several years at a slower pace. The first four courses in the series will be offered in fall 2025.

The program approaches each garden as a complex living system, where plants, soil, water, animals, climate, human activity, and other elements interact with and influence each other. Using hands-on and classroom instruction, the program teaches design and stewardship strategies that address these relationships holistically rather than focusing on individual components in isolation. The program will focus on the Southeast Pennsylvania region.

Instructors in the certificate program include Morris staff members as well as other local professionals who are regionally and nationally acclaimed in ecological horticulture.

• The program includes 12 required courses (8–10 hours each) and two elective courses, with an anticipated 124 hours of learning in the classroom and in the field (about a 50/50 split).
• Students can progress through the curriculum at their own pace, completing all requirements over one year or up to three-plus years.
• Registration in the program involves a $45 initial fee to sign up as a certificate seeker. Each course is priced depending on hours of instruction, averaging $25 per hour. The anticipated total cost for completion of the entire course series is roughly $3,000.

Interested in learning more? Attend the virtual open house on May 8 at 7 p.m., with certificate program staff and instructors. Learn more at morrisarb.org/certificate.

Each year, U.S. News & World Report ranks graduate and professional schools in business, medicine, education, law, engineering and nursing.

Seven of Penn’s schools are in the top 20 list. Specialty rankings in the top 10 are listed below; for more, see U.S. News’ website: www.usnews.com.

(—) Indicates not ranked.

The University’s merit increase program is designed to recognize and reward the valuable contributions of faculty and staff for their demonstrated excellence in teaching, research, and administration by paying market-competitive salaries. At the same time, it is important to note that the proposed and anticipated reductions in federal funding support to higher education makes the implementation of a competitive compensation program both for FY26 and in the future challenging. Depending on the pronouncements and policies of the federal government, further adjustments to Penn’s compensation program may be necessary.

The impacts of the rapidly changing higher education landscape on our budgets reinforce the importance of implementing this FY26 program in the most fiscally responsible manner possible. Salary increases should be merit-based and reflect individual performance relative to supervisor expectations and peer contributions. The program is not established to ensure that every individual who is making valuable contributions receives a merit increase equal to the merit pool.

Presented below are the merit increase guidelines for July 1, 2025.

Faculty Increase Guidelines

Below are the standards for faculty increases that the deans are asked to follow. The Deans will give the department chairs their guidelines at the school level regarding available resources.

• The minimum academic salary for new assistant professors will be $91,581.
• Merit increases for faculty should be based solely on performance as evidenced by scholarship, research, teaching, and service to the University and the profession.
• The aggregated merit increase pool for faculty will be 3.0 percent. Some schools/centers may have financial constraints that can only support budget growth of less than 3.0 percent. Salary increase recommendations that are below 1.0 percent for non-meritorious performance, as contrasted with general limits applied to an entire class of faculty, must be made in consultation with the Provost. Likewise, salary increases that exceed 5.0 percent must also be made in consultation with the Provost. Deans may wish to give careful consideration to salary adjustments for faculty who have a strong performance record but whose salaries may have lagged behind the market.

Staff Increase Guidelines

• The aggregated merit increase pool for staff will be 3.0 percent. The merit increase range is zero to 5.0 percent. Individual merit increases may not exceed 5.0 percent regardless of a staff member’s performance rating.
• Aggregated merit increases within a school/center may not average more than 3.0 percent regardless of staff performance rating distributions; however, increases may average less if a school/center establishes a lower percentage merit pool based on financial constraints.
• Staff in monthly-paid, weekly-paid, or limited-service positions are eligible for a merit increase if their time type is full-time (including phased retirement) or part-time and they were employed with the University on or before February 28, 2025. The following groups are not eligible: student workers, contingent workers, temporary workers, interns, residents, postdoctoral trainees, staff on unpaid leave of absence, staff on long term disability, and staff who are covered by collective bargaining agreements.
• The merit increase program is designed to recognize and reward performance within the parameters of the merit increase budget. The foundation of this program is the performance review in Workday, which documents each staff member’s performance and contributions and establishes performance goals for the new fiscal year. Performance expectations should be raised each year as staff grow in experience and job proficiency.
• Merit increases should correlate to performance ratings. Supervisors should strive for differentiation, using the full rating scale to reinforce a culture of excellence and growth. Performance ratings and merit increases should reflect a normal bell-shaped distribution for all staff. If performance does not meet expectations, no increase should be awarded.
• All staff must receive a performance review for the next review cycle whether or not they receive merit increases. Schools/centers are requested to submit performance reviews in Workday by June 13, 2025. The Division of Human Resources Staff and Labor Relations is available to discuss performance management issues.
• The merit increase program does not include bonuses, the same as in prior years.

The Division of Human Resources Compensation is available to discuss specific merit increase parameters with schools/centers.

—John L. Jackson, Jr., Provost
—Craig Carnaroli, Senior Executive Vice President

Paul Shaman, an emeritus professor of statistics in the department of statistics and data science in the Wharton School, died on March 19. He was 85.

Born and raised in Portland, Oregon, Dr. Shaman graduated from Cleveland High School before moving east to attend Dartmouth College, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in 1961 and served as a sports broadcaster for football and basketball games. He earned master’s (1964) and doctorate (1966) degrees from Columbia University, then served as a postdoctoral fellow at Stanford University and joined the faculty of Carnegie Mellon University before arriving at Wharton in 1977 as an assistant professor of statistics. He became an associate professor in 1981 and a full professor in 1985, and chaired the department of statistics and data science from 1990 to 2002.

While serving as department chair, Dr. Shaman expanded the size of the faculty and the number of course offerings of the department to capitalize on increasing scientific interest in statistics and technological advances in data science. Under his leadership, the department went from “very solid” to “world class,” according to statistics and data science professor emeritus Abba Krieger. “This was a critical time for our department on many levels,” Dr. Krieger said. “Paul never seemed to worry, even though there were some courses that we were slated to teach but had nobody to cover them. Miraculously, it all worked out in the end.” He served on Penn’s University Council and on various campus-wide ad hoc committees and, after retiring from Penn in 2009, as secretary of the Penn Association of Senior and Emeritus Faculty.

Outside of his faculty duties, Dr. Shaman consulted for the U.S. Postal Service, the State of New Jersey, and various law firms throughout the Delaware Valley region, and served as program director for statistics and probability at the National Science Foundation from 1984-1985. He was heavily involved with the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, serving as managing editor of the IMS’s flagship journal Annals of Statistics and creating and maintaining the IMS Scientific Legacy Database. In 2004, he received the IMS Carver Medal.

He is survived by his wife, Susan; his sons, David and Jeffrey; his daughters-in-law, Sabine and Sila; and his grandchildren, Benjamin, Minal, Ethan and Dalya.

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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.

The Sachs Program for Arts Innovation has announced the recipients of its 2025 Student Grant Awards. This year’s applicant pool represents the largest to date, with a diverse array of proposals across disciplines and practices. Supported projects demonstrate a wide range of creative traditions, such as film, music, visual arts and design, poetry, and dance.

Andrew Burke (School of Arts & Sciences): The Most Human Human (working title)—an immersive, multimedia operetta loosely inspired by the book The Most Human Human by Brian Christian.

Alvin Luong (Weitzman School of Design): Before I Was Coral, I Was a Refugee—a multimedia project that foreshadows a future of climate migration through a deep investigation into Bidong Island in Malaysia.

Azsaneé Truss (Annenberg School for Communication): What World?—a curated group exhibition at the Arts League in West Philadelphia that reveals how artists (and society) are experiencing a surreal global political moment.

Celine Choi (College of Arts & Sciences): South Korean Feminist Poetics: Gender, Han, and the Violence of the Archive (Mundan)—an exploration of contemporary South Korean feminist poetics that resists patriarchal structures.

Darren Tindall (Weitzman School of Design): Psycheprocity: Designing for Psychedelics and Psychedelics for Design—a creative consideration of psychedelics and design through fieldwork, workshops, and case studies.

Ejun Mary Hong and Justin Nam Duong (College of Arts & Sciences): Footprints in the Sand—a mixed-media animated documentary that invites four lymphoma patients from South Korea to share their stories with the world.

Farrah Rahaman (Annenberg School for Communication): Palimpsest—a short speculative film recounting a moment on the brink of deportation in which visionary cultural organizer and writer Claudia Jones sets fire to her entire personal archive.

Katie Hindle (College of Arts & Sciences): Philadelphia Through Copper: Intaglio Depictions of Contemporary Histories—a print series that portrays Philadelphia social scenes as a form of archival contemporary history.

Lavanya Neti (Wharton School): Beneath the Surface: Amplifying the Voices of Divers—an immersive 360-degree mini-documentary highlighting the impacts of climate change on marine life and the livelihoods of the diving community.

Lucila Rozas Urrunaga (Annenberg School for Communication): Contra-Archivx—a transnational initiative that documents and shares the practices and narratives of transgender/feminist resistance across Latin America.

Max Johnson (School of Arts & Sciences): Web of Sound—a series of workshops, rehearsals, and experimental sessions to develop and refine a concert-length composition by composer and bassist Max Johnson.

Mira Kwon and Taj Swaminathan-Sipp (College of Arts & Sciences): Voices of Kakuma: A Collaborative Curation with FilmAid Kenya—a collaboration between Penn students and FilmAid Kenya—a nonprofit organization that teaches filmmaking in the Kakuma and Dadaab refugee camps of Kenya—to curate an exhibit and film screening that will present the stories of refugees on their terms.

Monolith (Student Group): Sade K. Taiwo and Abigail Florestal (College of Arts & Sciences): Monolith Annual Spring Exhibit—an annual exhibit that celebrates and uplifts Black visual art while connecting with people across the city of Philadelphia.

Penn Ballet (Student Group): Lisa Slattery (College of Arts & Sciences): Penn Ballet: Winter Showcase—a production of student-choreographed pieces and classical excerpts from The Nutcracker.

Sithabo Mathe (College of Arts & Sciences and Penn Engineering): Naive Photographs—a book project culled from a series of black and white photographs documenting the artist’s first return to Zimbabwe, which coincided with the 2023 presidential elections.

This fall, Annenberg School for Communication associate professor Sarah J. Jackson will begin a one-year fellowship at the Institute for Advanced Study (IAS), one of the world’s foremost centers for intellectual inquiry.

Each year, IAS welcomes more than 250 of the most promising postdoctoral researchers and distinguished scholars worldwide to conduct research in the fields of mathematics, natural sciences, social sciences, and historical studies.

Dr. Jackson studies the ways media, journalism, and technology represent and are used by marginalized publics. Her research focuses on how communication arising from Black, feminist, and activist spaces contributes to U.S. progress.

As member of the School of Social Science in IAS, she will pursue three interdisciplinary lines of inquiry at the intersection of digital theory and African American history and culture, aligning with the school’s 2025-2026 theme, “Digital (In)Equality.”

Her project will connect contemporary questions of virality to the spread of early Black media, such as slave narratives. She will also bring together literature on digital migration and geographic mass migrations of African Americans and also hopes to explore the connection between the debunking of racist pseudoscience in Black media and intellectual labor to reframe how we understand the fight against disinformation.

Among past and present IAS scholars, there have been 36 Nobel laureates, 46 Fields medalists, and 23 Abel Prize laureates, as well as MacArthur and Guggenheim fellows and winners of the Turing Award and the Wolf, Holberg, Kluge, and Pulitzer Prizes.

Three leading mid-career statisticians, including two Wharton School faculty members, have won the David Cox Medal for Statistics, which is being awarded for the first time in 2025 to commemorate the work of the late world-leading statistician and former Royal Statistical Society president, Sir David Cox.

The two Wharton School winners are Eric Tchetgen Tchetgen, for his work improving scientific understanding of causal inference, and Nancy Zhang, for her contributions to statistical genomics and its application in biomedical research. The third winner is Richard Samworth of the University of Cambridge, for his contributions to methodological and theoretical statistics.

Each recipient is a leader in their field; among Dr. Tchetgen Tchetgen’s contributions is the development of Proximal Causal Inference and instrumental variable methodology, while Dr. Zhang has advanced the analysis of high-dimensional biological data and contributed to scientific understanding of cancer genome evolution. Dr. Samworth has made numerous contributions to areas that have been of great focus for statisticians over the past decades, including shape-constrained modelling and change-point analysis.

This international prize was established to recognise researchers in the fields of statistical theory, methodology, and applications whose work is original, with conceptual depth and novelty, and which moves the field or a substantive application area forward.

It celebrates mid-career researchers, as Sir David Cox published his seminal paper on regression models in the RSS Series B Journal at the age of 48. The medal is awarded jointly by the Royal Statistical Society, the American Statistical Association, the Bernoulli Society, the International Biometric Society, the Institute of Mathematical Statistics, and the International Statistical Institute.

Peter McCullagh, chair of the Prize Committee, said: “Sir David Cox’s work led to great advancements in the field, so it feels fitting to celebrate those carrying on his great work in moving the profession and our understanding of statistics forward. Eric, Nancy and Richard are to be wholeheartedly congratulated for their contributions, which have reshaped our understanding across the discipline.”

Egyptian archaeologists working at Abydos in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, including archaeologists affiliated with the Penn Museum, have discovered the massive tomb of an unnamed pharaoh at the ancient necropolis of Anubis Mountain, shedding new light on a long-lost dynasty and a lesser-known period in Egyptian history.

Found nearly 23 feet underground in January 2025, the impressive 3,600-year-old limestone burial chamber featured a decorated entryway and a series of other rooms capped by 16-foot-high mudbrick vaults. This marks the second major discovery of an Egyptian king’s tomb announced in 2025.

One of Upper Egypt’s most ancient cities, Abydos is located about six miles from the Nile River. Believed to be the burial place of Osiris, god of the netherworld, as well as a gateway to the afterlife, the sacred city also served as a royal necropolis—the preferred resting place of the first pharaohs, holding great significance for early Ancient Egyptian power structures and political development.

Although the king once buried in this tomb has yet to be identified, he reigned during the Second Intermediate Period (1640-1540 BCE)—a time of economic and political instability that yielded important social and technological changes when Egypt was broken into rival, warring kingdoms. One of these was the Abydos Dynasty, a series of kings who ruled part of Upper Egypt, first confirmed in 2014 during excavations led by Josef Wegner, curator of the Penn Museum’s Egyptian section and a professor of Egyptian archaeology in Penn’s School of Arts & Sciences. He is also the chair of Penn’s department of middle eastern languages and cultures. In that year, his team uncovered the tomb of King Seneb-Kay, another Abydos Dynasty ruler.

Similarity in decoration and architecture between the tombs excavated in 2014 and 2025 has led Penn Museum archaeologists to conclude that the unknown ruler may have been one of King Seneb-Kay’s predecessors. Despite their comparable design, the newly unearthed tomb is much larger than that of Seneb-Kay or any other known ruler from the same dynasty buried there.

Hieroglyphic texts in yellow bands once recorded the king’s identity.

“The king’s name was originally recorded in painted scenes on plastered brickwork that decorated the entrance to the limestone burial chamber,” Dr. Wegner said. These paintings depict Isis (the ancient Egyptian goddess of motherhood and healing) and her sister Nephthys (often depicted next to Isis in funerary rites). “However, ancient tomb robbers damaged the hieroglyphic texts, and not enough survives to read the king’s name. There are several possible owners for the new tomb, including two kings named Senaiib and Paentjeni who dedicated monuments at Abydos but whose tombs remain unknown.”

According to Dr. Wegner, the tomb confirms there are additional early kings buried in, and around, the tomb enclosure of pharaoh Neferhotep I, a 13th Dynasty king who ruled a century before the Abydos Dynasty.

Excavations will continue through 2025 across this new focus area at Anubis Mountain, measuring roughly 10,000 square-meters (more than 100,000 square-feet) of desert terrain, using state-of-the-art technology such as remote sensing, magnetometry (magnetic mapping), and photogrammetry (three-dimensional modelling of the tombs).

“Ongoing excavations also include protection, site management, and conservation of these structures. That is a part of our commitment to the site in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities,” Dr. Wegner said. “Together, we have now opened King Seneb-Kay’s and King Senwosret III’s tombs as visitable monuments, and we’re in the process of opening other ones in the very same area where this new tomb was found. This discovery is a new window to understanding the origins of the enigmatic Abydos Dynasty.”

Dr. Wegner discussed his work at Abydos during a virtual lecture, Uncovering the Social and Political History of Ancient Egypt, on April 2, 2025.

With his curatorial colleagues in the Egyptian Section, Dr. Wegner is also co-curator of the highly anticipated Ancient Egypt and Nubia Galleries, the largest renovation in the Penn Museum’s 137-year-history. It is scheduled for completion in late 2026.

Adapted from a Penn Museum press release.

Every year, Penn Sustainability organizes Earth Week to provide opportunities for students, faculty, and staff to engage in cross-disciplinary events that educate and inspire action. This year’s theme is Our Power, Our Planet—to inspire us to use our influence and energy to foster sustainability, environmental stewardship, and positive change. Earth Week elevates our collective impact by encouraging involvement from all schools and centers at Penn. 

Interested in running an event during Earth Week? Students, faculty and staff across Penn are welcome to host an event. Those hosting are encouraged to use Earth Week logos and graphics in communications materials and to submit events to the Earth Week calendar.  Events your peers are organizing include:

• Monday, April 21 (and all week long): Earth Week Dinner, 5–8 p.m., Quaker Kitchen
• Tuesday, April 22: Upcycle Your Old T-Shirt Into a Reusable Grocery Bag, 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m., Levy Dental Medicine Library
• Wednesday, April 23: Sustainable Collections,12:30-2:30 p.m., Fisher Fine Arts Library Lobby
• Thursday, April 24: Penn Vet BioBlitz,1-4 p.m., Kaskey Park
• Friday, April 25: GreenFest, 1-4 p.m., Penn Commons

For more information, visit the Earth Week webpage.

Children’s Activities

16        April Storytime; reading of Listen to the Language of the Trees by Tera Kelley, a story of how forests communicate underground; 10:30 a.m.; outdoor classroom, Morris Arboretum & Gardens; free with arboretum admission (Morris Arboretum & Gardens).

Conferences

22        Postmodern Trans Studies; will feature five speakers, each discussing their work and recent trends in premodern transgender scholarship; 11 a.m.-1 p.m.; room 135, Fisher-Bennett Hall (English, Gender, Sexuality & Women’s Studies).

Fitness & Learning

15        Research Careers Outside Academia; hear from professionals with wide-ranging backgrounds, from behavioral science to chemical physics, on how they conduct research outside the university setting; 7 p.m.; Zoom webinar; register: https://curf.upenn.edu/events/research-careers-outside-academia (Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships).

17        Current and Emerging Issues in Technology, Intellectual Property, and Entertainment & Media Law; an in-depth review of the past year’s developments in law and technology, including recently decided cases, newly enacted and pending legislation, and other major changes to the legal landscape affecting innovation and related fields; 4:30 p.m.; room 214, Gittis Hall, or Zoom webinar; register: https://tinyurl.com/ctic-workshop-apr-17 (Center for Technology, Innovation, & Competition).  

21        Fellowships Information Session (Fulbright Specific); learn how you can position yourself as a strong candidate, and how CURF can help you through the application process; 4 p.m.; room G08/9, College Hall; register: https://curf.upenn.edu/events/fellowships-information-session-fulbright-specific (Center for Undergraduate Research & Fellowships).

22        Know Your Rights: Security Deposits as a Tenant; a discussion of security deposit law, protections for tenants, and what you can do to obtain your security deposit after you leave your apartment; noon; room 240A, Silverman Hall; register: https://tinyurl.com/law-workshop-apr-22 (Penn Carey Law).

Graduate School of Education

Info: https://www.gse.upenn.edu/news/events-calendar.

21        Urban Teaching Residency MSEd Virtual Information Session; 7 p.m.; online webinar.

            Urban Education (Online) MSEd Virtual Information Session; 7 p.m.; online webinar.

Penn Libraries

Various locations. Info and to register: https://www.library.upenn.edu/events.

15        Studio Use Training: Letterpress Printing; learn and practice the basics of letterpress printing and typesetting; 4-7 p.m.; Common Press, Fisher Fine Arts Library.

17        Intro to 3D Scanning; a workshop that will explore the fascinating technology of 3D scanning; 11 a.m.; seminar room level B, Fisher Fine Arts Library.

            Making Books for Class Projects; 5 p.m.; learn to create printed books for class projects using the saddle-stitch structure; 5 p.m.; seminar room level B, Fisher Fine Arts Library.

22        Earth Day: Upcycle Your Old T-Shirt into a Reusable Grocery Bag; 11:30 a.m.; room LL02A, Evans Building.

            Open Studio Session: Printing Graduation & Gratitude Cards; try out printing for yourself; noon-3 p.m.; Common Press, Fisher Fine Arts Library.

Music

18        Off the Beat Presents: Around the Corner; Penn's premier pop/rock a cappella group presents tunes by Maggie Rogers, Blondie, Hozier, Teddy Swims, Alicia Creti, and more; 6 p.m.; Iron Gate Theater; tickets: $11-$13 (Platt Performing Arts House).            Also April 19, 7 p.m.

            Penny Loafers Present: The Bready Bunch; join this eclectic family for a night full of sweet harmonies and feel-good nostalgia featuring hits by artists like Silk Sonic, Frank Ocean, Hozier, and more; 6 p.m.; Harold Prince Theater, Annenberg Center; tickets: $8-$12 (Platt Performing Arts House). Also April 19, 7 p.m.

            Upstage A Cappella Presents "Order Up!"; a lively, theatrical performance showcasing some musical favorites; 6 p.m.; Class of 1949 Auditorium, Houston Hall; tickets: $7-$10 (Platt Performing Arts House).  Also April 19, 8:30 p.m.

            Keynotes A Cappella Presents: Afterglow; a dynamic mix of R&B, pop, rock, and soul, with something for everyone to enjoy; 6:30 p.m.; lobby, Platt Performing Arts House; tickets: $10-$15 (Platt Performing Arts House). Also April 19, 7:30 p.m.

            Penn Sargam Presents "Shakti (Power)"; Penn's premier South Asian fusion music group perform pieces from diverse genres and cultures ranging from Indian classical and Bollywood to Western pop and rock; 7:30 p.m.; Harrison Auditorium, Penn Museum; tickets: $10-12 (Platt Performing Arts House). Also April 19, 6 p.m.

            The Inspiration Presents "Black Odyssey"; an a cappella journey celebrating the resilience and culture of the Black community through soulful melodies and rich harmonies; 8 p.m.; Rainey Auditorium, Penn Museum; tickets: $8-$10 (Platt Performing Arts House). Also April 19, 6 p.m.

            Penn Enchord Presents "Floating Lives"; an encore concert exploring love, parallel worlds, and the infinite possibilities of life through song; 8:30 p.m.; Class of 1949 Auditorium, Houston Hall; tickets: $8-$10 (Platt Performing Arts House). Also April 19, 5 p.m.

On Stage

17        Penn Players Presents "Marie Antoinette"; in David Adjmi’s contemporary take on the young queen of France, Marie is a confection created by a society that values extravagance and artifice; 8 p.m.; Harold Prince Theater, Annenberg Center; tickets: $5-$10 (Platt Performing Arts House).  Also April 18, 8 p.m.; April 19, 1 p.m.

18        Arts House Dance Company Presents "Dreams"; multimedia dance show in which the company combine videos and live dancing to create an exciting experience for the audience; 8:30 p.m.; Iron Gate Theater; tickets: $8-$10 (Platt Performing Arts House). Also April 19, 6 p.m.

Readings & Signings

Kelly Writers House

In-person events at Arts Café, Kelly Writers House. Info and to register: https://writing.upenn.edu/wh/calendar/0425.php.

17        Annual Kelly Writers House Marathon Reading: Pride and Prejudice; 10 a.m.-10 p.m.

Special Events

16        2025 Weitzman School of Design Olympics; teams of student, staff, and faculty from each dept are invited to compete in 3 design challenge events; 5:30 p.m.; upper gallery, Meyerson Hall; register: https://tinyurl.com/weitzman-olympics-apr-16 (Weitzman School of Design).

Talks

15        Taxation in Fragile States: A Case Study of Somalia; Gayatri Sahgal, Africana studies; noon; room 330A, Max Kade Center (Africana Studies).

            Spoil(s) of Repair; Summer Kim Lee, University of California, Los Angeles; 5:30 p.m.; room 135, Fisher-Bennett Hall; RSVP: svedjan@sas.upenn.edu (English).

16        Living the Hard Promise: Navigating Difficult Dialogues in the Classroom; Josephine Park, English; William Sturkey, history; noon; Café 58, Irvine Auditorium; register: https://tinyurl.com/park-sturkey-apr-16 (School of Arts & Sciences).

            Navigate Your Scientific Career with Intention and Resilience; Rachel Bernstein, American Association for the Advancement of Science; noon; Carolyn Hoff Lynch Lecture Hall, 1973 Chemistry Building (Chemistry).

            Translating Blackness; Lorgia García Peña, Princeton University; 5:30 p.m.; room 135, Fisher-Bennett Hall (English).

            Introducing the Power of Africanized Dance/Movement Therapy in Community; Gladys Ijeoma Akunna, teacher, author and artist; 6 p.m.; the Rotunda, 4014 Walnut Street; register: https://tinyurl.com/akunna-talk-apr-16 (Africana Studies). Also April 21.

17        Gender Transformation in 21st Century India; Sonalde Desai, University of Maryland; noon; suite 230, PCPSE (Center for the Advanced Study of India).

            AIDS and the Odyssey: A Pharmacological Reading; Tom Sapsford, Boston College; 4:45 p.m.; room 402, Cohen Hall (Classical Studies).

            Blackness and the Birth of Celebrity: Intersectionality and In/Visibility in the Age of the Haitian and French Revolutions; Christy Pichichero, George Mason University; 5:30 p.m.; room 543, Williams Hall (Francophone, Italian & Germanic Studies).

            The Future of AI: A Fireside Chat; Yann LeCun, Meta AI; 5:30 p.m.; auditorium, Amy Gutmann Hall; RSVP: https://tinyurl.com/lecun-talk-apr-17 (Penn Engineering).

21        Bangladesh: Human Rights, Democracy, and Post-Election Governance; Paulo Casaca, South Asia Democratic Forum; Tasmiah Nuhiya Ahmed, Bangladesh Supreme Court; Nasir Uddin, Harvard University; 10 a.m.; Perry World House, and online webinar; register: https://tinyurl.com/south-asia-talk-apr-21 (South Asia Center, Perry World House).

            Japan Reborn: Race, Sex, and Eugenics from Empire to Cold War; Kristin Anne Roebuck, Cornell University; 1:30 p.m.; room 623, Williams Hall; register: https://tinyurl.com/roebuck-talk-apr-21 (Center for East Asian Studies).

            The Neuroethology of Sociality and Its Role in Environmental Resilience; Camille Testard, Harvard Society of Fellows; 3:30 p.m.; auditorium, Levin Building (Psychology).

            Tirúa, una experiencia de salud intercultural en territorio Mapuche Lafkenche Sandra Ibarra Garnica, Tirua Intercultural Health Team; 3:30 p.m.; room 473, McNeil Building, and Zoom webinar; register: https://tinyurl.com/garnica-talk-apr-21 (Center for Latin American & Latinx Studies).

22        Climate-Proofing Plants for a Changing World; Alexandra (Lexa) Edsall, Morris Arboretum & Gardens; William Cullina, Morris Arboretum & Gardens; Doris Wagner, biology; noon; online webinar; register: https://tinyurl.com/inspiring-impact-talk-apr-22 (Inspiring Impact).

            Countering Misinformation Early: Evidence from a Classroom-Based Field Experiment in India; Sumitra Badrinathan, American University; noon; Blank Forum, PCPSE (Center for the Advanced Study of India).

            AI at Penn Today; gain insights from Penn's Principal Technology Advisor, John Mulhern III, a leading expert in the field of AI; noon; room 132, PennVet Hill Pavilion and Zoom; register: https://bit.ly/4i6qiM0 (PPSA).

            Latin American Economic Cooperation in a Changing Global Order: Challenges and Opportunities; Laura Gómez-Mera, University of Miami; 1:45 p.m.; room 261, Stiteler Hall (Center for Latin American & Latinx Studies).

            Workshop on the Love in Lyric, Romance and Mystical Texts; Sally Poor, Princeton University; 2 p.m.; room 440, Williams Hall (Francophone, Italian & Germanic Studies).

            Troubling Women’s Agency in Medieval German Literature and Beyond; Sally Poor, Princeton University; 5:15 p.m.; room 623, Williams Hall (Francophone, Italian & Germanic Studies).

            Greetings From Earth; panel of three faculty-student research teams; 6:30 p.m.; Kleinman Energy Forum, Fisher Fine Arts Library (McHarg Center).

Center for the Study of Contemporary China

In-person events at room 418, PCPSE. Info: https://cscc.sas.upenn.edu/events.

18        The Russian Invasion of Ukraine and the Sino-Russian Partnership; Elizabeth Wishnick, Columbia University; 12:15 p.m.

Economics

In-person events. Info: https://economics.sas.upenn.edu/events.

16        Bailouts, Regulation and Banks' Risk-Taking; Luigi Falasconi, economics; noon; room 100, PCPSE.

Penn Libraries

Unless noted, in-person events at Class of 1978 Orrery Pavilion, Van Pelt Library. Info and to register: https://www.library.upenn.edu/events.

17        100 Human Heads: Physiognomy, Astrological Medicine, and Censorship in Seventeenth-Century Italy; Eleanore Webb, history; 3 p.m.; Henry Charles Lea Library, Van Pelt Library.

            The Role of Higher Education in Cultivating Lifelong Learners; Daniel Porterfield, Aspen Institute; 3:30 p.m.

Mathematics

Info: https://www.math.upenn.edu/events.

15        Manifolds with Ricci Lower Bounds in the Spectral Sense; Kai Xu, Duke University; 3:30 p.m.; room 3C4, DRL.

18        K-rings of Wonderful Varieties and Matroids; Shiyue Li, Institute of Advanced Study; 3:30 p.m.; room 4N30, DRL.

21        What Do Analytic Interpolation and the Regularity Theory of Elliptic/Parabolic PDEs Have in Common? Jill Pipher, Brown University; 3:30 p.m.; room A4, DRL.

22        Introduction to Solvability of Elliptic/Parabolic PDEs For Students; Jill Pipher, Brown University; 11 a.m.; room 4N30, DRL.

Mechanical Engineering & Applied Mechanics

In-person events at Wu & Chen Auditorium, Levine Hall. Info: https://events.seas.upenn.edu/calendar/tag/meam/list/.

22        Biomedical Innovations for Global Health Research and Technology (BIGHEART): NOAS, EXODUS, iTEARS, and BOAS; Luke Pyung-Se Lee, Harvard University; 10:15 a.m.

Physics & Astronomy

Info: https://www.physics.upenn.edu/events/.

15        Light Probes and Structural Color in Dense Complex Media: Lost Between Single and Multiple Scattering; Frank Scheffold, University of Fribourg, Switzerland; 2 p.m. room 2N3, DRL.

16        High-Redshift Star Formation Under the Cosmic Microscope with SPT+ALMA+JWST; Joaquin Vieira, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; 3:30 p.m.; room 4E19, DRL.

            Geometry for Many Body Systems: Geometrical Sum Rules and Lattice Models; Jie Wang, Temple University; 3:30 p.m.; room A8, DRL.

This is an update to the April AT PENN calendar, which is online now. To submit events for the monthly AT PENN calendar or weekly calendar updates, email almanac@upenn.edu.

Division of Public Safety

University of Pennsylvania Police Department Crime Report

About the Crime Report: Below are the Crimes Against Persons and/or Crimes Against Property from the campus report for March 31-April 6, 2025. The Crime Reports are available at: https://almanac.upenn.edu/sections/crimes. Prior weeks’ reports are also online. –Eds.

This summary is prepared by the Division of Public Safety (DPS) and contains all criminal incidents reported and made known to the Penn Police, including those reported to the Philadelphia Police Department (PPD) that occurred within our patrol zone, for the dates of March 31-April 6, 2025. The Penn Police actively patrol from Market Street to Baltimore Avenue and from 30^th Street to 43^rd Street 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 DPS at (215) 898-7297. You may view the daily crime log on the DPS website.

Penn Police Patrol Zone
Market Street to Baltimore Avenue and from 30^th Street to 43^rd Street

Philadelphia Police 18th District
Schuylkill River to 49th Street & Market Street to Woodland Avenue

Below are the Crimes Against Persons from the 18th District: 6 incidents were reported for March 31-April 6, 2025 by the 18^th District, covering the Schuylkill River to 49th Street & Market Street to Woodland Avenue.

The Division of Public Safety offers resources and support to the Penn community. DPS developed a few helpful risk reduction strategies outlined below. Know that it is never the fault of the person impacted (victim/survivor) by crime.

• See something concerning? Connect with Penn Public Safety 24/7 at (215) -573-3333.
• Worried about a friend’s or colleague’s mental or physical health? Get 24/7 connection to appropriate resources at (215) 898-HELP (4357).
• Seeking support after experiencing a crime? Call Special Services - Support and Advocacy resources at (215) 898-4481 or email an advocate at specialservices@publicsafety.upenn.edu
• Use the Walking Escort and Riding services available to you free of charge.
• Take a moment to update your cellphone information for the UPennAlert Emergency Notification System
• Download the Penn Guardian App which can help Police better find your location when you call in an emergency.
• Access free self-empowerment and defense courses through Penn DPS.
• Stay alert and reduce distractions; using cellphones, ear buds, etc. may limit your awareness.
• Orient yourself to your surroundings. (Identify your location, nearby exits, etc.)
• Keep your valuables out of sight and only carry necessary documents.

Creating Canopy is Penn’s annual tree giveaway program for University and health system employees. The event is a partnership between Penn, Tree Philly, and Morris Arboretum & Gardens.

Penn supports adding greenery to urban areas, especially in the greater Philadelphia region, by providing free trees to staff and faculty of the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Pennsylvania Hospital System. Since the first Creating Canopy event in 2011, Penn has distributed over 2,500 trees.

Creating Canopy happens each spring. Staff and faculty of the University of Pennsylvania and the University of Pennsylvania Health System are invited to register for a free tree two weeks before the giveaway event. To register, visit https://sustainability.upenn.edu/get-involved/opportunities/creating-canopy-tree-giveaway.

Trees will be available to reserve on a first-come, first-served basis and only through online registration. As part of Penn Sustainability’s support of the City of Philadelphia’s Philly Tree Plan, priority registration will be given to Philadelphia residents.

Priority registration will begin on Monday, April 21, 2025, at 10 a.m. for Penn and UPHS staff and faculty who are City of Philadelphia residents. Open registration will begin on Thursday, May 1, 2025, at 10 a.m. for all Penn and UPHS staff and faculty. There is a limit of one tree per household. Addresses, zip codes, and registration times will be verified.

When you register, you will select a time to pick up your tree. In order to keep traffic moving, please arrive during your chosen time slot. The tree pickup event will be on Thursday, May 8, 2025, from 3-6 p.m. at the Penn Park Parking Lot (3100 Lower Walnut Street, Philadelphia, PA 19104).

The responsibility is yours to get your new tree home; bring your car or arrange a ride. Some past tree recipients have made creative use of wagons or hand trucks to transport their trees.

The young trees that you pick up will vary in size. Some trees are two feet tall, while others are nine feet. You’ll want to be sure your tree will fit in your vehicle. You may wish to bring a plastic tarp or blanket to protect your car from moisture and soil.

Both Penn undergraduates and non-affiliates (including undergraduate students, high school students, postgraduate students, and trainees who are not affiliated with Penn) must take laboratory safety training before working in a University of Pennsylvania research laboratory. Please see the University policy for details: Penn Policy for Non-Affiliates Participating in Research in Penn Research Facilities.

Penn undergraduate students must take laboratory safety training based on their laboratory and campus location. Guidance on assigning training is found here: https://ehrs.upenn.edu/training/ehrs-workday-learning-selection-guide.

Non-affiliated students who plan to work in a Penn laboratory are required to take the courses Introduction to Laboratory and Biological Safety at Penn for Non-Affiliates. Students must register for either in-person EHRS non-affiliate laboratory orientation, available at the EHRS office, or online non-affiliate laboratory orientation (not both). Details can be found here. High school students must also provide a consent form found here to the lab or program.  

Note: If a student will continue to work in a Penn laboratory after the summer or their program ends, the student will need to take the normal Penn laboratory safety training curriculum, including Management of Hazardous Waste.

If you are a program manager, or have a large group of non-affiliates, and you want an in-person EHRS orientation, please reach out through prov-ehrs-training@pobox.upenn.edu (formerly traininghelp@lists.upenn.edu) to request this orientation. You do not need to register each individual.

—Office of Environmental Health and Radiation Safety

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

In celebration of Take Our Children to Work Day and Benjamin Franklin’s innovative spirit, the Office of Information Security invites you and your children aged 4-15 to Kite Day on April 24, 2025, at Houston Hall Penn Commons, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. 

The event raises awareness about key information security concepts while you enjoy kite flying and coloring with your children, colleagues, and family.

During the event, and while coloring their kites, you can talk to your child about:

• Setting a strong PIN when accessing a mobile device and not sharing it with anyone. Their information is a treasure that must be kept in a locked vault and kept hidden from those looking to steal their information. 
• Directing all calls claiming to come from a bank, school, or government office to you without sharing any information. Your child can hang up or not answer the phone if they do not recognize the number. 
• Consulting with you before opening a social media account. Although most social media accounts allow children 13 years and older to join, children may register while providing parents with information. Teach your children to set their social media accounts to accept only people they know.
• Avoiding posting pictures while on vacation or away from home. It could reveal that the family is out of town. 
• Downloading apps only from a trusted App Store. Some apps carry viruses. Your child may learn about the benefits of the apps with you or from a teacher before downloading it. 
• Be cautious playing with people they do not know in multiplayer games. Malicious individuals often pretend to be children or teenagers to gain trust, luring them to share information or meet secretly. 

For information security awareness topics, visit https://www.isc.upenn.edu/security/aware.  

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For additional tips, see the One Step Ahead link on the Information Security website: https://isc.upenn.edu/security/news-alerts%23One-Step-Ahead.

In early March, Penn Transit acquired two new zero-emission vans, expanding its fleet of shuttles that run solely on electric-charged batteries to eight. Nearly a quarter of all Penn Transit buses and shuttles are now electric vehicles. The department proactively reduces carbon emissions on campus by powering the rest of its fleet with renewable bio-diesel fuel. Click here for further details.

As of April 1, full-time, benefits-eligible employees can purchase an Indego365 Bike Share membership at a 20% discount. With six Indego bike stations on Penn’s campus, participants have easy access to a sustainable mode of transportation without the expense and upkeep bike ownership entails. Click here for details about this special offer.