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Welcome Back from the President: A Dream Team

caption: Amy GutmannAt the close of another busy summer of campus construction and beautification, I want to offer a special call out and big thank you to everyone who works to keep our Penn projects on time, on track and on budget. Guided by Penn Connects and Penn Connects 2.0, they have helped Penn add a total of five million square feet of new and renovated space to our University campus. That’s just under two Empire State Buildings’ worth in only a decade!

I especially want to thank Penn’s dream team of distinguished faculty and clinicians and our dedicated staff. Your teaching, research, clinical care, and institutional support and leadership are what bring our campus to life and bring purpose to all these new and improved spaces—a number of which we’ve completed just in time for the start of the fall semester. 

To celebrate, I encourage you to save the date for two important campus-wide events this fall. On September 19th and 20th, we officially celebrate the opening of Penn’s new Perry World House, opposite 1920 Commons on Locust Walk. Featuring panel discussions with renowned experts and keynote lectures by distinguished global leaders, the festivities will also include tours of the new building and a grand ribbon-cutting ceremony on Locust Walk. You can learn more by visiting the Perry World House grand opening webpage, https://global.upenn.edu/pwh/opening

Among the exciting programs at Perry World House is the Global Innovation Institute, which recently welcomed its inaugural postdoctoral fellows and first visiting scholars. The Global Innovation Institute forms the research core at Perry World House, and the inaugural postdocs and visiting scholars will contribute to the intellectual life of the University through their own research as well as by maintaining an active presence at the House. The Global Innovation Institute is one of several new initiatives that are key to Perry World House’s mission of convening, connecting and catalyzing global engagement and interdisciplinary international policy research at Penn and beyond.

We celebrate another exciting Penn beginning with the dedication of the Pennovation Center on October 28th. The new home of Penn-fostered entrepreneurial ingenuity, the Center will showcase resident innovators, free food and entertainment, robotics demonstrations, tours and much more. Our festivities culminate in an insightful discussion with Wharton alums Neil Blumenthal and David Gilboa, co-founders of the smash business success, Warby Parker. You can learn more and watch a sneak peek video at the Pennovation Center dedication webpage, https://www.pennovation.upenn.edu/calendar/pennovation-center-dedication

Innovative thinking abounds west of the Schuylkill as well with the recent launch of the new Vagelos Institute for Energy Science and Technology in the School of Arts & Sciences. Thanks to the vision and wonderful generosity of Roy and Diana Vagelos, this new Institute will galvanize the research efforts of our stellar faculty in SAS, the School of Engineering & Applied Science and across the University to explore alternative energy sources, new technologies for energy use and storage and sustainability. In close proximity to other important centers working on energy, including Penn’s Kleinman Center for Energy Policy, the Vagelos Institute for Energy Science & Technology is a perfect complement to the important work Penn undertakes to address one of the world’s great challenges—that of alternative energy sources.

In addition to new global and innovation hubs, Penn this summer has completed the next great chapter in the college house experience. As students return to campus for the fall semester, some will be the very first to live in the stunning New College House at 34th and Chestnut Streets. The very first new Penn construction that’s designed from stem to stern to augment our transformative college house experience, I encourage everyone to stroll by this freshly completed and fabulous center for living and learning and see it in person. You will also see that a complete renovation of historic Hill House is well underway, updating and beautifying this iconic fixture of Penn student life.

Penn is home to the finest team working anywhere in higher education today. I am proud and grateful to have such extraordinary colleagues and friends. Together, through path-breaking academic initiatives, dynamic campus facilities and stunning new spaces for living and learning, we will continue to advance and beautify this wonderful university we love. Welcome to another year of high-flying academic pursuits and world-class achievement at Penn.  

Beth Simmons: Penn Integrates Knowledge Professor

Beth Simmons

President Amy Gutmann and Provost Vincent Price announced the appointment of Beth Simmons as the University of Pennsylvania’s eighteenth Penn Integrates Knowledge (PIK) University Professor, effective July 1, 2016.   

A world-renowned authority on international relations and human rights, Dr. Simmons is the Andrea Mitchell University Professor, with joint faculty appointments in the Law School and the department of political science in the School of Arts & Sciences. 

“Beth Simmons’ award-winning scholarship spans international politics, law and human rights,” said President  Gutmann.  “She not only ranks at the top of her field as a scholar, she also is a universally admired teacher and mentor whose students have themselves gone on to illustrious careers. Her recruitment to Penn was clinched by a consummately collaborative, interdisciplinary team that spans multiple disciplines. Coupled with the opening of a stunning global hub on Penn’s central campus, Perry World House, her arrival as the Andrea Mitchell University Professor in law and political science catapults Penn forward in its capacity to tackle the most challenging issues in global affairs.

I speak on behalf of the deans and the entire university in thanking Andrea Mitchell for her visionary and far-reaching support. This is the latest example of how the Penn Integrates Knowledge (PIK) University Professorship program—with a stellar cohort of preeminent professors that span Penn’s schools—is fueling the most innovative interdisciplinary and collaborative scholarship and teaching in the world. My thanks to all the generous donors who have endowed PIK University professorships.”

Dr. Simmons comes to Penn from Harvard University, where she was Clarence Dillon Professor of International Affairs and served from 2006-2013 as director of the Weatherhead Center for International Affairs. A member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, she is the former President of the International Studies Association and the author of two landmark books: Mobilizing for Human Rights: International Law in Domestic Politics (Cambridge University Press, 2009) and Who Adjusts? Domestic Sources of Foreign Economic Policy During the Interwar Years, 1924-1939 (Princeton University Press, 1994). Both books won the Woodrow Wilson Award of the American Political Science Association as the best book of the year published in the United States on government, politics or international affairs, as well as additional major awards from the International Studies Association, the International Social Science Council and the American Society for International Law.

A co-editor of seven books and the author of dozens of influential articles and book chapters, Dr. Simmons worked at the International Monetary Fund from 1995-1996 and previously taught at the University of California-Berkeley and Duke University. She earned a PhD and MA in government from Harvard University, an MA in international relations from the University of Chicago and a BA summa cum laude in political science and philosophy from the University of Redlands.

“It is tremendously exciting to welcome to Penn one of the world’s leading scholars of global affairs and human rights,” said Provost Price. “Beth Simmons brings to us deep scholarly expertise and global engagement across multiple disciplines.  She is certain to be an extraordinary catalyst for the Perry World House, for Penn’s engagement around the world, and for our vibrant intellectual life here on campus.”

The PIK program was launched by President Gutmann in 2005 as a University-wide initiative to recruit exceptional faculty members whose research and teaching exemplify the integration of knowledge across disciplines and who are appointed in at least two Schools at Penn.

The Orphan Disease Center Funding Opportunities

The Orphan Disease Center (ODC) of the Perelman School of Medicine is requesting applications from Penn and CHOP faculty for seed funding of $100,000 per award to evaluate the feasibility of establishing new Programs of Excellence (POEs) for rare disease research.

The goal of this Request for Application (RFA) is to provide faculty with resources that can be used in whatever way is most useful to further develop a new POE concept including but not limited to: hosting a symposium, hiring consultants, conducting pilot research studies, progressing existing research to a value inflection point to enhance potential biopharma collaboration, creation of critical research tools, etc. It is hoped that work done under the auspices of these pilot programs will better inform ODC leadership about the creation of new POEs.

Interested faculty should submit a Letter of Intent (LOI) to scharle@mail.med.upenn.edu by Wednesday, September 7, 2016. To learn more about this process and the LOI, visit http://www.med.upenn.edu/orphandisease/assets/user-content/documents/ODC%20POE%20RFA.pdf for details.

The Orphan Disease Center (ODC) also invites applicants to participate in the 2016 Million Dollar Bike Ride Pilot Grant Program. The program is now open and offering 28 different research grant opportunities focusing on 20 different rare diseases.  This program provides a one-year grant to support research related to a rare disease represented in the 2016 Million Dollar Bike Ride. Number of awards and dollar amounts vary per disease based on fundraising totals by each disease team. This RFA is open to the international community. All individuals holding a faculty-level appointment at an academic institution or a senior scientific position at a non-profit institution or foundation are eligible to respond to this RFA.

For details about this grant program, rare disease focus areas and how to apply, please visit the ODC website at http://www.med.upenn.edu/orphandisease/rare-disease-overview.html

Letters of Intent (LOIs) are due no later than Friday, September 16, 2016 by 8 p.m.

Please contact Samantha Charleston at scharle@mail.med.upenn.edu or (215) 573-6822 with any questions.

Christopher Gruits: to Lead the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts

Christopher GruitsProvost Vincent Price and Vice Provost Anita Allen are pleased to announce the appointment of Christopher Gruits as executive and artistic director of the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts, effective September 26, 2016. 

Mr. Gruits is the vice president and executive producer of Presentations, the programming and broadcasting division of the Interlochen Center for the Arts, the world-renowned arts school and cultural center in Michigan. In this position, he produces more than 600 events each year with students, faculty and visiting artists, closely coordinating between public programs and the school’s curriculum, as well as live presentations and webcasts, music broadcasting on Interlochen Public Radio, and the Interlochen Arts Festival, one of the largest and most comprehensive summer arts festivals in the country. He has grown ticketing revenue to the highest level in the institution’s history, while introducing new thematic, multidisciplinary and community programs.

Before going to Interlochen in 2013, Mr. Gruits was the director of e-Strategy at Carnegie Hall in New York City, developing and implementing a highly successful strategic plan for Carnegie Hall’s virtual presence, including broadcasts, ecommerce, social media, original web content and Carnegie Hall’s first mobile app. He served for four years as an artistic projects manager at Carnegie Hall, overseeing a wide range of artists and performances as well as artistic operations for the opening of the Zankel Hall performance space, and earlier as director of dilettante music, the pioneering social media network for classical music, and in positions at the Seattle Symphony and the Brooklyn Underground Film Festival.

“Chris Gruits will be an exciting new leader for the Annenberg Center—and for the entire arts community at Penn and in Philadelphia,” said Provost Price.  “He is an ideal choice to build on the legacy of Mike Rose, and we are fortunate to attract him to Penn at this pivotal moment for arts and culture on campus.  I am grateful to the consultative committee, chaired by Vice Provost Anita Allen, whose invaluable work reviewing and interviewing many highly qualified candidates helped us arrive at this outstanding result.” 

Mr. Gruits earned an MBA with distinction (2008) from the University of Edinburgh, focusing on digital strategies for the classical music industry, and a BA (1999) in interdisciplinary humanities and arts management from Michigan State University.

“Chris Gruits is deeply knowledgeable about arts programming and arts education,” said Vice Provost Allen. “The committee was especially impressed by his experience collaborating across disciplines and genres, connecting the arts to social and online media and working closely with his surrounding community. I am confident that, in the years ahead, he will be a wonderful partner across and beyond the Penn campus.”  

Four NCI Cancer Centers: Landmark Research Consortium and Collaborations with Celgene

The Abramson Cancer Center at the University of Pennsylvania, The Herbert Irving Comprehensive Cancer Center at Columbia University Medical Center, the Sidney Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center at Johns Hopkins and The Tisch Cancer Institute at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai announced the establishment of a research consortium focused on accelerating the discovery and development of novel cancer therapeutics and diagnostics for the benefit of patients.

The consortium aligns four major academic institutions in a unified partnership with the shared goal of creating high-impact research programs to discover new treatments for cancer. The magnitude of the multi-institutional consortium and agreements between Celgene Corporation (NASDAQ: CELG) and each institution will support the rapid delivery of disease-altering programs to the clinic that may ultimately benefit cancer patients, global healthcare systems and society.

Subsequent to establishing the consortium, Celgene entered into four public-private collaboration agreements in which it paid a total of $50 million, $12.5 million to each institution, for the option to enter into future agreements to develop and commercialize novel cancer therapeutics arising from the consortium’s efforts. Over the next ten years the institutions intend to present multiple high-impact research programs to Celgene with the goal of developing new life-saving therapeutics. Subject to Celgene’s decision to opt-in and license the resulting technologies, each program has the potential to be valued at hundreds of millions of dollars.

The four cancer center directors, Steven Burakoff of the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, Stephen G. Emerson of Columbia University, William Nelson of Johns Hopkins University and Chi Van Dang of the University of Pennsylvania, said in a shared statement, “The active and coordinated engagement, creative thinking and unique perspectives and expertise of each institution have made this collaboration a reality. Our shared vision and unified approach to biomedical research, discovery and development, combined with Celgene’s vast research, development and global commercial expertise, will enable us to accelerate the development and delivery of next-generation cancer therapies to patients worldwide.”

In addition to the benefits of long-standing professional relationships among the four cancer center directors, the depth and breadth of the institutions’ combined research and clinical infrastructures provide an exceptional foundation upon which to build this transformative collaboration. The four institutions collectively care for more than 30,000 new cancer patients each year, and have nearly 800 faculty members who are active in basic and clinical research and clinical care. “This is a paradigm-shifting collaboration that further strengthens our innovative ecosystem,” said Bob Hugin, executive chairman of Celgene Corporation. “We remain firmly committed to driving critical advances in cancer and believe the tremendous expertise of our collaboration partner institutions will be invaluable in identifying new therapies for cancer patients.”

The four consortium members are among the 69 institutions designated as Cancer Centers by the National Cancer Institute (NCI). These 69 institutions serve as the backbone of NCI’s research in the war against cancer. The Cancer Trust, a non-profit organization, brought together the four institutions, thereby establishing the multi-institutional research consortium. T.R. Winston & Company, LLC served as the strategic advisor to The Cancer Trust and facilitated negotiations among The Cancer Trust, the institutions and Celgene. The commercialization offices of the four institutions, Columbia Technology Ventures, Johns Hopkins Technology Ventures, Mount Sinai Innovation Partners and the Penn Center for Innovation, subsequently collaborated with Celgene to accelerate this effort to discover and develop new therapies for the treatment of cancer.

“We are extremely proud of what we’ve collectively accomplished through establishing this collaboration and aligning all participants,” said Erik Lium, senior vice president of Mount Sinai Innovation Partners. “We look forward to continuing to work closely with one another, our colleagues in research and clinical care, and now with Celgene to advance the discovery of new therapies that will dramatically improve the lives of patients worldwide.”

Mind Your Brain Conference: Call for Presentations by September 9

On March 24, 2017, during Brain Injury Awareness Month, Penn Medicine will be hosting the Mind Your Brain. For the third annual Mind Your Brain Conference, we are seeking participants to provide presentations for our “breakout sessions” that will enhance, through education, advocacy, support, and research, the quality of life for those affected by brain injury, including patients, survivors, families and caregivers. You can help make a contribution and impact your local community by sharing your knowledge/information. We hope you’ll consider being a part of this important day.

This conference is provided to the community as a complementary education conference for survivors and caregivers. Help make a difference in some of the 1.7 million people who sustain a traumatic brain injury (TBI) annually (CDC).

All affected by brain injury should, and can, have immediate and equal access to services and support to help lead full and meaningful lives. This program will focus on sharing research, insights, and therapies designed to address the personal and medical issues of those impacted by brain injury.

Please review the call for presentations, which are due by noon on September 9.

We are seeking participants to run breakout sessions (45 minutes in length) geared towards survivors of TBI (which could be focused on concussion or more severe TBI), or for TBI family members and caregivers.

Please include the following information:

  • Speaker credentials and/or background 
  • 3-4 objectives for the session 
  • Target audience 
  • Abstract describing overall session (limit to 300 words)
  • Multi-­media needs and/or room requirements 
  • Disclosure of any potential conflict of interest 
  • Reference list as appropriate 

Examples of past sessions: Yoga Recharge, Concussion Treatment Options, Strategize to Maximize, Fitness after TBI, Surviving and Thriving after Brain Injury, Evaluation and Treating Veterans with Traumatic Brain Injury, Caring and Resilience Explored: Caregivers of Survivors of Brain Injury.
Send applications by email to LizLewis@mail.med.penn.edu

The Conference Committee consists of interdisciplinary professionals, clinical experts, researchers and brain injury survivors, who will review the proposals for submission. You will receive a response by October 1.


For more information about the  Mind Your Brain Conference: http://www.med.upenn.edu/cbir/Mind-Your-Brain-Conference.html

—Penn’s Center for Brain Injury and Repair

Revision to Eligibility Service-Counting Rules for Penn’s Retirement Benefits

The University is revising it service-counting rules for the Health and Welfare Plan for Retirees and Disabled Employees. These rules determine when employees become eligible to receive medical and other retiree benefits under the “Rule of 75.” This change will provide more flexibility for employees who may wish to switch to a part-time schedule to support their work and life goals.

What’s Changing

Effective as of January 1, 2017, the service-counting rules in the University of Pennsylvania Health and Welfare Plan for Retirees and Disabled Employees Plan that determine eligibility for retirement benefits (including, but not limited to, medical, dental, life insurance and tuition benefits) are being amended to eliminate the requirement that service be both full-time and continuous to count toward plan eligibility. After the changes take effect, all of an employee’s full-time service will count toward eligibility requirements even if an employee has an intervening period of part-time service. Periods of full-time University service separated by a period of part-time service will be bridged to determine eligibility.

What is not changing is that all service must be continuous in order for the full-time service to be counted.

Background on the “Rule of 75”

Employees are eligible to receive retirement benefits if they satisfy the “Rule of 75” eligibility requirements. The Rule of 75 is met when an individual is at least 55 years old, has at least 10 years of service, and the sum of that individual’s age and service equals 75. For example, an employee who is age 62 and has 15 years of service satisfies the Rule of 75 eligibility requirements, but a person age 52 with 25 years of service does not meet the rule because an individual must be at least 55 to qualify. Visit https://www.hr.upenn.edu/myhr/benefits/retiree/eligibility for details.

What Will Count Toward Eligibility

Under the new rules, effective January 1, 2017, an employee’s full-time service—both before and after a period of part-time service—will count under the Health and Welfare Plan for Retirees and Disabled Employee Plan. However, while a period of part-time service will no longer cause an employee to lose an earlier period of continuous full-time service, the part-time service itself will not count toward the Plan’s service requirements.

Also, the Plan’s service-counting rules continue to state that if there is an outright break in service in which a person is no longer a full- or part-time Penn employee, the service before the break will not be counted under the Plan. For example, if an employee leaves Penn to take a job with another organization and then later is rehired by the University, or if a full-time employee changes to temporary service, then returns to full-time employment, then the service before the break will not be counted.

More information about this change and the Health and Welfare Plan for Retirees and Disabled Employee Plan’s retirement service-counting rules can be found in the summary plan description (SPD), which can be accessed at https://www.hr.upenn.edu/myhr/benefits/spd

To request a written copy of the Plan’s SPD, contact the Division of Human Resources at (215) 898-6884.

Pay Timing in November and December

Dear Penn Faculty and Staff Members:

Prior to the electronic payment of compensation, pay was predominantly made by check and the checks were then manually distributed across campus. To ensure timely check distributions before Thanksgiving and the Special Winter Vacation, a special process was developed to issue checks earlier than the normal schedule. A recent review of this special process indicated that it often required substantial subsequent adjustments because the pay was estimated. This often created confusion for employees.

In our current process, the use of direct deposit and pay cards in lieu of checks has eliminated the risk of untimely payment distribution.
Moving forward, the University will follow the normal payment schedule in the weeks before Thanksgiving and the Special Winter Vacation.

Timing and Awareness

While the actual dates are a minimal change, we understand that any adjustment to the timing of your pay may impact you and your household. Penn is communicating this change now so you can plan in advance. For weekly paid staff, the Thanksgiving week and the fourth pay in December both move from Wednesday to Friday. For monthly paid faculty and staff, the pay moves from December 21 to December 30.

Additional Benefits of a Normal Compensation Payment Schedule

You will now receive regular, steady payments based on your actual work, week-to-week or month-to-month, regardless of the season. This payment schedule eliminates the two- or six-week gap in paycheck payments.

Late Fall and Winter Compensation Payment Schedule

 

Weekly Paid Staff

Monthly Paid Faculty and Staff

November

Thanksgiving week payment date: Friday, November 25, 2016, the day after Thanksgiving

Payment date: November 30, 2016 
The schedule change does not affect payments for this month.

December

Weekly payments throughout the month on Fridays, beginning December 2 and ending December 30, 2016

Payment date: December 30, 2016

January

Weekly payments throughout the month, beginning January 6, 2017

Payment date: January 31, 2017
The schedule change does not affect pay for this month.

 

This change to the payment schedule is grounded in thorough research and attentive discussions with business administrators and others across the University schools and centers.

If you have any questions, contact the Payroll help desk at (215) 898-6301 or by email: dofpayroll@pobox.upenn.edu

—Jack Heuer, Vice President Human Resources 
—MaryFrances McCourt, Vice President Finance and Treasurer 
—Anita Allen, Vice Provost Faculty Affairs

PASEF Annual Report, 2015-2016

The mission of PASEF (the Penn Association for Senior and Emeritus Faculty) is to initiate and coordinate activities that enable retired faculty to easily maintain social and intellectual connections with the University. These activities include lectures, retirement planning sessions, special outings, training on computer techniques, written material on insurance information for new retirees and for spouses of deceased faculty, and, as a service to the Philadelphia community, the availability of retired faculty as speakers.

PASEF membership is extended to the retired and senior (age 55 and over) standing faculty in all of Penn’s Schools. The Association of Senior and Emeritus Faculty (ASEF-PSOM) is an analogous organization in the Perelman School of Medicine. There are several activities that the two organizations hold jointly each year. The Executive Council of PASEF met nine times this year in the Hourglass Room  University Club at the of the Inn at Penn. (Appendix A lists the 2015-2016 members of the Executive Council.)

Activities of The Year

Lectures: The Program Committee, chaired by Jerry Porter, organized eight lectures that took place in the Club’s Hourglass Room at the Inn at Penn at noon, and two special lectures—one at the 25 Year Club celebration, and the other in Irvine Auditorium. (Appendix B lists the speakers and speech titles for the year.)

Attendance varied widely—from 15 to 56. Lunch was available for the regular lectures; wine and buffet food were served after the special lectures. PASEF provided the speaker for the University’s 25 Year Club annual gathering—Jeffrey Rosen, president of the National Constitution Center, who spoke on The Future of the U.S. Constitution.

Guest Speakers at PASEF Council Meetings: Anita Allen, vice provost for faculty affairs, spoke at the March Executive Council meeting. She spoke about (1) the concept of insuring more representation of all the Schools in PASEF; (2) the desirability of more involvement of all the Schools with PASEF: the possibility of a PASEF representative giving a brief talk at one faculty meeting in each School and/or some budget contribution from each School as symbols of interest; and (3) the importance, in all activities, in recognizing that we are one university.

Reed Pyeritz, chair of the Faculty Senate, spoke at the April Executive Council meeting. He spoke about (1) the increased concentration of non-standing faculty and the appropriateness of their representation; (2) the training that 70 faculty will receive to respond to signals of mental health problems and (3) the possible involvement of retired faculty on SEC committees.

Spring Outing: In April, PASEF organized an excursion to the special exhibit at the Brandywine Museum of Art—The Poetry of Nature: A Golden Age of American Landscape Painting. There were 30 participants. Three docents each took a group around, after which lunch was served in the museum restaurant at the edge of the Brandywine River.

Retirement Recognition and Planning: For senior (not yet retired) faculty, PASEF provides a reception and a number of informational resources:

Reception for newly emeritus faculty. Each fall PASEF and ASEF-PSOM jointly organize a reception to honor faculty who have retired in the previous year. This year’s reception on November 4 was held in the Sweeten Alumni Center. There were 17 honorees and 29 guests. Verbal recognition of each was given, Dr. Pyeritz addressed the group and a buffet supper was provided.

PASEF personal contacts. Every three months a personal letter (not email) was sent to standing faculty who announced retirement, and to spouses of faculty who were deceased in the previous three months. The letters describe the access to PASEF and have an attached list of the insurance and benefit issues to think about, and the names, phone numbers and email addresses of the appropriate staff to help with information and advice.

Road to Retirement programs. PASEF sponsors two programs annually: (1) Four retired faculty spoke personally about their decisions to retire, and their experiences in and with retirement. (2) Two of Penn’s experts on retirement and benefits—Vicki Mulhern and Hilary Lopez—explained every aspect of the retirement options, and fielded a large number of questions. About 90 people attended these programs.

Hitchhiker’s Guide. The ninth edition of the annual Hitchhiker’s Guide to Faculty Retirement was issued in early 2016, edited by Martin Pring. Copies were distributed at the Road to Retirement programs, and are available on PASEF’s website.

Library Tech Tools Workshops: Vivian Seltzer, chair of the PASEF Library Committee, has developed a program of small, sometimes single person, training sessions for retired faculty. Anu Vedantham, of the Penn Libraries, is instrumental in providing the programs. Topics include items such as Google tools, PowerPoint, iPad and iPhone usage.

Speakers’ Bureau: The Speakers’ Bureau Committee, chaired by Jack Nagel, was embarked in the late spring. Letters were sent to retirement communities, churches and synagogues, civic organizations and some high schools. They contained a list of names of retired faculty who could be invited to deliver a lecture, their contact information, their areas of expertise and some specific topics they could present. The community organizations can then directly contact a speaker they regard as appropriate. All arrangements are made between the two parties. Several contacts have been made. The information in the letters is also posted on PASEF’s website.

Ad Hoc Committee on Facilities: This Committee was chaired by Joan Goodman. Its objectives, initially, were to obtain information on the facilities available to retired faculty at other peer urban universities, and the range of the activities. The Committee found that there was no clear, one type of organization that emerged. Harvard and Yale clearly had the most elaborate facilities and activities. There were a few major findings: (1) There was a wide range of activities and facilities associated with standing faculty and alumni. (2) There was a wide range of activities involving extensive volunteer work (e.g. Harvard’s and Stanford’s lifelong learning programs are open to the public). (3) Almost all had their retiree organization include more groups than standing faculty, administrators, adjunct professors, etc. (4) Almost all had membership dues. The PASEF Executive Council voted against membership dues, asked for a detailed breakdown of non-standing faculty by school and category, and will have focus groups in the fall to explore retired faculty preferences on the issues raised by the Committee.

Ideas Ahead

At the last Executive Council meeting of the year, some plans for the next academic year were discussed: (1) It was agreed that PASEF will hold focus groups in the fall to get a reading on the type of PASEF lectures that would be regarded as particularly interesting. (2) Detailed information on categories and numbers of faculty in every category in each School will be obtained, in order to inform a discussion on membership criteria for PASEF. (3) The possibility of a semi-annual PASEF newsletter will be considered. (4) Efforts will be made to expand the number of involved PASEF members.

            —Anita A. Summers, President (2015-2016)

Appendix A: PASEF Council Members, 2015-2016

Roger M.A. Allen, Professor Emeritus, Near Eastern Languages & Civilizations (SAS)

David P. Balamuth, Professor Emeritus, Physics (SAS), Representative to the University Council on Personnel Benefits

Janice R. Bellace, Professor, Legal Studies & Business Ethics (Wharton), Chair, Nominating Committee

Lois Evans, Professor Emerita, Nursing (Nursing)

Joan F. Goodman, Professor Emerita (GSE), Chair, Ad Hoc Facilities Committee

Howard I. Hurtig, Professor Emeritus, Neurology (PSOM)

Lynn Hollen Lees, Professor Emerita, History (SAS)

Roberto S. Mariano, Professor Emeritus, Economics (SAS)

E. Ann Matter, Professor Emerita, Religious Studies (SAS)

Jeanne C. Myers, Professor Emerita, Biochemistry and Biophysics (PSOM), President of ASEF-PSOM

Jack H. Nagel, Professor Emeritus, Political Science (SAS), Past President, Chair of Speakers’ Bureau Committee

David P. Pope, Professor Emeritus, Materials Science & Engineering (SEAS) Secretary

Gerald J. Porter, Professor Emeritus, Mathematics (SAS), Chair, Program Committee

Martin Pring, Professor Emeritus, Physiology (PSOM), Representative to the Faculty Senate Executive Committee

Vivian C. Seltzer, Professor Emerita, Human Development& Behavior (SPP), Chair, Library Committee

Paul Shaman, Professor Emeritus, Statistics (SAS and Wharton), President-elect, Chair, Retirement Programs Committee

Anita A. Summers, Professor Emerita, Business Economics & Public Policy (Wharton), President

Past Presidents: Rob Roy MacGregor, Vivian Seltzer, Benjamin Shen, Neville E. Strumpf and Ross A. Webber

Appendix B: PASEF Lectures, 2015-2016

Joseph Turow, The Transformation of Retailing in the Digital Age

Jeffrey Rosen, The Future of the U.S. Constitution (25 Year Club Lecture)

Charles L. Nelson, Future Prospects of Hip and Knee Surgery

Guthrie Ramsey, The Amazing Bud Powell: Black Genius, Jazz History and The Challenge of Bebop

Annette Lareau, Unequal Childhoods and Unequal Adulthoods

James H. Lytle, Philadelphia as the Epicenter for K-12 School Reform

Paul Offit, The Philadelphia Measles Epidemic of 1991: Lessons From The Past

Jeremy Siegel, The Economy and The Markets­—What’s Next?

Charles L. Howard and Brian Peterson, Charleston, Freddie Gray and Black Lives Matter

Roger Allen, The Islamic State: Background and Implications

Deaths

Gregory Abraham DeTurck, Music

Gregory DeTurckGregory Abraham DeTurck, an instructor in the department of music in the School of Arts & Sciences at the University of Pennsylvania, died on July 5. He was 34 years old.

Dr. DeTurck graduated from Cherry Hill High School West in New Jersey. He earned his BM and performer’s certificate in piano performance from the Eastman School of Music in 2004, his MM in piano performance with a minor in collaborative piano from the Julliard School in 2006 and his DMA in piano performance and literature with a minor in collaborative piano from the Eastman School of Music in 2014.

He came to Penn in 2011 as a lecturer in the department of music, until leaving for Ithaca College in 2015.

He was an internationally recognized pianist, having performed across Europe, the Middle East, India, China, Japan, Mexico and throughout the US, from Los Angeles to New York. He also performed with the Ensemble ACJW, a two-year fellowship program for young professional classical musicians based at Carnegie Hall.

Dr. DeTurck is survived by his father, Dennis, the Stephen A. Levin Dean of Penn’s College of Arts & Sciences, and his brother, Gary.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in his memory may be made to Penn’s department of music. Checks made payable to the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania may be sent to Laura Weber, SAS Office of Advancement, 3600 Market Street, Suite 300, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

John Jacob Furth, Pathology & Laboratory Medicine

John FurthJohn Jacob Furth, an emeritus professor of pathology & laboratory medicine in Penn’s Perelman School of Medicine and a resident of both Upper Darby, Pennsylvania, and Surry, Maine, died in Philadelphia on July 6. He was 87 years old.

Dr. Furth, a first-generation American, was born in Philadelphia. He studied American history at Cornell University and then served as part of the Quartermaster Corps during the Korean War. After completing his service, he went to Yale Law School but left after one year to study medicine at Duke Medical School. He completed his residency at New York University.

In 1962 he accepted a research associate position in the pathology department at the University of Pennsylvania. In 1968, he became an associate professor and in 1980 he became a professor of pathology and laboratory medicine. He was a member of the Senate Executive Committee in the late 1970s and into the 1980s. In 1984, he received a Research Foundation Award for Transcription of genomic DNA by RNA polymerase II. In 1985, he received another for Transcription of Alutype Repeat DNA by RNA Polyvmerase III. He became emeritus in 2000.

A life-long political activist, he ran for mayor of Upper Darby and other elected offices. He was also active in preserving undeveloped land on the Maine coast and worked for years to make Darby Creek a clean, thriving ecosystem.

Dr. Furth is survived by his daughters, Karen, Susan and Robin; his sons-in-law, Jay Nubile, David Lunden and Mark Rutter; and three grandchildren, Sara Furth Lunden, Corinne Furth Lunden and Alex Nubile.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Friends of the Swedish Cabin, 9 Creek Road, Drexel Hill, PA 19026; to Darby Creek Valley Association, P.O. Box 732, Drexel Hill, PA 19026 (www.dcva.org/donate) or to Blue Hill Heritage Trust, 258 Mountain Road, P.O. Box 222, Blue Hill, Maine 04614 (www.bluehillheritagetrust.org).

Arthur Halim, Penn Undergraduate Student

Arthur HalimArthur Halim, an undergraduate student in the Huntsman Program at Penn, died on July 30 at Oregon Health & Science University Hospital in Portland, Oregon, after a long illness. He was 21 years old.

Mr. Halim entered the Huntsman Program with the Class of 2016, but took time away from school for medical treatment. He was last on campus during the spring 2016 semester.

He was a member of Lambda Phi Epsilon fraternity, Grace Covenant Church, the Penn Taiwanese Society and other student organizations. He worked as a research assistant in Wharton’s Management department in 2013 and interned at PT. Lautandhana Securindo, an investment management company in Indonesia, in 2014.

He is survived by his father, Amin; his mother, Pik Fa; and two brothers, Aaron and Arvin.

John F. Harris, Jr., Penn Museum Volunteer

John F. Harris, Jr., a collections volunteer at the Penn Museum, died on June 22 after a long illness. He was 91 years old.

Dr. Harris was born in Stroudsburg, PA. In 1943, the US Navy sent him to the University of Pennsylvania to study engineering. After the war, he returned to Penn to earn three degrees— his BA, MS and PhD in chemistry—and then went to work for over 30 years in the central research department at DuPont in Delaware. While at DuPont, he received a Guggenheim Fellowship to do post-doctorate work at the University of Cologne, Germany.

After retiring from DuPont in 1985, he went regularly to the Penn Museum, where he became a collections volunteer, an expert at deciphering Maya hieroglyphs and a consulting scholar. He was fascinated with the Pre-Columbian cultures of Mesoamerica and with the ancient Maya in particular. He was president and an active member of the Pre-Columbian Society, which continues to meet monthly at the Museum. In 1992, working with Steve Stearns, Dr. Harris wrote Understanding Maya Inscriptions, a hieroglyph handbook published by the Museum that is used at major universities around the world. In 1995, Jeremy Sabloff, then director of the Museum, presented Dr. Harris with the Director’s Award “for his contributions in spreading understanding of Maya hieroglyphs to the general public.”

Dr. Harris is survived by his wife, Jackie; his children, Mark (Karen), John (Jane) and Katherine; four grandchildren; and two great grandchildren.

Memorial contributions may be sent to the Helen Graham Cancer Center, 4701 Ogletown-Stanton Road, Newark, DE 19713, or to the Bread Upon the Waters Scholarship Fund at the University of Pennsylvania, 16 College Hall, Philadelphia, PA 19104.

Haralambos Kritikos, Electrical Engineering

Haralambos “Harry” Kritikos, GrE’61, professor emeritus in electrical engineering, died on July 2 after a long illness. He was 83 years old.

Dr. Kritikos was born in Tripoli, Greece. He received all of his degrees in electrical engineering, earning BS and MS degrees from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 1954 and 1956, respectively, and a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1961. During his doctoral studies in 1956, he became an assistant instructor at the Moore School at Penn. He was also a research fellow at Caltech. He rose through the ranks at Penn, eventually becoming professor, the position he held until his retirement in 1999.

He was appointed editor of IEEE Transactions in Geoscience Electronics in 1975. He was a member of Sigma Xi, the international honor society of science and engineering, and was active in the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), having been named an IEEE Fellow in 1988 and the recipient of both the IEEE Centennial and Bicentennial Medals.

He was a theorist in electromagnetism. His early work was on diffraction and propagation of electromagnetic waves and the biomedical applications of electromagnetism. In more recent years, he was engaged in research on wavelets, symmetry and group theory with their applications to electromagnetic theory and antenna arrays.

Dr. Kritikos is survived by his wife, Susanne (CGS’68, MSW’76); his daughter, Melissa Kaiser (C’95, Eng’95, WG’01); and his grandchildren, Teddy and Alex.

Emily Carota Orne, Psychiatry

Emily OrneEmily Carota Orne, research associate of psychology in Penn’s department of psychiatry, died on August 1. She was 77 years old.

She graduated in 1959 from Bennington College and did graduate work in psychology at Brandeis University. In 1962, she authored the widely used Harvard Group Scale of Hypnotic Susceptibility.

Ms. Orne joined Penn as a research associate in the department of psychiatry in 1979. For more than 40 years at Penn, she collaborated with her husband, the late Martin T. Orne, professor of psychiatry, on research in psychology, sleep and the medical use of hypnosis. In 1997, she became a member of the department of experimental psychiatry, where in 2001 she became a senior research coordinator.

She authored 38 scientific articles and reviews in these areas and was the recipient of several scholarly awards and honors, including the Benjamin Franklin Gold Medal for achievements in hypnosis from the International Society of Hypnosis. She continued to contribute to research in various capacities until her retirement in 2014.

Ms. Orne is survived by her son, Frank; her daughter, Tracy; her brother, Noel Farrell Carota; her sisters-in-law, Lindsay Stradley Carota and Susie Orne, and their families; and her caregiver, Michael McCullough.

Memorial donations may be made to the Institute for Experimental Psychiatry Research Foundation, 290 Sycamore Avenue, Merion Station, PA 19066.

Sohrab Rabii, Electrical & Systems Engineering

Sohrab RabiiSohrab Rabii, a professor emeritus of electrical & systems engineering at the University of Pennsylvania, died on July 18 of pancreatic cancer at home in the Spring Garden section of Philadelphia. He was 78 years old.

Born in Ahwaz, Iran, Dr. Rabii came to the US in 1958 on a study-abroad scholarship from the Iranian government. He earned his bachelor of science degree in engineering from the University of Southern California, then earned his master’s and doctoral degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). He did advanced study at MIT and worked briefly for the Monsanto Corporation.

He joined the Penn faculty in 1969 as an assistant professor in what is now the School of Engineering & Applied Science. He became an associate professor in 1973. He was chair of the department of electrical engineering from 1977-1982. In 1985, he received the Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching.

Dr. Rabii was also a researcher known for his contributions to the condensed matter theory of carbon-based materials—what happens when carbon electrons and nuclei function in a condensed state. He was a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, a member of the American Physical Society and the author of 160 journal and conference papers.

He retired in 2006, but remained an integral part of the Penn Engineering community, regularly attending lectures and faculty meetings. He escorted Penn students to Mali and Ghana, where they set up computer and electrical engineering labs.

Dr. Rabii is survived by his wife, Susan B. Hunt; his former wife, Patricia B. Rabii; his daughters, Susan M. Zima and Elizabeth Rabii Cribbs; five grandchildren; three brothers; a sister; and nieces and nephews.

Donations may be made to Autism Speaks (www.autismspeaks.org/donate) or to the School of Engineering & Applied Science at the University of Pennsylvania (www.seas.upenn.edu/giving).

Robert Regan, English

Robert ReganRobert “Bob” Regan, a professor emeritus of English at Penn, died of heart failure at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania on July 5. He was 86 years old.

Dr. Regan was born in Indianapolis, Indiana, and raised in Shreveport, Louisiana. He earned his bachelor’s degree in English literature from Centenary College of Louisiana in Shreveport in 1951. He was awarded a scholarship to Harvard, where he received a master’s degree, also in English literature, in 1952.

He joined the Navy and served in the Korean War and later joined the Navy Reserve, earning the rank of commander. He served in Vietnam in the early 1960s.

After the Korean War, he returned to Centenary College to teach and began volunteering in the civil rights movement with his mother. They registered people to vote, and Dr. Regan encouraged activism among his students. He then enrolled in a doctoral program at the University of California at Berkeley and taught at the University of Virginia from 1963-67. He earned his PhD in American literature in 1965 and was awarded a Fulbright scholarship two years later.

He joined the faculty at the University of Pennsylvania in 1968. During his 30 years at Penn, he served twice as the undergraduate chair of the English department.

Dr. Regan is the author of Unpromising Heroes, Mark Twain and His Characters and editor of Poe: A Collection of Critical Essays. He also served as a consultant on a PBS documentary about Edgar Allan Poe. He wrote articles for publications including Virginia Quarterly Review and Nineteenth-Century Fiction.

In addition to his wife, Mary Katherine Hester; he is survived by his son, Christopher; his step-son, David Jeanclos; two daughters, Alison and Amelia; and his first wife, Carole Ann Bennett.

David Thomas Rowlands, Jr., Pathology

David RowlandsDavid Thomas Rowlands, Jr., a Penn alumnus, former professor and chairman of the department of pathology at Penn, died on August 5. He was 86 years old.

Dr. Rowlands was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and raised in Lansdowne, Pennsylvania. He attended the University of Pennsylvania and after three years of undergraduate studies was admitted into Penn’s School of Medicine. During his undergraduate years at Penn, he played intercollegiate soccer. Following medical school, his medical residency in pathology led him to Cincinnati, Ohio. Upon completion of his residency, he served in the Navy and was stationed in Key West, Florida. During this time, he was appointed as the chief casualty officer for the Bay of Pigs Invasion.

Following his time in the Navy, he worked on a team for the transplant of livers in humans in Denver, Colorado. In 1964, he joined Rockefeller University in New York City, where he was the number two in the laboratory group for the Nobel Prize winner in medicine research team. In the late 1960s, he was an associate professor at Duke University’s School of Medicine.

He joined Penn’s faculty as a professor in 1970 and succeeded Peter Nowell to lead the department of pathology as chairman from 1973 to 1978. He was interested in developmental immunology, cardiovascular pathobiology, organ transplantation and transplantation immunology.

In 1982, he accepted the chairmanship of pathology at the University of South Florida (USF). In 1991, he retired from USF, but found he missed teaching and joined the staff at the American University of the Caribbean School of Medicine. While there, he authored a book entitled Golf Courses of the Caribbean.

Dr. Rowlands is survived by his wife, Gwendolyn York Rowlands; two daughters and four grandchildren. Burial at Florida National Cemetery with Military Honors will take place at a later date.

David W. H. Shale, Mathematics

David W. H. Shale, professor emeritus of mathematics at Penn, died on January 7 from respiratory disease. He was 83 years old.

Dr. Shale was born in Christchurch, New Zealand. He attended St. Andrew’s Preparatory School, then graduated from Canterbury College at age 20 with a master’s degree and first class honors in mathematics. In 1954, he entered the mathematics program at the University of Chicago, where he earned his PhD. He spent time at the Mathematics Institute in Copenhagen, the University of Toronto, the University of California, Berkeley, and the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton, New Jersey, before coming to the University of Pennsylvania in 1964 as an assistant professor.

In 1966, he became a US citizen and an associate professor. In 1970, he became a professor. From 1986-1989, he served as the undergraduate chair in the department of mathematics. During his time at Penn he also taught courses in the College of General Studies and the Wharton School.

Dr. Shale did research in functional analyses of the formation of the quantum theory. He retired from Penn and took emeritus status in 2000. His scientific interests, apart from mathematics, included physics and astrophysics, and after his retirement he added economics.

He is survived by his wife, Marilyn; his son, Joshua; his daughter, Jennifer Adams; his children’s spouses; five grandchildren; and his sister, Jennifer Bertram.

Governance

Faculty Senate Executive Committee Meetings, 2016-2017

September 21–Glandt Forum, Singh Center for Nanotechnology (3rd Floor), 3-5 p.m.

October 26–Meyerson Conference Room, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center (2nd Floor), 3-5 p.m.

November 16–Meyerson Conference Room, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center (2nd Floor), 3-5 p.m.

December 7–Division of Public Safety, 4040 Chestnut St., 3-5 p.m.

January 18–Glandt Forum, Singh Center for Nanotechnology (3rd Floor), 3-5 p.m.

February 15–Meyerson Conference Room, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center (2nd Floor), 3-5 p.m.

March 15–Meyerson Conference Room, Van Pelt Library (2nd Floor), 3-5 p.m.

April 12–Meyerson Conference Room, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center (2nd Floor), 3-5 p.m.

May 10–Glandt Forum, Singh Center for Nanotechnology (3rd Floor), 3-5 p.m.

Trustees Meetings, 2016-2017

The University of Pennsylvania Board of Trustees will meet on the following dates:

Thursday, September 22—

      Executive Committee;
      Audit & Compliance Committee;
      Budget & Finance Committee

Thursday-Friday, October 27-28

      Fall Full Board Meeting

Thursday, December 8—

      Executive Committee
      Budget & Finance Committee
      (if needed)

Thursday-Friday, February 16-17—

      Winter Full Board Meeting

Thursday, March 16

      Executive Committee;
      Budget & Finance Committee

Thursday, May 11

      Executive Committee;                 
      Budget & Finance Committee

Thursday-Friday, June 15-16

      Spring Full Board Meeting

Please contact the Office of the University Secretary at (215) 898-7005 with questions regarding any of the above meetings.

University Council Meetings, 2016-2017

University Council meetings are held on Wednesdays, 4-6 p.m. in Bodek Lounge, Houston Hall. The University Council is managed by the Office of the University Secretary.

All questions or concerns may be directed to ucouncil@pobox.upenn.edu

October 5

November 9

November 30

February 2

February 22

March 22

April 19

Welcome Back From the Senate Chair

Goals and Priorities for the New Academic Year

As Chair of the Faculty Senate, it is my privilege and pleasure to welcome you to the 2016-2017 academic year. Established by the Trustees in 1952, the Senate comprises the approximately 2,600 standing faculty in Penn’s 12 Schools. As stated in the Faculty Handbook, the Senate Executive Committee (SEC) is an elected body with 58 members that meets monthly during the academic year to discuss issues of importance to the faculty; to make recommendations to the President, Provost and Trustees; and to pass resolutions. SEC also oversees the Senate’s nine standing committees and coordinates with the University Council and its seven committees. I consider it an honor to serve as an officer of the Senate along with my fellow Tri-Chairs Reed Pyeritz (Past Chair) and Santosh Venkatesh (Chair-Elect). Reflecting Penn’s long-standing commitment to shared governance, the President and the Provost meet biweekly with the Tri-Chairs to discuss current and emerging issues. The President and Provost, as well as Vice Provosts and other senior administrators, also consult with the faculty through their participation at SEC and other committee meetings.

The Tri-Chairs greatly appreciate the engagement of the faculty who volunteer their time to serve as members of SEC and who chair and serve on Senate committees. Effective shared governance depends on the willingness of faculty to contribute to the often time-consuming processes of setting academic policy and reconsidering current policies in light of emerging challenges and a changing world. Among other accomplishments, in recent years the Faculty Senate has contributed to efforts to launch the Faculty Wellness Ambassador program in the undergraduate schools, ensure that the Ombudsman is a “confidential” informant, revise the Patent Policy for faculty, create and launch the Campaign for Community (C4C), establish an Ad Hoc Grievance Committee to improve the grievance process for faculty and identify barriers to the use of sabbatical leaves. 
Senate committees will this year consider a number of important issues, including:

  • Results of the 2015 Faculty Climate Survey, especially as they relate to women, faculty of different racial/ethnic groups and LGBTQA faculty;
  • The final report of the five-year Action Plan for Faculty Diversity and Excellence;
  • Implementation of conflict-of-interest policies;
  • The effectiveness of the University Research Foundation’s funding process;
  • The ongoing development of online delivery of educational programs;
  • Communication about the availability of mental health services and the implementation of the Faculty Wellness Ambassador program; and
  • The economic status of the faculty in terms of salaries and selected benefits.

Senate committees will also be inviting faculty to engage in discussions about other critical issues, including effective strategies for enhancing faculty diversity, the future role of faculty (including Associated Faculty and Academic Support Staff) and ways to ensure a welcoming environment for all students—including students who are first in their families to attend college and students from low-income households. We will share more information about these discussions over the coming months, with the hope that many faculty will participate. To learn more about the agenda for SEC meetings, as well as committee charges and members, please refer to the Senate’s website, http://www.upenn.edu/faculty_senate/

As you set your goals and activities for the new academic year, we urge you to consider ways to contribute to our University’s shared governance processes. We encourage you to share your perspectives with your elected SEC representative(visit http://www.upenn.edu/faculty_senate/sec_members.html for a complete list of names and email addresses). Reed, Santosh and I are also eager to hear your suggestions and concerns, as well as your interest in becoming more involved in the Senate’s work or serving on a committee. Institutional service produces a range of benefits and can be personally rewarding. As I approach this year as Chair, I am grateful to have had the opportunity to serve with and learn from the wise perspectives of Claire Finkelstein, who concluded her service as a Tri-Chair this past spring. The Faculty Senate also benefits from the excellent work of Patrick Walsh, the Senate’s executive assistant. We all welcome your suggestions, advice, concerns and questions. You may reach us at senate@pobox.upenn.edu or by phone at (215) 898-6943. I also invite you to contact me directly at lperna@upenn.edu

Best wishes for a terrific year of teaching, learning, creating knowledge and serving our University community.

—Laura Perna

Laura Perna signature

Crimes

Weekly Crime Reports

The University of Pennsylvania Police Department Community Crime Report

About the Crime Report: Below are all Crimes Against Persons, Property and Crimes Against Society from the campus report for August 8-14, 2016. 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 between the dates of August 8-14, 2016. The University Police actively patrol from Market Street to Baltimore Avenue and from the Schuylkill River to 43rd 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 the Division of Public Safety at (215) 898-4482.

08/09/16 1:50 PM 200 S 40th St Vandalism Vehicle tires slashed
08/09/16 5:19 PM 3733 Spruce St Theft Unattended laptop taken
08/09/16 6:53 PM 255 S 36th St Theft Secured bike taken
08/10/16 2:09 PM 3604 Chestnut St Fraud Unauthorized transactions made
08/10/16 4:42 PM 3910 Powelton Ave Theft Laptop and docking station taken
08/10/16 5:50 PM 3131 Walnut St Theft Unsecured laptop taken
08/11/16 3:45 AM 3900 Ludlow St Disorderly Conduct Female causing disturbance/Arrest
08/11/16 7:10 AM 3300 Spruce St DUI Intoxicated female/Arrest
08/12/16 12:14 PM 3340 Smith Walk Fraud Unauthorized charges made on credit card
08/12/16 1:18 PM 3800 Sansom St Traffic Male wanted on scofflaw/Arrest
08/13/16 12:32 AM 4200 Spruce St Assault Complainant assaulted by boyfriend/Arrest
08/13/16 10:27 AM 3549 Chestnut St Other Offense Male wanted on warrant/Arrest
08/14/16 4:06 PM 200 S 43rd St Sex Offense Male observed without clothing/Arrest
08/14/16 9:18 PM 3417 Spruce St Theft Secured bike taken
08/14/16 11:14 PM 210 S 34th St Theft Secured bike taken

18th District Report

Below are the Crimes Against Persons from the 18th District: 6 incidents with 3 arrests (3 domestic assaults, 1 indecent assault, 1 purse snatch and 1 robbery) were reported between August 8-14, 2016 by the 18th District covering the Schuylkill River to 49th Street & Market Street to Woodland Avenue.

08/08/16 11:47 PM 4220 Chestnut St Domestic Assault/Arrest
08/11/16 2:59 PM 50th & Spruce Sts Domestic Assault
08/11/16 3:18 PM 48th & Spruce Sts Robbery
08/11/16 9:47 PM 3201 Chestnut St Purse Snatch/Arrest
08/13/16 12:30 AM 4100 Spruce St Domestic Assault/Arrest
08/14/16 4:46 PM 259 S 43rd St Indecent Assault

Bulletins

Celebrating Summer: $10 Penn Museum Admission

Now is the time to explore the Penn Museum with friends or family—thanks to a hot discount. In August, spend a day in the international galleries for a flat $10 rate—up to 33% off the regular price. Enhance your experience with a visit to the world-exclusive exhibition, The Golden Age of King Midas, for just $5 more per visitor (Museum admission is free for members, PennCard holders, active US military and children 5 and under).

One Step Ahead: It Pays to Keep your Information Safe

One Step Ahead logo.

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

____________________

Recently, fraudulent emails have been circulating through several Schools and Centers disguised as official communications from Penn Human Resources or Payroll regarding salary increases or your pay advice. These emails contain links to web pages which request sensitive data such as Social Security numbers, banking information, PennKey username and password or other personal information.

Should you receive a message of this nature, report it immediately to your Local Support Provider (LSP). Your LSP is listed at https://www.isc.upenn.edu/get-it-help These emails are not from Penn Human Resources or the Payroll office; they are designed to gain unauthorized access to your personal information in an attempt to steal your pay.

The University will never ask for your Social Security number or personal banking information in an email.

There are steps you can take to help you evaluate whether an email is legitimate:

  • Carefully assess emails that tell you to take immediate action. Fraudulent emails often try and create a sense of urgency, threat or alarm to force you to act quickly without thinking.
  • Confirm the origin of emails requesting personal information. If a suspicious email references a department or group, contact that organization directly for verification that the email is legitimate. Do not rely on any phone numbers or links contained in the email. Instead, use their Penn webpage or the Penn Directory for contact information.
  • Check Penn’s list of reported fraudulent (phishing) messages: http://www.upenn.edu/computing/security/phish/

You can further protect your PennKey username and password by using two-step verification. Two-step verification adds an extra layer of security whenever you log in with your PennKey username and password. In addition to your PennKey password, which is something only you should know, two-step also utilizes something only you have, such as your smartphone.

For more information on two-step verification see: http://www.upenn.edu/computing/weblogin/two-step/

If you believe you may have responded to a fraudulent message, contact your LSP immediately for assistance. You will also need to change your PennKey password, and confirm that your financial and Penn Directory information has not been changed.

Volunteer Opportunities

Dear Penn Community,

Thank you for your spirit of volunteerism. Many benefit from your willingness to share. We receive many expressions of gratitude from community members and agencies we have partnered with. Thank you again for your donation of $901.79 to the Annual Penn VIPS Change Drive. Your generous donation assisted Penn VIPS (Volunteers in Public Service) and Business Services with providing five $1,000 scholarships to well deserving graduating seniors from local high schools. Consider joining the committee. The University community continues to work towards being good neighbors in our shared community. We thank you for your overwhelming support and for your generosity.

—Isabel Sampson-Mapp, Associate Director, Faculty, Staff and Alumni Volunteer Services,
Director, Penn Volunteers in Public Service, Center for Community Partnerships

Become a Mentor in the Penn Workplace Mentoring Program. Encourage 7th graders from a local school to do well in school. Talk to them about the importance of college. Share your area of expertise in your job with them and help them to think about their futures. Make a difference in the life of a young person. Mentors meet with students once a month from September-May. All sessions are held on Penn’s campus. Training is held in September. Volunteer today. Contact Isabel Mapp at sammapp@upenn.edu for additional information.

Leftover conference bags, tee-shirts, pens, etc.? Donate them to Penn VIPS. We will share them with school children and members of the community.

Become a Dropsite Volunteer. Dropsite volunteers are located throughout the University and provide the site for collections during our annual school, food, gift and change drives. All that is required is for you to set up a collection area, put up a flyer and collect the donations. There are only approximately 3-4 activities per year.

Join the Penn Team for Making Strides, Saturday, October 15, 7:30 a.m., Memorial Hall (Please Touch Museum) West Fairmount Park, 4231 Avenue of the Republic. We will host a planning meeting in September. Send an email to sammapp@upenn.edu to be placed on the list. To join the Penn team and/or to make a donation on behalf of the team go to http://main.acsevents.org/site/TR/MakingStridesAgainstBreastCancer/MSABCCY16EC?pg=entry&fr_id=7740

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