U. holds workshop to advise Phila. students on admissions

They're coming . . . and they are the Futures. Seniors from all 50 Philadelphia high schools and their parents are coming to the University's campus tonight for workshops on financial aid and the college application process. The workshop, scheduled for 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. in Houston Hall, is part of the student group-organized and administration-supported Futures program. A University financial aid official will instruct parents in how to apply for financial aid and University students will help the high school seniors on their college essays. The students will also be able to get general information on the college application and admissions processes. The program this evening has supporters across the University spectrum, ranging from student organizations to admissions officers and administrators. Futures was started this year by Wharton senior Michelle Peluso, Community Projects Coordinator of Kite and Key, and Kite and Key member and Wharton senior Lynda Bearman, who, according to Peluso, felt that University students "could be making a bigger contribution to the community." Futures sent University students earlier this month into Philadelphia high schools to encourage students to apply to colleges, and to help them with the process itself. "We just realize the importance of going to college, and how important that is in getting a job," Bearman said. According to Peluso and Bearman, Futures is geared towards helping students apply to all colleges, not solely the University. "We're talking in more generic terms. We're not talking Penn at all," Bearman said. "If people have asked us about Penn, we'll tell them about it, but the focus is to encourage them to go to college." Both tonight's program and previous off-campus sessions have also been coordinated by Tom Butler of College Access, a Philadelphia college assistance group. Kite and Key, the Black Student League, Black Wharton Undergraduate Association, the Bicultural Intergreek Council, Delta Upsilon, Alpha Phi Omega, and the Nursing Student Forum all have participated in the new program. "One of our foci is community service," Wharton senior Lincoln Singleton, president of the Black Wharton Undergraduate Association, said. "We've chosen the Futures program as an outlet. It sounded like a tremendous program, and I wanted Black Wharton to be part of it." According to Peluso and Kite and Key Vice President Mike Gross, the idea for asking for assistance with tonight's larger program came at the end of October, when Peluso went to the admissions office to request help due to the scale of the program. According to Peluso, the admissions office provided the program with the names of 1500 Philadelphia high school seniors who had expressed interest in the University, and the group sent individualized letters to these students inviting them to attend the program. In addition, University officers offered their assistance to the program and its coordinators. Janet Kobosky, regional director of Admissions for the Philadelphia area, will speak to the students at tonight's program along with Acting Director of Undergraduate Financial Aid Alicia Brill. "[Tonight's program] is really our first involvement with the project," Kobosky said. "It's the only role that we're playing so far. I'm not sure where this will go." Dean of Admissions Willis Stetson said that the Admissions Office's involvement in the program was "as a resource." "Obviously, we are usually asked to be participants [in programs] in order to more accurately, more completely and more officially report on admissions at Penn," Stetson said. "That's the reason for the action here." Peluso said that she spoke to Acting Executive Vice President John Gould, who expressed his support of the program and offered the President Office's assistance in getting public service announcements for the program on radio spots. "They were sent out to all the radio stations," Peluso said. "It's [the station's] subjective decision whether to play them or not. We're hoping some positive feedback comes from it." "This is part of a much larger interest that Penn has in the community, and this is just a super thing that these people are doing," Gould said. Although tonight's program takes place five days before the trial date of the ongoing Mayor's Scholarship lawsuit, in which plaintiffs claim that the University has been negligent in fulfilling its obligation in providing University scholarships to Philadelphia high school students, organizers said that there is no connection between the trial and the program. "The program was devised last semester, before either of us were aware of the Mayor's Scholarship issue," Peluso said. "We felt all the more need, realizing that we could be making a bigger contribution in helping the students." "The Mayor's Scholarship was not a motivational issue behind this program," Bearman said. "We are aware of it, and Admissions and Financial Aid are aware of it, and it will help them, but that wasn't the main focus at all." "As far as I'm concerned, there's absolutely no connection," Gould said. "This is part of a much larger effort that has been ongoing at Penn and has been strengthened this fall," Kobosky said. "This is one piece of a larger effort, and it needs to be seen in that context. I support their efforts wholeheartedly."