Journal receives $10,000

And the rest is, and will be, history. The newly-established Penn History Review received a $10,000 pledge from an alumni couple in Manhattan, which students and faculty say will guarantee the existence of the Review for years to come. "With the $10,000 donation, they've insured that the journal can go on for years," said Associate History Professor Thomas Sugrue, faculty advisor for the publication. "This is going to give them the opportunity to create a permanent publication." David and Lyn Silfen, 1966 College graduates, made their donation after the School of Arts and Sciences Office of External Affairs made solicitation efforts of alumni history majors. "It's certainly out of the ordinary for students [to initiate] a solicitation, and I think that can be a very effective way of raising money," Vice Dean of External Affairs Robert Shepard said, adding that such donations show that alumni have genuine interest in undergraduate research. Shepard said the Silfens made the donation after receiving a mailing sent to history alumni by the founders of the Review. "David Silfen, who is a very good friend of the University, felt very strongly that he wanted to support and underwrite this," Shepard said. "He wanted to give the project some sense of stability and permanence." The Silfens declined to comment on the donation. Shepard credited History Department Chairperson Michael Katz with directing the students to the external affairs office for help with alumni solicitations. "We're very excited [about the donation], and proud of the students who are putting the Review together," Katz said. "It took a lot of initiative and a lot of intelligence, and we're looking forward to its publication very much." College junior and Review editor-in-chief Frank Barbera said that the pledge was made in the form of $2,000 a year for five years, and that the money will be "instrumental to [the Review's] success." "A lot of alumni have been giving generous sums, but we've had nothing of this magnitude prior to this," Barbera said. "History alumni have been very excited about the project, and have offered a number of contributions, small and large," Sugrue said. "They have played a very important role in assuring the quality of undergraduate life." "We're a great department, and the alumni know that," Sugrue added. "So someone who got a lot out of this department is now giving a lot back." Sugrue said that this donation, along with a $1,000 donation from the History Department and other alumni donations, will be directed toward the publication costs for the journal. Barbera said the estimated budget costs for the Review will be $2,100 a year -- an amount more than covered by the Silfens' donation. The Review is currently actively soliciting essays and other undergraduate history research to be published in its first issue, which is due out later this semester.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.