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Thursday, April 23, 2026
The Daily Pennsylvanian

EDITORIAL: Back in the classroom

University President JudithUniversity President JudithRodin's freshman seminar isUniversity President JudithRodin's freshman seminar isone example of her efforts atUniversity President JudithRodin's freshman seminar isone example of her efforts atincreasing contact with'students.University President JudithRodin's freshman seminar isone example of her efforts atincreasing contact with'students.________________________________ Now, Rodin is teaching a freshman seminar in her home, as did her predecessor, History Professor Sheldon Hackney. And we couldn't be happier. It's tough for administrators, who began their careers as professors, to stay in touch with the rest of the academic world when they aren't in a classroom every day. And when the chalk stains fade from their blazers, so does their knowledge of how valuable it can be to hear students' new ideas and fresh perspectives. But Rodin's class -- as Provost Stanley Chodorow's seminar, "Origins of Constitutionalism," did last spring -- also makes the symbolic point that undergraduates at Penn are important. After all, we must be if the two top academics here are taking time out of their packed schedules to teach us! If professors and administrators had a general requirement to fulfill each year, with categories like "Research and Publication," "Teaching" and "Interaction with Students," Rodin's seminar and the one open house she recently hosted for freshmen wouldn't take care of the latter. Rodin obviously has many "top priorities" as Penn's chief executive, including fund-raising, improving and promoting the University and setting its course for the next century. But in the coming months, additional events and activities along the lines of the seminar and open house would be most welcome.