Leave policy unveiled at U. Council

The Provost's Office is in the process of implementing a new involuntary leave of absence policy.

The policy, which would allow the provost and a school dean, in conjunction with Counseling and Psychological Services, Student Health Services or a medical professional, to require a student to take a leave of absence if his or her mental health poses a threat to him or herself or the University community, was mentioned as part of a special CAPS presentation at yesterday's University Council meeting.

The University Council, which includes Penn administrators, faculty members and student leaders, met yesterday to review its goals for the semester and receive several committee updates.

CAPS Director Ilene Rosenstein highlighted additions made to the program this year in light of increasing student needs.

CAPS was recently ranked by the Princeton Review as one of the top college counseling centers in the country and spent the summer expanding its staff resources and training programs, Rosenstein said.

"I think we're lucky to have a team that's been as responsive as this one is to handling the needs of our students," Provost Robert Barchi said, noting the increasing pressures on psychological services on college campuses nationwide.

University President Judith Rodin agreed, and stressed students' responsibility to help one another.

"The first line of defense is the fellow students, and I really urge the students to be proactive in helping a fellow student to get the help when he or she needs it," Rodin said.

The Council's admissions and financial aid, libraries, research and facilities committees also delivered brief reports on their progress last year and took recommendations from Council members about future plans.

Admissions and Financial Aid Committee Chairman Dennis DeTurck discussed the possibility of need-blind admission for non-North American applicants, noted the increase in international students admitted last year and addressed ideas for an expanded pre-freshman program. He also recommended that this year's committee continue to look at the early decision aspect of admissions and work with the Admissions Office to identify an "equilibrium point" for the number of students admitted early.

In his report to the Council, Libraries Committee Chairman Ellis Golub discussed an increased emphasis on purchasing new digital media and noted potential obstacles, including high expenses and the need for an information literacy program to educate students and faculty about using on-line resources.

Golub also addressed students' requests for more study areas in the University's specialized libraries. He said that due to security reasons and constrained space, the committee decided to expand Van Pelt Library's hours as an alternate solution.

Facilities Committee Chairman John Sabini noted the need for increased classroom maintenance, and Barchi stressed the administration's commitment to these improvements. Sabini also addressed the state of the Campus Development Plan and said that this year's committee will focus on increasing pedestrian traffic on 38th Street, possibly by bringing in new retail options and improving bicycle traffic and safety on campus.

Vice Provost for University Life Valarie Swain-Cade McCoullum announced that two VPUL-sponsored programs that focus on outreach in the West Philadelphia community recently received more than $1 million in federal funding. The programs, Talent Search and Educational Opportunity Centers, are run through the United States Department of Education "to partner and promote community access to higher education," McCoullum said.

The Council also announced the appointments of Communication Professor Larry Gross as the Council moderator and Director of University Archives and Records Mark Frazier Lloyd as the group's parliamentarian for the upcoming year.

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