Dean chops off locks for charity

Nathan Smith isn't your typical College House dean. He likes to screen obscure Japanese movies for students, he loves the TV show Gilmore Girls and he has long, golden ringlets -- or at least he did until Sunday afternoon.

On Sunday on the Junior Balcony at Ware College House, accompanied by his wife and an audience of about 40 cheering Penn students, Smith cut off fifteen inches of blonde curls.

He's sending his hair to Locks of Love, an organization that makes and donates wigs to those who have lost their own hair through illnesses such as cancer.

"It's my duty not to be wasteful and do as much for other people as I can," he said. "Rather than just letting it fall to the floor ... I thought about where [my hair] would be useful."

This isn't the first time Smith has turned hair cutting into a spectator sport. Six years ago, he attended a Halloween party as a "human hair cut," allowing friends to cut his hair as they saw fit. The day after, he said that he looked pretty crazy.

Although he planned to cut his hair in private, colleagues motivated him to publicize his donation and inspire more contributions.

Consequently, two Penn students decided to donate along with Smith.

Those who know him well say that it is no surprise that his hair-cutting attracted a large following.

Students and colleagues alike said they appreciate the energy and enthusiasm that Smith brings to his job.

During the day, he attends to administrative matters such as organizing the Ware staff for Spring Fling. He also teaches a class at the School of Education.

After the workday, he still participates in campus life. He holds weekly movie nights and Gilmore Girls get-togethers generally attended by about 15 students.

"The image of him screaming at the TV when watching Gilmore Girls is an image I'll cherish forever," Engineering junior and Ware College House Council President Laura Sadow said.

Both Sadow and College senior Emilie Anderson are also fans of Smith's unique choices for his weekly movie nights.

"He's not showing [mainstream films like] Animal House, he's showing random Japanese films that you've never heard of," Anderson said. "We'll just laugh for two hours."

Often "you have a strict mold of what a teacher is and I think that he breaks all those molds," she added. "When you talk to him you're not talking to an administrator ... you're talking to a friend."

Personalities is a weekly profile of an individual from the Penn community. It appears on Wednesdays.

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