With many New Orleans-area universities having to cancel the semester due to Hurricane Katrina, Penn president Amy Gutmann announced today that the University will open its doors to local students.
In a memo to the Penn community, Gutmann said that the University can accept up to 100 undergraduates from the Philadelphia area who would have attended school in the hurricane-ravaged areas. Graduate and professional students will also be accepted on a case-by-case basis depending on available space.
These students must meet the academic qualifications to attend Penn.
Students accepted to Penn will not have to pay additional tuition. Rather, their dollars will continue to go to their home school. The University will also work with students so that they reman eligible for federal financial aid.
Gutmann also announced that any Penn faculty or staff member interested in helping with the hurricane relief efforts will be given three weeks paid time off.
"We are driven by our belief that it is important to offer students from the Philadelphia area as much continuity as we can until they can resume studies at their home institution," Gutmann said in her memo. "In addition, many of our faculty and staff have expressed interest in volunteering their services in New Orleans and other areas needing assistance."
Other schools announcing similar programs to Penn include Rutgers, Florida State, Georgia, Arkansas and the Columbia School of Continuing Education.
