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(04/22/98 9:00am)
Two students were sent to the hospital after separate incidents, but both are recovering. and Maureen Tkacik As new details continue to emerge about last weekend's two suicide attempts, University officials urged students to seek help from friends or Penn's counseling services if they are thinking about taking their own life or know of those who might be. A female University student tried to kill herself by drinking a bottle of hydrogen peroxide in High Rise East at around 8:15 p.m. Thursday, according to several sources familiar with the situation. She was rushed to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where her stomach was pumped. And early Saturday morning, a disoriented and slightly intoxicated female freshman cut her wrists in an apparent suicide attempt inside her Quadrangle room, sources said. The student voluntarily signed up for psychiatric treatment at HUP, according to police. Both students' current conditions were unavailable last night. University Police officials and Counseling and Psychological Services Director Ilene Rosenstein refused to comment on the specifics of these cases, citing confidentiality requirements, but Rosenstein stressed that students can do a lot to help friends who seem to be suffering from depression. "People often don't know how to respond when people are depressed," Rosenstein said, adding that "it's important that students take it very seriously when people talk about suicide." Residents on the HRE floor where Thursday's incident occurred said they did not know exactly what had happened. The floor's resident adviser declined to comment, as did the occupants of the room in which the incident occurred. No other details were available. In the other incident, the girl was not severely intoxicated and the cuts she inflicted were "superficial" and non life-threatening, two University Police officers close to the situation said. According to the officers, the only reason she gave for attempting suicide was that "life sucks." One of the officers said he believed the girl had been on medication for depression. The officer added that although the student did not want to be hospitalized, police officers are allowed to commit students who attempt suicide to psychiatric treatment for a mandatory three days, at which point a judge can order them to stay longer. If a student decides to voluntarily sign up for psychiatric treatment, he or she can check out shortly afterwards and refuse any treatment. In the aftermath of the incidents, Rosenstein urged students to talk to someone from CAPS or other available counseling groups if they are having problems. "There's help available," Rosenstein stressed. "If you're feeling these things, don't keep them inside. Don't suffer with them privately." CAPS is also available as a service to the friends and hallmates of the two students who attempted suicide, Rosenstein said. The last reported suicide of a University student was 26-year-old Wharton MBA student Elizabeth Kelsey, who killed herself by overdosing on medication in March 1997.
(04/22/98 9:00am)
Two students were sent to the hospital after separate incidents, but both are recovering. and Maureen Tkacik As new details continue to emerge about last weekend's two suicide attempts, University officials urged students to seek help from friends or Penn's counseling services if they are thinking about taking their own life or know of those who might be. A female University student tried to kill herself by drinking a bottle of hydrogen peroxide in High Rise East at around 8:15 p.m. Thursday, according to several sources familiar with the situation. She was rushed to the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, where her stomach was pumped. And early Saturday morning, a disoriented and slightly intoxicated female freshman cut her wrists in an apparent suicide attempt inside her Quadrangle room, sources said. The student voluntarily signed up for psychiatric treatment at HUP, according to police. Both students' current conditions were unavailable last night. University Police officials and Counseling and Psychological Services Director Ilene Rosenstein refused to comment on the specifics of these cases, citing confidentiality requirements, but Rosenstein stressed that students can do a lot to help friends who seem to be suffering from depression. "People often don't know how to respond when people are depressed," Rosenstein said, adding that "it's important that students take it very seriously when people talk about suicide." Residents on the HRE floor where Thursday's incident occurred said they did not know exactly what had happened. The floor's resident adviser declined to comment, as did the occupants of the room in which the incident occurred. No other details were available. In the other incident, the girl was not severely intoxicated and the cuts she inflicted were "superficial" and non life-threatening, two University Police officers close to the situation said. According to the officers, the only reason she gave for attempting suicide was that "life sucks." One of the officers said he believed the girl had been on medication for depression. The officer added that although the student did not want to be hospitalized, police officers are allowed to commit students who attempt suicide to psychiatric treatment for a mandatory three days, at which point a judge can order them to stay longer. If a student decides to voluntarily sign up for psychiatric treatment, he or she can check out shortly afterwards and refuse any treatment. In the aftermath of the incidents, Rosenstein urged students to talk to someone from CAPS or other available counseling groups if they are having problems. "There's help available," Rosenstein stressed. "If you're feeling these things, don't keep them inside. Don't suffer with them privately." CAPS is also available as a service to the friends and hallmates of the two students who attempted suicide, Rosenstein said. The last reported suicide of a University student was 26-year-old Wharton MBA student Elizabeth Kelsey, who killed herself by overdosing on medication in March 1997.
(04/21/98 9:00am)
In September, one group will celebrate its homecoming. Another will mourn its eviction. The Psi Upsilon fraternity, 21 members strong, will return to the Castle at 36th Street and Locust Walk after an eight-year University-imposed exile caused by Psi U's kidnapping of a brother in a rival fraternity in January 1990. During its absence, the Community Service Living-Learning Program was founded in 1991 and took up residence in the Castle -- the spacious, three-story building styled like a medieval fortress -- using the unique venue for coffeehouses and other events designed to raise money for charity. But next fall, when Psi U returns to its traditional residence -- which it used its own money to build and lived in for 92 years -- the CSLLP will move from the center of campus to its west end, on the 12th floor of High Rise North. According to current CSLLP members, only one of the 20 residents is even considering returning next year. In past years, as many as 12 have remained in the Castle for more than one year. Few think the program can survive without the Castle as its base. "I would be shocked if it's able to sustain itself in the high rises," said Castle resident Adam Barzilay, a College junior. College senior Margaret Quern, the CSLLP program director, explained that although she does not expect the program die, it will not be able to survive in the high rise in its current form. Quern said the "visibility" of the Castle enables the program to publicize its events, like the annual haunted house on Halloween and its regular coffeehouse performances of bands and a cappella groups for charity. The layout of the house also lends itself to establishing a community, CSLLP members said. These advantages are noticeably absent from the 12th floor of HRN, they say, meaning that the program will have to adapt to survive. The residents also questioned the University's commitment to providing the resources a group like the CSLLP needs. "I'm surprised that the University would get rid of the community service program [from Locust Walk] in favor of making Locust Walk entirely fraternities," CSLLP member and College sophomore Hillary Chernow said. But according to Associate Vice President for Campus Services Larry Moneta, who has been working on the Castle issue for several years, the University's hands were tied. When Penn bought the Castle from Psi U in the 1930s, the agreement stipulated that as long as Psi U was fully recognized by Penn and its national chapter, the University must give it a chance to live there. Last fall, Penn took the fraternity off the probationary "provisional" status. "We're very fond of the community service program, and we're very supportive of Psi Upsilon," Moneta said. "What we regret is having two great groups and only one building." Another fraternity, Phi Kappa Sigma, is returning this fall to its house across the Walk from the Castle. The fraternity, which recolonized in February 1997, had been leasing its house to the Delta Delta Delta sorority -- the only one on the Walk -- while it was suspended by its national chapter. Barzilay said that even if CSLLP could not legally stay in the Castle, the University should have done a better job of finding an alternative. Also, Quern said Penn officials did not do a good enough job of including current Castle residents in the decision making process. Administrators have maintained that the CSLLP will be able to use the HRN basement Rathskellar lounge for its events. Additionally, Penn officials announced in March that the former police headquarters at 3914 Locust Walk would be renovated to provide space for community service programming. Psi U President Todd Bishop said the fraternity recognizes the value of CSLLP and that he wished the University could have found them a better site. "The community service program contributes positively both to the University and West Philadelphia, and I think it would be appropriate for them to have presence on the Walk," Bishop, a Wharton junior, said. He also said the fraternity offered CSLLP the chance to use the Castle for select events next year in exchange for permission to use it this year for rush events and other activities. But Castle residents voted the proposal down, Quern said, because they "felt a little invaded" by the request and wanted to have control over the residence during their final year there. Bishop added, though, that the fraternity may continue to hold the charity coffeehouses that the CSLLP has done in the Castle. In order for the CSLLP to continue, Quern said the University needs to make a commitment to populating it with enthusiastic freshmen. "It'd be a shame for a program that does as many wonderful things as CSLLP to just die off," she said.
(04/16/98 9:00am)
Community House residents fear the forced departure of Diana Koros may doom the largest Quad college house. Shirley Zilberstein Many residents and staff of the Quadrangle's Community House said yesterday that they fear for the future of the house as they continue to search for answers to why their assistant dean of residence, Diana Koros, was not asked to return next year. In addition to Koros' forced departure, Community House Faculty Master Stephen Gale, a Regional Science professor, said he will decide today whether to stay with the house in the face of what he believes is administrative pressure to push him out. Chris Dennis, director of the Office of Academic Programs and Residence Life, declined to comment on "the status of incumbents in Community House." A committee of students, faculty and administrators who are reviewing applications for house deans -- a new position that will replace the current ADRs in the college house system -- informed Koros April 1 that she was the only one of the current ADRs in the candidate pool not to move on to the next step in the selection process. Koros said she expected to be reappointed for next year and was surprised by the decision. "Since my colleagues were deemed qualified, it's not really clear what was so unique about me," the 35-year-old doctoral student and mother of two said. Koros said the selection committee didn't cite a reason for dropping her from the applicant pool. Earlier this week, residential advisors in the house said Koros was opposed to some aspects of the new residential plan, which they speculated might have been a factor in the committee's decision to drop her from the pool. One RA said Koros wanted to keep more RAs in the house, rather than graduate associates, since the undergraduates are closer to the freshman experience. Koros said she is considering filing a lawsuit against the University, although she would not elaborate on what allegations such a suit would make. Interim Provost Michael Wachter defended the committee's decision, saying that "obviously, with such a strong group of applicants, some candidates will be disappointed." Gale, who has run Community House for four years, says he was "absolutely bewildered" by the committee's decision, one of several factors which have caused him to question the University's commitment to the house. "I think it's absurd that she's not getting her contract renewed," he said. "Diana is by far the best person for the job." Gale added that Engineering Professor David Pope, who heads the screening committee, did not tell him why Koros was denied the house dean position. "Personally, I don't think it has something to do with Diana," Gale said. "I think it's about wanting me out." He added that everything Koros did as ADR was with his consultation, and that if anyone is to be held accountable it should be him. Gale added that Dennis, who serves on the committees which reappoint both house deans and faculty masters, has had a history of conflict with both Community House administrators. In one instance, Gale said, Dennis withheld Koros' paycheck for four months for no apparent reason. Dennis would not comment on the accusation. Gale said he had to "fight [Dennis] all the way" before Koros was finally paid. Koros' termination and Gale's possible departure raise questions about the house's programming plans for next year, which include a "model city" project. Both Koros and Gale have backgrounds in city planning. It also puts the house in limbo at a time when it needs to gear up to attract incoming freshmen, as well as graduate students to serve as graduate associates in the new residential system, several Community House RAs said. But Wachter said he has "absolutely no doubt" that there will be "exceptional faculty and staff leading Penn's comprehensive college house system, including Community House," in time for next year's freshman class. Beginning this fall, the University's dormitories will be organized into 12 multi-year college houses -- including Community House, which will be the largest of the Quad's four houses -- with added programming and staff. Meanwhile, current residents of Community House are rallying in support of Koros, forming the Penn Coalition to Save Community House. The group has placed advertisements in The Daily Pennsylvanian to warn incoming freshmen against living in the house because of the current unrest and "lack of University commitment."
(04/15/98 9:00am)
One current Psi Upsilon brother called it "a massive error in judgment." Another deemed it "a dumb mistake."
(04/14/98 9:00am)
Once, the Psi Upsilon fraternity was simply "the Castle."
(04/02/98 10:00am)
The actions of a University Education professor who vocally opposed the opening of a mental-health facility in his Bucks County neighborhood were protected by the First Amendment, a federal judge ruled last week. Paul McDermott, the chairperson of the Psychology in Education division of the Graduate School of Education, was sued in 1996 by Salisbury House Inc., a for-profit company that owns and operates about 60 mental-health facilities in Pennsylvania. Salisbury House planned to open a "crisis home" -- the company's second -- in McDermott's neighborhood in Chalfont. Such a home is designed to provide several days of counseling and housing for people having a short-term mental-health episode not serious enough to require hospitalization. The facility encountered vehement resistance, led by McDermott -- a member of the GSE faculty since 1977 -- and his wife, Andrea. The company eventually scrapped the plan. Salisbury House sued the couple in U.S. District Court in Philadelphia in October 1996, accusing them of violating the federal Fair Housing Amendments Act by discriminating against the mentally handicapped. Despite ruling in McDermott's favor March 24, U.S. District Judge Franklin Van Antwerpen sharply criticized some of McDermott's behavior. "Although these views reflect an ill-advised, distasteful form of 'not-in-my-backyard'-ism, the defendants have the right under the First Amendment to express themselves without fear of prosecution," Van Antwerpen wrote in the decision. Thomas York, the McDermotts' attorney, said the decision represented "the acknowledgment of the First Amendment rights that we're all guaranteed." Van Antwerpen's "unnecessary side comments" were his "personal opinion" with no basis in law, York said. But Salisbury House attorney Edmond Tiryak said that while his clients were "disappointed [the judge] didn't rule in our favor," they were "pleased that the judge pretty much lambasted [McDermott] for his behavior, which was pretty repugnant." Tiryak said he has not ruled out the possibility of an appeal. The battle over the facility began in July 1996, when privately-held Salisbury House bought a 3.5-acre property across the street from the McDermotts. The company planned to use the house as a second place for temporary mental-health patients. According to the decision, Salisbury House decided to consult the neighborhood before moving in, which they had not done in the past. They distributed brochures and invited select neighbors to visit the Allentown facility. The McDermotts say the company only consulted a few of the property's immediate neighbors -- but not them. The McDermotts distributed fliers and pamphlets urging neighbors to oppose the facility and to speak out against it at a county zoning meeting. York said that while McDermott is "very sympathetic to the mentally ill," Salisbury House wanted to bring in patients who posed safety threats to the population. "If you knew [the McDermotts], and talked to them, and knew their motivations here, I think you would put this in a completely different perspective," he said. Tiryak, however, said it was hypocritical for a psychology professor to criticize the mentally ill, comparing it to "the chairman of the black studies program saying he didn't 'want any niggers in his neighborhood.' " Salisbury House officials say they then received bomb threats. The original owners of the property were also receiving threatening phone calls. In August 1996, the company backed out of the purchase, noting the "vicious, mean-spirited and factually incorrect" rumors being spread throughout the neighborhood. According to Tiryak, Salisbury House filed the suit on principle, because "people shouldn't be able to get away with doing this." The Allentown, Pa., company was seeking about $11,000 in damages. On March 27, Tiryak wrote a letter to University President Judith Rodin, saying McDermott's conduct was "too much for me to stomach" and asking her to take unspecified disciplinary action against him. York said that while McDermott was "concerned" about the letter, he expected Rodin to "consider the source of the letter and discard it." Jennifer Baldino, Rodin's staff assistant, said Rodin received the letter and "generally responds to every letter she receives," but would not comment further.
(03/31/98 10:00am)
'The Jerry Springer Show' will feature Penn students as guests. Better fasten those chairs to the floor. The student group Connaissance announced yesterday that it secured a commitment from Jerry Springer, host of the controversial Jerry Springer Show, to tape three episodes of his show on campus April 22. Springer, whose syndicated television talk show recently shot ahead of Oprah Winfrey's show in the Nielsen ratings, was looking for a college campus to use for a special "higher education" edition, according to Connaissance Co-Chairperson Jonathan Freedberg, an Engineering junior. But the shows will not just be taped on Penn's campus --Eall of the guests will be Penn students, too. Springer's producers have already started looking for guests for several potential topics, including "I Hooked Up With Your Boyfriend at Your Birthday Party!", "I Slept With My Professor's Wife!" and "Guess What, Roomie? I Have a Gay Crush on You!" Springer said last night that he was "excited" about the tapings. "Since my audience is usually filled with white trash, it'll be nice to have a room full of intelligent, sophisticated people watching me work," said Springer, who has never been to Penn and says he knows little about the University. The show, which is particularly popular on college campuses, has experienced incredible popularity in the past six months, as evidenced by the record-breaking sales of Springer's video, Jerry Springer: Too Hot for TV! and his ratings win over longtime talk-show queen Winfrey. Many conservative groups have blasted Springer's show, which includes violence and nudity in nearly every episode. Guests frequently throw punches, as well as their chairs, at each other. One angry guest recently threw a chair at College senior John La Bombard when he appeared on the show. "I'm just glad it didn't hit my penis," La Bombard said at the time. The show employs a full complement of bouncers to break up such violence -- after allowing sufficient time, of course, for it to capture the audience's attention. Still, Springer says his show is beneficial to its audience. "I know that I'm helping people," Springer insisted. "The shows contain insight into the human condition, and they often play like a Shakespearean tragedy. And my 'final thoughts' are always spiritual and uplifting." If the Penn taping goes well, Springer may take his show on the road more often, his producers said. Springer was once the mayor of Cincinnati -- which, incidentally, means the two most famous Cincinnatians are Springer and Marge Schott. His show is usually taped in Chicago.
(03/30/98 10:00am)
John Timoney will speak as an expert for Penn in the University's legal battle over the Game Room. Before he was appointed commissioner of the Philadelphia Police Department, John Timoney already had ties to the city's largest private employer -- the University of Pennsylvania. Timoney, who came from New York City to take over the troubled department earlier this month, is scheduled to be an expert witness for the University in its ongoing legal feud with the owners of a local video arcade and laundry. According to a pretrial memorandum filed in October by University attorneys, Timoney is one of three expert witnesses scheduled to testify in the case. He reviewed several documents related to the incident and personally inspected the site, according to a source close to the case. City officials, assisted by University Police, shut down University Pinball and University Laundry, at 4006-4008 Spruce Street, last April. Penn officials say the establishments were attracting crime to the area and failed to comply with University requests not to remain open for 24 hours. Following the closing, the Schoepe family, which owns the establishments, sued the University and the city in federal District Court, asserting that Penn and the Philadelphia Department of Licenses and Inspections conspired to illegally shut them down. Penn has countersued. Last fall, the city paid the Schoepes $60,000 to settle its part of the suit last fall. Timoney already gave a deposition in the case and is still scheduled to testify despite his appointment, the source said. The former No. 2 man in the New York Police Department would probably testify that the Schoepes' businesses do in fact attract crime to the area and therefore posed a safety hazard when the University closed them down, the source added. Timoney declined to comment on his potential testimony, as did attorneys for Penn and the Schoepes. The lawsuit has already forced several top Penn officials -- including University President Judith Rodin and Executive Vice President John Fry -- to give depositions. But the case has been languishing in the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals for nearly three months now, waiting for a an appellate ruling. The University filed appeals of several pre-trial rulings by U.S. District Judge Marvin Katz, who suspended the case while the appeals court considers the motion. The basis of the appeal is Katz's denial of Penn's motion for a quick judgment in favor of the University. Penn attorneys wanted to immediately appeal that decision, but a trial judge must grant permission to file an appeal while a case is still active. Katz denied the University's request to appeal, so they then appealed Katz's denial of the appeal as well as the original denial for summary judgment. The 3rd Circuit must first rule on whether or not Penn is allowed to appeal, and then on the substance of the actual appeal. The court has taken virtually no action since the appeal was filed in early January, but both sides expect something to happen next month.
(03/26/98 10:00am)
The prosecutor in the Vladimir Sled murder trial said yesterday he expects the upcoming trial of two of the defendants in the case to include testimony from the third -- who has already admitted to being the one who stabbed Sled to death. Eugene Harrison, 33, and Yvette Stewart, 30, are being tried together one month from tomorrow on second-degree murder and robbery charges for the October 31, 1996 slaying of the University biochemist near 43rd Street and Larchwood Avenue, as well as the robbery earlier that day of a Philadelphia Daily News driver. The third defendant, 26-year-old Bridgette Black, is not contesting her role in the murder and will have a "degree-of-guilt" hearing on May 13, in which she will essentially admit her role in the killing and ask a judge to decide exactly what she is guilty of. The prosecution believes that Black stabbed the Russian-born scientist when he fought Harrison, who was trying to rob him and his fiancee, then-University researcher Cecilia Hagerhall. Stewart allegedly waited in the getaway vehicle. Assistant District Attorney Dick Carroll said he is "anticipating [Black's] cooperation" in Harrison's and Stewart's trial, adding that a deal could be struck with her attorney, public defender Fred Goodman, by the end of next week. Goodman could not be reached for comment yesterday. Black's testimony could prove vital to the prosecution. She would be able to testify that Harrison, of the 5200 block of Arch Street, and Stewart, of the 500 block of North Allison Street, planned the robbery in advance, and that Stewart fired a gun while waiting in the car -- evidence that the alleged attackers were ready to use deadly force. Carroll has previously described that evidence as "crucial" to his case. Carroll said yesterday he plans to interview Black, of the 5100 block of Reno Street, next week to discuss her possible testimony. He emphasized that he is not offering her a plea bargain in exchange for her testimony, but an agreement would probably include a provision that Carroll appear at her sentencing to say she was helpful to the prosecution. Although she has admitted to being the one who stabbed Sled, Carroll said Black is the only one of the three defendants who has expressed remorse. In a statement allegedly given to Philadelphia police after his arrest, Harrison admitted to attempting to rob Sled, but denied any part in the murder. Stewart, meanwhile, has denied any foreknowledge of the robbery. Carroll said he believes Black will be a more effective witness since her testimony is not part of a plea agreement. Her hearing was purposely scheduled for after Harrison's and Stewart's trial -- which begins April 27 and is expected to last eight days -- so that Common Pleas Judge Carolyn Temin, who has presided over all pretrial motions, could take her potential cooperation into account when sentencing her. Harrison and Stewart's trial will probably also include testimony from Hagerhall, who now lives in Sweden. Carroll said she has been in contact with the Philadelphia Police Department over e-mail and is making plans to come back for the proceedings.
(03/25/98 10:00am)
The 6,100 new jobs in 1997 represent a 10-year growth high for the city. In a sign that Philadelphia may finally be emerging from the recession that hit the country in the early 1990s, the city's economy created a 10-year high of 6,600 new jobs in 1997, according to statistics released last week. The 561,500 total jobs represent an increase of 1.2 percent since 1996. That percentage may seem paltry, but it is the first time the city has shown any noticeable job growth since 1988. Last year's job growth was led by the construction industry, which experienced a 9 percent increase in total jobs. Alan Paisner, the regional commissioner for the U.S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics, said this was a good sign because the increased construction means more jobs will be created once the new buildings are put into use. Part of the growth is attributable to Penn's Sansom Common project, which began construction last summer, creating about 275 temporary jobs. The project's Inn at Penn will employ about 200 people when it opens in late 1999; the new bookstore opening this summer will employ 50 people compared with the 40 in the current bookstore; and the retailers and restaurants in the complex will employ dozens more. Paisner said the overall numbers are "certainly welcome news" for Philadelphia. "[The figures] mean an improvement in the economic situation," Paisner said. "I think we're starting to benefit from the overall positive national situation." Philadelphia has historically been quick to fall into national economic dips and slow to pull out of them, according to Penn Public Policy and History Professor Theodore Hershberg, who is also the director of the University's Center for Greater Philadelphia. He said the new numbers could represent the beginning of an upward trend for the city, though he cautioned that Philadelphia's economic future would likely hinge on the national economy's performance. Both Hershberg and Paisner praised Philadelphia Mayor Ed Rendell, who was elected in 1991, for instigating the job growth. "This is a reward for six years of work by the city," Hershberg said, citing Rendell's lowering taxes and "exerting fiscal discipline." The mayor has also been a "tireless cheerleader and dealmaker" for the city, Hershberg said. Manufacturing jobs, meanwhile, continued their long decline by falling about 3 percent -- the only major industry to see a decrease in positions. To make sure the job growth continues, Paisner had several suggestions for Rendell. "Things like lowering taxes [and] giving a better perception about both the crime situation and the quality of education would be helpful" to attract businesses that would otherwise set up shop in the surrounding suburbs, he said. Growth in the Philadelphia suburbs over last year was at about 2.3 percent. Like the city, the suburbs had their most severe drop-off in jobs between 1990 and 1992, but the jobs there have been growing much faster since then, hitting a 10-year peak last year. Philadelphia has not followed the lead of the national economy, which has been expanding since 1992, Paisner said, noting that other northeastern cities have also been slow to recover. He attributed Philadelphia's sluggish recovery to the city's older factories, higher taxes and utility costs and an unfavorable climate. Penn has been contributing and can continue to contribute to the local economy, Hershberg said. As the largest private employer in the city, the University should keep pumping money into the local economy, Hershberg said, by "investing its purchasing dollars in West Philadelphia so it can shore up the income of that community."
(03/24/98 10:00am)
The ongoing SEPTA labor negotiations are becoming a lot like TV's Seinfeld: nothing seems to happen. The threat of a strike still casts a pall over the negotiations, as the Transport Workers Union Local 234 continues to extend a temporary contract on an hour-by-hour basis. City buses, subways and trolleys are expected to run on schedule today. For the ninth straight day, the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transit Authority and leaders of the TWU accomplished little if anything in attempting to settle the three-month-old labor dispute. "There was nothing productive done," SEPTA negotiator Patrick Battel told reporters gathered yesterday at the Wyndham Franklin Plaza Hotel, where the talks are taking place. The two sides met for less than half an hour yesterday, during which time union officials asked SEPTA negotiators some basic financial questions on wage issues, Battel said. The two sides are still very far apart on such issues as wages, pension plans and a zero-tolerance drug and alcohol policy. Both sides have repeatedly accused the other of negotiating in bad faith. The standstill has continued since March 14, when the union agreed to keep talking past the contract deadline and postpone a possible strike by transit workers. A strike by the 5,300-member union would shut down most buses, trolleys and subways, leaving the transit system's 450,000 weekday passengers searching for other ways to get around the city. Regional rail lines would be unaffected. SEPTA management stepped up its public relations campaign yesterday afternoon, handing riders pamphlets entitled "What's Going On? Why SEPTA can't reach a new contract with the TWU." The pamphlet describes the negotiations as "pretty ridiculous," claiming the TWU "continues to demonstrate its interest in engaging in one contrived media stunt after another instead of negotiating in good faith a new agreement." The pamphlet also accuses TWU leaders of "continuing to hold riders, and their employees, hostage." SEPTA officials have maintained for the past week that if union leaders were to take management's proposal to the rank-and-file workers, they would approve it. Also yesterday, U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.), urged both parties to settle their dispute as quickly as possible, but refused to take sides. "I believe the parties have to work this out on the collective bargaining table on their own," Specter said after addressing the American Public Transit Association commuter rail conference at the Pennsylvania Convention Center. Despite the current acrimony, Battel sounded hopeful that a settlement would eventually be worked out. "I've been involved in collective bargaining for 20 years," he said. "The one thing that always happens is at the end of it, there is an agreement."
(03/23/98 10:00am)
The Black-shirt team beat the White-shirt team, 105-80, in the main matchup of Saturday's Public League All-Star doubleheader at St. Joseph's University. And unlike the league's championship game at the Palestra, the score was the biggest story to come out of the event. Three weeks ago, a gunman shot and killed one man and injured three others after Ben Franklin High School beat Franklin Learning Center at the Palestra to capture the city title. The shootings, near the corner of 33rd and Walnut streets, captured the city's attention for several days , bringing a lot of negative publicity to the School District of Philadelphia and its athletic league. The league's All-Star game, however, went off without a hitch this weekend, according to Public League Coaches Association President Mitchell Kurtz. "Everyone had a ball," he said. "It was absolutely fabulous." The games -- which included an All-Senior game, comprised of the top senior at each city high school, and the All-Public game, in which the top 20 high school players compete -- were held at St. Joseph's Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse. The games were originally scheduled to be at Drexel University yesterday, but on March 3 officials there canceled the event, citing safety concerns stemming from the Palestra shootings. St. Joseph's responded a week later by offering its arena for the annual event -- which is a chance for top city players to show their skills to college scouts -- citing a desire to contribute to the community. "The kids were ecstatic they got a chance to play in front of the college scouts and their friends and family," Kurtz said. Security for the games was provided by the Philadelphia Police Department, School District of Philadelphia guards and St. Joseph's Public Safety officers. While exact numbers were not available yesterday, St. Joseph's Athletic Department spokesperson Larry Dougherty promised last week that security would be visible, but not "oppressive." Penn, meanwhile, is still in the process of reviewing its relationship with the Public League and its policies of letting outside groups use its facilities. University spokesperson Ken Wildes said Friday that officials have not yet decided whether to continue hosting the Public League championship game, which it has done for the past two years. He said there is no need to rush the decision, and that officials wanted to avoid an announcement while emotions are still high. Representatives from such diverse departments as the President's Office, the Athletic Department, the Office of Student Life, Activities and Facilities and the Division of Public Safety are trying to decide whether the University should continue its relatively open-door policy on letting outsiders use Penn facilities. Because of the scope of the question and the decentralized nature of such decisions, officials will not be announcing changes anytime soon, Wildes said.
(03/17/98 10:00am)
Nearly one week after Drexel University said it would not host the annual Public League basketball all-star doubleheader in the wake of the March 1 shootings near the Palestra, St. Joseph's University stepped in to provide a venue for the games. The March 10 announcement by St. Joseph's and School District of Philadelphia officials came nine days after the shootings that followed the Public League high school championship game. The shooting left a North Philadelphia man dead and three others wounded, including a Penn senior. While police officials said they did not believe the shooting was related to the game, Drexel decided two days later not to host the all-star doubleheader -- leaving the annual event homeless less than three weeks before the game, which was scheduled for March 22. St. Joseph's officials said they chose to offer their Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse, which can hold 3,200 spectators, out of a belief that area universities should do what they can to help out the city. "Universities should be fixtures in the community and should be able to extend their facilities when needed," St. Joseph's Athletic Department spokesperson Larry Dougherty said. Mitchell Kurtz, president of the Public League Coaches Association, which runs the games, said he was "ecstatic" about the offer. "I was glad that someone did the right thing," he said. The athletes are "absolutely thrilled" that officials were able to find a venue, Kurtz added. When Drexel announced it would not host the games, the school cited a March 2 editorial in The Daily Pennsylvanian recommending that Penn not host the Public League championship in the future because of the possibility of violence. Penn also hosted the championship in 1997. Gunshots were fired outside the Palestra after that game, too, but no injuries were reported. Neither St. Joseph's or School District officials said they were expecting a security problem, but the District will "provide whatever support is necessary to ensure that the game takes place in a safe environment," school board President Floyd Alston said in a statement. St. Joseph's and the Philadelphia Police Department will also provide security for the event, but the security will not be "too oppressive," Dougherty said. Neither Dougherty nor the Philadelphia Police Department could say how many police officers and security guards would patrol the event. More than 100 police officers and security guards were on hand for the championship games at the Palestra. "The intent is just to have a presence, not an oppressive environment," Dougherty added. "Fans should be able to enjoy themselves but also feel safe." A Philadelphia Police Department spokesperson said the event would not be "any different than any other game." Public League officials also received an offer from the CoreStates Center to host the game, but unspecified scheduling conflicts prevented its use. The all-star game is a chance for select Philadelphia basketball players to compete in front of college scouts. There are traditionally two games at the event: the All-Senior game, which is comprised of the top senior at each district high school, and the All-Public game, with the top 20 district athletes, regardless of school or age. Many of the players earn college athletic scholarships based on their performances in the game, Kurtz said. About five players from the league end up in the National Basketball Association each year, including former NBA great Wilt Chamberlain and current players Rasheed Wallace, Doug Overton and Jerome Richardson.
(03/06/98 10:00am)
In its response to a lawsuit, the University said the doctor was abusing drugs. A physician claiming that the University Health System illegally suspended him was allegedly abusing prescription medication and unable to function as a doctor, according to court documents filed by the University last week. Steven Burke, 44, an internal medicine physician from Chester County, filed suit January 16 in Philadelphia Common Pleas Court. The suit accuses Health System officials of defamation and breach of contract for suspending Burke on October 22, 1997. Other defendants in the case include his former partner, Isaac Tam; his former boss, Paul Rogers; and Chester County Hospital, which suspended Burke after Tam told officials there that Burke was unfit to practice medicine. On February 20, Health System officials told Burke, who suffers from depression, that they were terminating his employment with Clinical Care Associates, the primary-care division of the Health System. Last Thursday, the Health System filed a response and countersuit filled with accusations that are unusually harsh for court documents. Most significantly, the University accuses Burke of using Tam's name and identification number to prescribe Xanax, an anti-depression medication. The Health System's countersuit also claims that Burke breached his contract when he and his attorneys gave "confidential information about CCA" to The Philadelphia Inquirer and The Daily Pennsylvanian. Yesterday, Burke's attorney Tom Monteverde denied all of the University's accusations. The Health System's court documents rely heavily on Tam's deposition, in which he claims that Burke's wife told him that Burke was taking "heavy doses of psychiatric drugs? had talked about suicide? [and] had an affair with another woman," in addition to acting, in general, very strangely. According to Tam, Denise Burke allegedly denied she took the medication prescribed in her name. In her own deposition, Denise Burke denied making any of those statements. Monteverde confirmed yesterday that Burke used Tam's prescription number, but stressed that he did it with Tam's permission. Soon after Tam's conversation with Denise Burke, Tam contacted CCA officials and they decided to suspend Burke for medical reasons. In an interview with the the DP last month, Tam defended his actions and maintained that Burke is unable to practice medicine until "he gets appropriate help." "When I see a physician has deteriorated to a point where he's endangering patients' well-being, I have no option but to bring it to the attention of the appropriate medical personnel," Tam said. Tam declined further comment last night. But Monteverde accused Tam of lying about what Denise Burke told him because "he knew that Dr. Burke was getting ready to either leave [CCA] or practice separate from Dr. Tam." CCA officials decided to fire Burke, Monteverde said, because of the publicity surrounding the case -- which included a front-page article in the Inquirer. "[The publicity] made some people nervous about other doctors doing this," he said. "They know they had no right to fire him. It was more important to use him as an example of their power." Health System officials were unavailable for comment yesterday. The allegations offer a glimpse into the vast and complicated array of hospitals, doctors and administrators that make up the Penn Health System. The system, with annual revenue near $2 billion, comprises four hospitals with a total of 18,000 employees. Another six hospitals are affiliated with the system. CCA is made up of about 85 medical practices and 265 doctors. Burke and Tam had been partners for nearly 15 years before they joined CCA in 1994. CCA promised to expand the partners' West Chester, Pa., office facilities, hire a third doctor for them and increase their salaries, in exchange for becoming employees of the Health System, according to Burke's original complaint. But Burke's suit says CCA's promises never materialized and his workload increased by more than 30 percent. Burke also claims that Tam did not pull his share of the workload. According to the Health System's response, however, while Tam did have to take significant time off to care for a severely ill child, Burke frequently locked himself in his office to "play the stock market" while his patients waited for him to attend to them. Before his termination, Burke had offered to return to work if CCA gave him a solo practice, which they had already promised him they would do, he claims. But CCA refused to abide by his terms and said in their response that their employment agreement specifically bars oral agreements.
(03/05/98 10:00am)
A 2 1/2-year-old sexual harassment suit against the University got a boost yesterday when the Supreme Court ruled that federal sexual harassment law extends to cases when the victim and the harasser are of the same sex. Brian Linson, a 31-year-old former Penn graduate student, accused the University of failing to properly respond to his original complaint against his then-fellow graduate student Kenjiro Matsuda, who Linson claims sexually harassed him during a seven-month period beginning in September 1992. Linson said yesterday he was happy with the decision but not surprised, especially since the justices made no secret of their opinions when lawyers originally argued the case in December. Chief Justice William Rehnquist said then he did not "see how we could possibly sustain" a lower court ruling against Joseph Oncale, the plaintiff who sued for sexual harassment. The 3rd Circuit Court of Appeals put Linson's case on hold last July pending the Supreme Court's decision in Oncale v. Sundowner Offshore Services, but yesterday Linson said that he expects "that the ruling will be in my favor following this decision." Linson, who was studying for a doctorate in linguistics, claims in the suit that Matsuda grabbed his genitals and asked for sexual favors. Penn expelled Linson in 1993, claiming he owed nearly $10,000. Linson, however, claims the move was in retaliation for his accusations. The University has denied all the charges. Yesterday, University officials were unavailable for comment on Linson's case. U.S. District Judge Robert Kelly ruled in favor of the University in August 1996, but Linson appealed the decision five months later after Justice Department officials contacted him and offered to help him pursue the case. Linson had been representing himself. Yesterday, the Supreme Court ruled unanimously in favor of a Louisiana oil rig worker who says he was sexually pursued and harassed by his male supervisor and two other men during his four months working on a Gulf of Mexico rig. The high court cited Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, an anti-discrimination law. "We see no justification? for a categorical rule excluding same-sex harassment claims from the coverage of Title VII," Justice Antonin Scalia wrote in the seven-page opinion. In a previous ruling against Oncale, a federal appeals court said the law does not apply to same-sex harassment. Although Title VII does not specifically mention sexual harassment, the Supreme Court ruled in 1986 that it amounts to discrimination if it creates a "hostile environment" in the workplace. If the high court had not ruled for the plaintiff, Linson said, men harassed by other men would have to "resort to vigilante justice." Linson said he wants to return to the University and would settle the suit if they allowed him to come back. "They've taken a person who wanted to come here to learn and they've made me an expellee," he said. Linson added that he is not sure what the next step is in his suit. He said he had not yet spoken with Linda Thome, the Justice Department attorney who is assisting him. Linson -- who is currently working as a research associate with a television analysis firm in Philadelphia -- said his dismissal from Penn is a "permanent blot" on his record. Thome, who works in the Civil Rights Division, could not be reached for comment yesterday.
(03/05/98 10:00am)
Citing security concerns, Drexel cancelled plans for the high school basketball league to use its facilities. Philadelphia public school officials scrambled yesterday to find a new venue for their high school all-star basketball doubleheader one day after Drexel University, which was supposed to host the event on March 22, announced that its arena would be "unavailable." The school chose not to hold the boys and girls hoops event because of worries it would "create unnecessary public safety risk for Drexel's campus community," according to a statement the school released Tuesday. The announcement came two days after a fatal shooting on 33rd Street between Walnut and Chestnut streets following the Public League boys basketball championship game at the Palestra Sunday afternoon. North Philadelphia resident Anthony Davis, 22, was killed, and three others -- including a University student -- were wounded in the incident. School District of Philadelphia officials expressed regret about Drexel's decision, but said they were hopeful another organization would volunteer to host the games. "We just want to be able to put on a game that's worthy of the kids and worthy of the history of basketball in Philadelphia," said Mitchell Kurtz, the president of the Public League Coaches Association, which runs the annual games. "Why do [the kids] have to be the innocent victims?" Kurtz, who coaches the basketball team at Robert Lamberton High School in the city's Overbrook Park section, traced some of the blame for Drexel's decision to an editorial that ran in Monday's Daily Pennsylvanian. The staff editorial, a passage of which Drexel cited in its official statement, recommended that Penn not host the championship game in the future in order to better ensure students' safety. According to police investigators, the shooting was unrelated to the game and was the result of longstanding animosity between Davis and his attacker. Jeffrey Noble, 19, a friend of Davis' who was wounded in the shooting, was a student at Benjamin Franklin High School, which defeated Franklin Learning Center 61-56. No arrests have been made. Sunday's incident has caused many Penn community members to question the school's decision to host the championship game, especially since police reported hearing gunfire following last year's game, which was also at the Palestra. According to University spokesperson Ken Wildes, Penn officials are reviewing the school's relationship with the Public League and will probably make a decision this month about hosting the championship game next year. They will also review all of Penn's policies about allowing outside groups to use Penn's facilities, but Wildes continued to emphasize last night that the University will not make a "snap decision." "We're not going to rush to judgment here. We're going to look at the facts and make an informed decision," he said. He declined to comment on Drexel's choice, but said Penn is not under "the same pressure" that Drexel was since the all-star game is less than three weeks away. Drexel Associate Athletic Director Johnson Bowie did not rule out the possibility of hosting future Public League events, saying officials would probably consider each case individually. According to a statement released by School District Superintendent David Hornbeck, officials are "considering a number of options" for hosting the event and will "do everything we can to see that the game takes place in an easily accessible, safe environment." School District officials, meanwhile, have already asked about using Temple University's new Apollo complex and the Alumni Memorial Fieldhouse at St. Joseph's University. Officials at both those schools said yesterday that their facilities are already booked for March 22. But they said that if the Coaches Association decides to change the date, they would consider hosting it. School District spokesperson Pam Weddington said if they are unable to find another venue, they would use the gym of a public high school. But she emphasized that that would be the "last resort." Kurtz said the Coaches Association will postpone the event if a site is willing to host them at a later date. The all-star games have been held annually for 23 years. Part of the proceeds from the event goes to scholarships for the athletes.
(03/04/98 10:00am)
A lawsuit filed by a black woman and longtime University employee accusing Penn of discrimination after she was fired in 1996 ended last week when the two sides finalized a settlement. The University did not admit wrongdoing in the settlement, which allowed Sylvia Canada -- who had worked at Penn since 1970, first as a secretary and then in various positions in the Division of Public Safety -- to become an administrative assistant for the division. In the suit, filed in U.S. District Court in July 1996, Canada alleged that she was fired in February 1996 from her position as a staff assistant because of her race. Canada, 48, also accused Penn of ignoring her application for the position of director of Victim Support and Special Services, among other jobs. The University denied all of the allegations against it in its response to the complaint, and said she was not qualified for the other positions which were available when she was laid off. Both sides said they were "satisfied" with the arrangement. Canada said yesterday that "we can both live with" the agreement. And University General Counsel Shelley Green stressed that Penn did not admit liability in the settlement. "We're happy we were able to resolve the matter," she said. "Everyone is quite satisfied." According to court documents, the two sides worked out a tentative settlement in January 1997 in which Canada was hired as administrative assistant to Director of Special Services Susan Hawkins. Canada returned to work in that position on January 6, 1997 after an 11-month absence. She has been there ever since. Although the two sides were originally supposed to finalize the agreement six months later, both parties agreed to extend the timetable several times until last week when they decided to make the settlement permanent. Canada first came to the University as a secretary in the Mathematics Department, where she worked for seven years. In 1978, she graduated from the Philadelphia Police Academy and was appointed to the University Police force. According to the original complaint, Canada was involved in an incident in 1981 in which a fellow officer refused to back her up at the scene of a crime. The officer, Dan Forsyth, then allegedly assaulted Canada. Forsyth was dismissed because of the attack, but the complaint alleged that the incident "engendered serious dislike for Ms. Canada among many white male police officers," including Lt. Joseph Weaver, who became Canada's supervisor in 1993. The lawsuit also named as co-defendants Weaver and Managing Director of Public Safety Thomas Seamon. After Weaver became Canada's superior, the complaint says, her responsibilities were "seriously diminished," and Weaver ignored her requests for additional assignments. In February 1996, Seamon told her she was being laid off because of an organizational restructuring. The suit said this was simply a pretense to get rid of her.
(03/03/98 10:00am)
In light of Sunday's shootings following a high school basketball game at the Palestra, University officials said they will rethink policies about allowing outside groups to use Penn facilities. The shootings -- which left one dead and three injured, including a University student -- immediately followed the Philadelphia Public League championship basketball game between Benjamin Franklin High School and the Franklin Learning Center, which are located a block from each other just north of Center City. "We want to take a hard look at our policies and procedures," University spokesperson Ken Wildes said last night, warning that "we're not going to have any quick, easy answers." According to Wildes, two other high school basketball leagues are scheduled to use the Palestra this month, and University officials do not plan to cancel the events. University officials discussed that issue at a meeting yesterday afternoon. About a dozen representatives from several departments -- including the Athletic Department, the Office of Student Life, Activities and Facilities and the Division of Public Safety -- attended the session in College Hall, Wildes said. At that meeting, the group discussed the shootings and decided the University needs to examine its decision to let outsiders use the Palestra, as well as the general issue of the use of all facilities by people not affiliated with Penn, he added. Public League officials did not return repeated calls for comment yesterday. Wildes said the University allows groups such as the Philadelphia School District use of its facilities because "we want to be helpful" to the community. Penn does not charge the Public League to use the Palestra. "It's the kind of thing we should be doing for a lot of important reasons," he said. "It's consistent with our educational mission." He said officials could reach a decision about next year's Public League championship game within the next several weeks, adding that "we want to gather the facts as quickly as we can. We will make this decision on the basis of facts, not emotion." A campus-wide review of outside groups' use of facilities, though, will likely take several months, given the many divisions and organizations in the University, Wildes said. The Public League championship game moved to the Palestra last year after several years in the nearby Civic Center and, before that, Temple University's now-defunct McGonigle Hall in North Philadelphia. Following last year's game, police heard gunfire coming from a car at 33rd and Walnut streets -- at nearly the same exact spot as Sunday's shootings -- but no injuries were reported. Wildes said the 1997 incident caused "some" hesitation about letting the league use the Palestra again, but officials decided it did not pose a threat. Charles Staniskis, the principal of Franklin Learning Center, said he believes the incident was largely unrelated to the basketball game, and hopes Penn officials would allow the league to use the Palestra again.
(03/02/98 10:00am)
The University's new top lawyer has a most unusual distinction on his resume -- the experience of grilling a Supreme Court nominee. Peter Erichsen -- who assumed the newly-created post of vice president and general counsel of the University and the Health System in December -- had that opportunity in 1994, after President Clinton nominated Judge Stephen Breyer for the high court. At the time, Erichsen, 41, was working for the Justice Department, where he was in charge of investigating potential nominees for federal judgeships and helping prepare them for Senate confirmation hearings. For Breyer, then the chief judge of the 1st Circuit Court of Appeals in Boston, Erichsen impersonated a senator, questioning Breyer in the rigorous style that has become common for presidential nominees. "It's always kind of an awkward thing, because there you are interrogating this distinguished legal scholar and very important federal judge," Erichsen said. "You never know quite whether you're annoying him." Erichsen, in his first foray into higher-education law, oversees both of Penn's legal offices and serves as the chief legal adviser to University President Judith Rodin and Health System Chief Executive Officer William Kelley. Penn hired him to enhance communication between the University's and Health System's legal offices, as well as to oversee long-term legal planning. Erichsen said he didn't go to Harvard Law School in the hope of actually becoming a lawyer. Indeed, he remembers thinking that such an education would be a good way to get into journalism. "It's kind of a wacky reason for going to law school," Erichsen admitted. "But I somehow lost track of that original idea." After graduating from Harvard in 1981, Erichsen went to work for the Boston law firm of Ropes & Gray. He would remain with the firm for 12 years. His four years in Washington began when Clinton appointed Eleanor Acheson, a friend and colleague of Erichsen's from his days at Ropes & Gray, as an assistant attorney general. She asked Erichsen to come to Washington as her deputy. "It was something I always wanted to do," Erichsen said of his government work. "I've always been interested in government and politics, and I wasn't sure an opportunity like this would come along again." During his tenure in Washington, Erichsen served as a deputy assistant attorney general in the Justice Department before moving to the White House General Counsel's Office. In both jobs, Erichsen helped coordinate the Clinton administration's federal judicial nominations, including District Court, Court of Appeals and Supreme Court positions. Erichsen left the Justice Department for the White House in January 1996. While there, he worked with Congress' judicial committees and individual senators who wanted judges from their state nominated for federal positions. He also had the chance to observe firsthand the president's changing fortunes during the election year. "At the beginning of '96, things looked very uncertain," he said, referring to Clinton's initially low poll numbers for the November election. "But as the year went along, we became much more optimistic." By the end of 1997, though, Erichsen said he began to tire of his duties. He started looking for another job elsewhere in the government or in the private sector. When the position at Penn became available, he jumped at the opportunity because it offered the opportunity to practice several different types of law and to work for "an institution that has an educational and charitable mission," Erichsen said. "I was hugely interested in it," he added. "As much fun as I had at the White House and the government in general, it was absolutely clear to me that it was the right thing to do." Erichsen said he is still in the process of "learning as much as I can" about Penn. "The key to providing good legal advice is understanding your client," Erichsen said, explaining that he will begin working on long-range legal planning after he becomes more familiar with the University. And even after 17 years of practicing law, Erichsen said he still enjoys it immensely. "I really like being a lawyer," he noted. "I feel very fortunate to have hit upon something I like doing."
