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(10/24/00 9:00am)
During this presidential election season, you probably haven't given too much thought to the issue of federalism, the relationship between the states and the federal government. But no issue divides Al Gore and George W. Bush more than on which levels of government power should lie.
The question before voters, while complicated, is whether the federal government should retain the vast powers it has today or if more should be left to the states and the free market. The issue permeates most facets of American life, from who determines educational standards for our schools to whether the federal government is allowed to prosecute certain crimes.
At its heart, this is a constitutional matter. The nation's founding document enumerates certain rights for the federal government, such as waging war and regulating interstate commerce, while reserving the remainder to the individual states. It wasn't until the 1930s that the federal government first assumed its current activist role in American life.
Gore, the Democratic nominee, is in many ways the heir to Franklin Roosevelt, Lyndon Johnson and his current boss as a supporter of the modern regulatory state.
Relying on a loose interpretation of the Constitution, the current administration has legislated vast new federal protections in areas once reserved for the states, such as gun control and domestic violence. Gore endorses federal regulatory powers over the environment and products like tobacco, and his Supreme Court would protect personal privacy rights -- including that to an abortion -- even though no such rights are mentioned in the Constitution.
By his constant reminders that he trusts "the people," not Washington, GOP hopeful Bush would devolve much federal authority to states, individuals, faith-based organizations and the private sector.
Should Bush win and the Republicans retain control of Congress, the legislature and the courts would be empowered to undertake the first major rollback of federal regulatory legislation in areas like the environment and consumer protection.
This process has been underway in the judiciary since 1995, as strict constructionalists have overturned federal legislation like the Gun-Free School Zones and Violence Against Women acts, ruling that those issue areas belonged to the states. Bush has said he favors strict constructionalist justices like Antonin Scalia and Clarence Thomas, and his new appointees would only speed up this trend.
In essence, Gore would maintain active regulation at the federal level, while Bush would have the federal government dissolve many of its laws and give the states and local governments the option to reconstitute them individually.
(08/31/00 9:00am)
"It's good for the organization to have permanent leadership to move forward."
Peter Traber said those words in March, just after the "interim" was dropped from his title as interim CEO of the University of Pennsylvania Health System. And we couldn't agree more.
That is why it's all the more disheartening and disappointing that only four months later, Traber abruptly left the position he seemed poised to tackle.
University President Judith Rodin appointed Traber to replace the beleaguered William Kelley as the Health System confronted mounting budget deficits approaching $300 million. Traber made a commitment -- indeed, he said he relished the opportunity -- to see the system through its remediation strategy. His personal manner and sense of purpose buoyed the morale of a staff that had suffered under Kelley.
In that light, his decision to leave -- albeit for untold fortunes and professional opportunities at pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline -- was irresponsible.
We don't know what other motivations led Traber to pack up his office in the Penn Tower Hotel. He was a shoo-in to be named dean of the Medical School, a position he had on an interim basis, and the Health System's finances were improving under his watch.
But those forces could not have been so great as to lead him to sacrifice his personal credibility by abandoning a job he had sought for so long and held for so short a time
(08/31/00 9:00am)
Some things, it seems, will never change.
Every year, a new freshman class arrives to the plaudits of administrators -- once again, it is the most accomplished class ever to enter the University -- and the amusement of upperclassmen seeing images of their former selves.
Every year, we marvel at the progress made to the campus' physical and intellectual infrastructure over the summer and lament those areas where the University has fallen short.
And every year, this being no exception, we welcome you -- back or for the first time -- to a campus in transition.
As in each of the last several years, construction dominates the headlines -- and sidewalks -- at the University of Pennsylvania.
At the very least, the oft-delayed Sundance Cinemas and Freshgrocer.com projects on 40th Street promise new entertainment and nourishment options for students before the end of the academic year. And at most, they may spur the revitalization of the corridor that historically has served as the dividing line between campus and community.
In the heart of campus, work is progressing on Huntsman Hall, the state-of-the-art academic center that will house much of the Wharton School upon completion in 2002. Meanwhile, work winds down on the Perelman Quadrangle and the newly opened Houston Hall is poised to reclaim its role as the center of student life.
Academic life at Penn will also undergo its own renovations this year. Two hundred students will test the first revision of the College's general education requirement in more than a decade, while at the same time Penn's largest undergraduate school experiments with an overhaul of its notoriously dysfunctional advising system.
Two deanships -- Nursing and Medicine -- remain vacant, and committees are or will soon be in place to plug those holes. The added catch is that with the resignation of Peter Traber, Penn is looking for a single candidate to head both the Medical School and the Health System, whose beleaguered finances should concern all members of the school community.
Other issues that will earn attention this year include the state of Penn's alcohol policy, the travails of the Political Science Department and the deliberations over the faculty's intellectual-property rights.
And of course, our men's basketball team has an Ivy title to defend.
We hope this issue serves as an introduction to Penn for new students and a catalog of the summer's changes for those returning.
For our part, we'll strive to uphold the highest standards of fairness and accuracy in everything we print.
Over the course of the year, we hope that you'll continue to turn to The Daily Pennsylvanian for news that matters to you, and to this page for editorials and columns that shed new light on the issues.
Every day, you'll see the editors of the DP take a stance in the staff editorial appearing at the top of this page, and weekly columnists will give their views on life and events at the University.
But this page is also for you -- for you to share your views on major issues, to offer praise and level criticism, to offer wisdom that we may not be privy to inside these walls.
Let us know when you think we've done something well or when we can be doing our jobs better.
Welcome, and we wish you a successful year
(04/21/00 9:00am)
The fate of McGinn Security Services' agreement with the University to provide guard service in residence halls will be announced tomorrow by acting Vice Provost for University Life Valarie Swain-Cade McCoullum. A report released by a committee of University officials, students and staff members earlier this week lists three courses of actions the University can take. One option is to terminate the contract with McGinn within 30 days. Another possibility is for the University to place the security firm on a 90-day probationary period. If there are any performance standard violations during this period, the agreement would be immediately terminated. Finally, the University can terminate the contract on June 30 of this year, four years earlier than when the contract is set to expire. If this is done, McGinn would have to rebid, along with other security firms, in order to receive the contract. Regardless of what McCoullum decides concerning McGinn, problems with residential security have been highlighted during the process and must still be addressed. Simply firing McGinn, if this is what the University decides to do, is not the ultimate solution to residential security problems, University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich has said repeatedly throughout the investigation. It still remains to be seen whether any other guard firm in the area will be able to provide better services for the University if the current residential security policy remains the same. A team of independent security consultants, in a report prepared for the Department of Public Safety, recommended that "the security function be re-organized and that security management, operators, programs and career development responsibilities be transferred to the Department of Public Safety." Residential security issues are currently handled by the Residential Living Department. And it was Residential Living, and not McGinn Security Services, that refused to allow guards to eat or drink at guard posts. Richard Schwab, a sleep expert at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, wrote in a report that this policy is a mistake and actually increases the likelihood that guards will fall asleep. Guards are now allowed to eat and drink at their posts as a result of these findings. Another concern with residential security is the fact that the security guards really only have one function, to check identification cards. Director of Public Safety George Clisby said guards should be given more responsibilities, such as patrolling student floors and the exteriors of buildings. If the University decides to have McGinn and other firms bid for a new contract, it will need to amend the contract to make sure specific guidelines for performance standards and responsibilities for the guards are explicitly stated. "Clearly no contract will be purchased with anyone that has no reference to performance standards," Interim President Claire Fagin said earlier this week. And McCoullum has said in the past month that the University has been looking into the possibility of investing in new technology such as the installation of ID scanners on the outside of buildings. She also said that it is important that the funding necessary for the improvement of residential security is raised. Last year, when Residential Living wanted to hire another roving guard from McGinn to patrol all the residences, it found there was no money in its budget to pay for this. Joseph McGinn Sr., president of McGinn Security Services, wound up paying for the additional guard at his own expense, Residential Living Director Gigi Simeone said. But McCoullum said Monday that regardless of the cost, improving residential security is a priority.
(09/23/99 9:00am)
From Kent Malmros', "Everything Old is New Again," Fall '99 From Kent Malmros', "Everything Old is New Again," Fall '99Every day, we print 14,000 copies of The Daily Pennsylvanian, and you read them. Historically, there has been very little communication between our readers and our staff. You can write letters to the editor or call our offices to applaud or complain about something we have done. But we never truly ask you to give us feedback about our layout or our coverage. It is time to change that. As the executive editor of the DP, I spend a good deal of time discussing the way we operate and our reasons for doing certain things. Unfortunately, most of those discussions are with a couple dozen student leaders and administrators. But there are 24,000 other members of the Penn community reading our paper on a daily basis and your opinions are important to us. So from now on, I want to give you a way to make yourselves heard. Every Thursday night, I will put aside an hour, beginning at 7 p.m., to discuss the DP as much as you would like. I will be at Chats and I will be at your disposal. Take a look at my headcut and come introduce yourself to me. We as a staff have a responsibility to report the news in the clearest and most objective manner possible. We have a responsibility to provide a forum for ideas and free expression. And we have a responsibility to keep getting better as we do these things. Most of you probably take for granted that we work hard to get better. We continually look inward to find innovative ways to make our newspaper as good as it can be. But we need to start looking outward to our readership, giving them the chance to tell us what they like about us -- and what they don't like about us. For example, I may learn that spelling errors are people's greatest source of frustration when reading the news pages. Or there may be larger concerns. Students may have the opportunity to simply talk about their disappointment with lack of minority coverage in the DP or the lack of feature writing. By opening such channels of conversation, I will be able to identify problems that may have escaped our attention and talk with you about solutions that may not have occurred to us. If you know about a student who is of interest, we might not. Surely, there will be some of you who might want to just come and sit down with me and complain about issues that have bothered you for months, or even years. That's fine, too. For my part, the dialogue will give me the chance to explain how journalists work and what we try to accomplish. Such a conversation will provide me the opportunity to educate you about our product while you are educating me. Though such conversations may not lead to resolutions, they will lead to better understanding -- and that may be the beginning of positive change. I want to spend this semester trying to find out what students, faculty, staff and administrators want out of the DP. By setting a weekly meeting time, I hope to create a forum for conversation that will examine not only our coverage of issues but also your perceptions of media coverage on a larger scale. This will allow us to learn from you and it may give you the opportunity to understand just a little better what it is that we are trying to do. This semester will be one of change and improvement. We certainly will not be perfect -- no newspaper is. But don't ignore us when we make a mistake. Come find me tonight and help us find the solutions.
(11/12/98 10:00am)
Penn's purchase of 200 rental units could be a big boost for the neighborhoods in University City. Penn's purchase of 36 University City buildings containing 200 rental units marks one of the University's largest real estate deals in recent years, though the parties involved have refused to disclose the terms. More important than the size of the purchase, the deal to buy Campus Associates fits perfectly into the University's ultimate goal of stabilizing and improving the neighborhoods surrounding campus. For years, community members have rightfully complained about a transient student population that is messy and loud. Though this description by no means extends to all students, we recognize that a strong neighborhood must contain owner-residents with strong ties to the community. Though Penn's decision to buy such a large chunk of area property and use part of it to attract faculty and staff to University City was wise, we hope that this does not become a trend that deprives students of the opportunity to live off campus. One of the University's strongest draws is that it is a city school, and a major part of that stems from being able to live in a community where you are exposed to people who are not college students. One worrisome aspect of this deal is that the public was not made aware of it in July, when Penn actually bought the houses. University officials have been very conscious over the past few years of how they are perceived -- and as a result have tread carefully and tried to avoid the popular perception that Penn only makes West Philadelphia decisions unilaterally. As a result, it's all the more puzzling why officials didn't come forward, announce their purchase and explain its intended effects. Given the contentious history of Penn buying land, demolishing the buildings on it and then rebuilding, it seems that much more important for Penn to let students and community members in on major property purchases after they occur. Fortunately, in this case the effects of the purchase appear to be in line with many of the University's other large recent initiatives in the community -- well-guided and with lots of potential for University City.
(10/30/98 10:00am)
The Daily Princetonian PRINCETON, N.J. (U-WIRE) --Women's field hockey is like a fine wine: it gets better with age. Or at least with every game it plays against a top-five opponent. "We played better against Old Dominion than Connecticut, and I think we will rise again to the occasion against North Carolina," senior attack Molly O'Malley said. While it is true that the last two times No. 4 Princeton (12-2 overall, 6-0 Ivy League) faced off against such an opponent -- last weekend against No. 1 Old Dominion and two weeks ago against No. 3 Connecticut -- they have lost, the Tigers have improved. Tomorrow Princeton will get a chance to continue to improve, as the Tigers travel to Old Dominion to face to No. 5 North Carolina (11-4). Against Connecticut, the Tigers' offense hurt them the most. Teamwork has never been a problem. Rather it was individual skills that made Princeton's offense unable to capitalize on the opportunities it had during the contest. Last Sunday against Old Dominion, the Tigers played well. One of the two goals scored against them was questionable, as head coach Beth Bozman even earned a green card disputing the goal. Offensively the Tigers gave themselves scoring chances, fixing the individual skill problems that plagued them against Connecticut. But Princeton still was not able to convert its chances. "We had a couple of chances to convert on corners, and we didn't," O'Malley said. "We got our shots off well, we just missed the tips." "Overall we were pretty happy with how we played against Old Dominion," senior defense AnnMarie Reich said. "A team like that is going to get through once in a while." Princeton has already proved its players have the individual skills indicative of a top-five team. For Saturday's game against North Carolina, it needs to focus on utilizing the scoring opportunities it does get. "In the big games, we really need to convert [on every chance we get] because we have less chances against the big teams," O'Malley said. If Princeton is to win the game this weekend, it needs to work on finishing, putting the ball in the cage after a breakaway or a good drive up the middle. In addition, the offense will have to focus more on pushing up, rather than falling back to help out on defense like it does against top teams. The last three years, North Carolina has ended Princeton season in the NCAA tournament. Each time the Tarheels went on to claim the national title. But North Carolina has never faced the Tigers in the regular season. "I think there is a definite revenge factor in this weekend's game," O'Malley said. National-powerhouse field hockey schools such as North Carolina don't really have rebuilding years, but this season the Tarheels are feeling the effects of losing four All-Americans to graduation. "It is hard to say that North Carolina has a rebuilding year, but if there is one, it is this year," Reich said.
(11/18/96 10:00am)
To the Editor: In recent years, several other student newspapers have adopted similar strategies. When I was an editor of The Chronicle, the daily student paper at Duke University, we developed a monthly "In this corner? In that corner" section that served the same function. Implicit in these types of editorial presentations, however, is a responsibility on the part of the editorial staff not normally present for regular columns. Regular columns merely represent the opinions of their authors, who are typically given the freedom to write on any topic they choose -- and, of course, to argue any side of a story. While Stephen Thompson's piece, "Always spare the chair," represented a thoughtful discussion of one side of the issue, the community was done little service by College sophomore John Mamoun's truly sophomoric judgements as to who is and is not a "high-quality human being." Hopefully future editions of "Both Sides" will be better paired in terms of the quality of insight. Scott Halpern Medicine '00 To the Editor: In his guest column "Execute Sled's murderers," John Mamoun claimed execution is the best punishment for those who kill someone of significantly more societal worth ("Execute Sled's murderers," DP, 11/14/96). Mamoun attached "worth to society" to "quality as a human being." In judging quality as a human being, he appears to disregard someone's willingness to kill another person, while considering level of education as definitively good. This view not only makes acceptable an educated person's murder of an uneducated person of high moral fiber, but seems to encourage it. Mamoun then asks "What if a high-quality human being destroys another high-quality human being?" A high-quality human being does not destroy another human being. Doesn't Mamoun know his commandments? Paul Smith College '99
(11/12/96 10:00am)
But in fact, this institution has two internally consistent, mutually contradictory policies toward the community. The "Penn" policy is followed by the University's 12 schools. Essentially, these schools treat the community both as an opportunity to fulfill the University's mission of service, and as a living lab and source for research data. Very often, the Penn approach is exploitative to some extent; the schools provide services in exchange for the community serving an educational or research function. Although the projects themselves are coherent, there appears to be no consistent University-wide strategy involved. Consequently, efforts are piecemeal and generally ineffective in spurring significant change. The efforts are piecemeal, and Penn policy is good for the community, but not terribly helpful. The other approach is the "UP Inc." policy -- and it is consistent, coherent, powerful and wholly destructive to the University City and West Philadelphia community. UP Inc. is Penn acting as a corporation, with the same amorality and lack of social consciousness displayed by America's least socially responsible corporations. UP Inc. is the policy that leads to the University negotiating with the city for Penn Police protection in areas with the greatest concentration of University property, not the greatest concentration of University community members. UP Inc. is the policy that leads to the University negotiating a deal with a local landlord that allows him to avoid all sorts of taxes in exchange for a substantial annuity; UP Inc. makes out and the landlord makes out, but the city and the community get nothing out of the deal. UP Inc. is the policy that leads to the exchange of University jobs, offering community members decent pay and benefits, for outsourced jobs, with low pay and lousy (if any) benefits. Again, UP Inc. makes out and the stockholders in the company that takes over a University division makes out, but the city collects fewer wage taxes and the purchasing power of the community suffers. UP Inc. is the policy that treats every problem as first and foremost a public relations problem. And UP Inc. is the policy of creating an entirely new and artificial retail district that sells affluent Penn students to prospective tenants as a captive market, to maximize UP Inc.'s rental income. This strategy is similar to the "mall"-ification of America, which destroyed viable retail districts in virtually every small- and medium-sized town in this nation. Old-time retail districts were populated by locally owned and operated businesses, while the malls are populated by stores owned by huge conglomerates with no comunity roots. And as UP Inc. continues to expand and promote non-community based businesses in University City, the few local businesses that remain struggle for survival. UP Inc. is the policy that ignores the University's mission of education, research and service. It is a juggernaut that treats the accumulation of cold hard cash as its first priority. UP Inc. also has the power of every penny of the University's considerable assets at its disposal in pursuit of this goal. Ultimately, UP Inc. is destroying not only the community that it dominates, but the University as a whole. For every dollar Penn earns, two more pay for insulating the University from the effects of its own avarice, on such things as security systems, police patrols, Escort services and massive public relations efforts, assuring students that they are safe and parents that their children will be returned to them alive and in one piece. Utimately, UP Inc. is creating an environment of physical fear, completely incompatible with intellectual freedom and inquiry. And ultimately, as the ethos of greed and self-interest that UP Inc. personifies permeates the rest of the University, as we acquiesce to UP Inc.'s inevitable and irresistable corruption, the University will lose its soul.
(09/10/95 9:00am)
The House of Representatives voted to pass a spending bill on Friday that contains several educational cuts, including some which could have an affect on the level of government funding the University will receive for student aid. One of the cutbacks is with the Perkins loan program. According to David Morse, assistant vice president for policy planning and federal relations, the University receives "a reasonable substantial allocation of these loans." "If [the loans] go away, it will make it more difficult for students to finance their educations reasonably cheaply," he said. Morse added that, as a result, students might be required to borrow more under a bank-based program, which is at a higher interest rate. But he said even if these cuts become a reality, the University will still receive a large fund of Perkins loans. The University provides a little over $10 million in Perkins loans to undergraduates and graduates each year, he said, adding that the capital contribution that is threatened represents a little over $1 million. "So we would still have $9 million to loan each year," Morse added. There were also some changes proposed for the Pell Grant program, which will help some students while hurting others. "Financially needy students will get a larger grant," Morse said. "Students with a limited need who would have otherwise been eligible for a Pell Grant don't get one." Associate Vice President for Finance Frank Claus said he does not see these cuts as having a major effect on the University. "Obviously we never like to see any cuts," he said. "But at the moment there doesn't seem to be any that would have a serious impact on the undergraduate program." Most of the financial aid programs the University offers is funded by the University itself, he explained. One positive aspect of the bill is that it retains the Supplemental Education Opportunity Grant and work-study programs at their current levels. "That is very favorable," Morse said. "Those are programs that are very important to Penn students." But the bill also contained cuts in other areas that could affect the University. Vice President for Government, Community and Public Affairs Carol Scheman said she is concerned about the level of discretionary funding. Scheman said it is important for Congress to differentiate between expenditure and investment. "Investing in education and research are investments that pay off many times," she said. Scheman added that the significant program cuts will "affect the University across the board." On a more positive note, the National Institute of Health was given a $643 million budget increase under this bill. Morse said he sees this increase as a good sign. "The National Institute of Health provides a substantial amount of support at this and other universities," he said. "This increase suggests that members of Congress think that basic research done by universities is a very good thing." While Scheman said while she believes the University is "very much at risk," she stressed that the bill has not even completed the first third of the checks and balances process. And Morse predicted that this bill will undergo significant changes before President Bill Clinton has to vote on it. Claus said he does not think the Senate or the President will pass such a severe bill in its current form. He added, though, that he expects more tension from Congress in the near future. "I don't think we are done," he said.
(08/10/95 9:00am)
The trial of Joyce Schofield, a University employee who is suing the University for racial discrimination and sexual harassment, began Tuesday in federal court. Schofield, an administrative assistant in the compensation office of the division of human resources, filed the lawsuit last September seeking more than $100,000 in damages. But William Ewing and Deborah Weinstein, Schofields' attorneys, say she is asking for more than $1.5 million in damages. The trial began Tuesday in front of U.S. District Judge Curtis Joyner, with an all white jury of six women and two men. Schofield, who has worked at the University since 1991 claims that her supervisor, former Human Resources Communications Manager J. Bradley Williams , "used his authority as her supervisor to make her life miserable." She asserts that he constantly asked her on dates and he warned her to adopt a plantation mentality because a smart black woman would be too much of a threat and would never get ahead. And the suit says that Williams told Schofield that his boss, Adrienne Riley, vice president of human resources, "had racist attitudes" and "hated" her because she was a "strong black woman." Between January 1993 and July 1993 Schofield said she was subjected to sexual harassment, according to a court document. She alleges that Williams made several sexual explicit comments to her that made her feel uncomfortable. She also alleges that she felt constantly threatened and was afraid to complain because of fear of retaliation. "Bradley Williams talked dirty ... that's not in dispute," University outside counsel Neil Hamburg said yesterday. "He acted inappropriately. The question is what the University of Pennsylvania did wrong in this case, if anything." When Schofield filed an internal grievance concerning Williams, her complaint was ignored by the University, the suit charges. After filing her complaint, Schofield claims she was continually discriminated against, and became the subject of retaliation. She also filed a complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission in February 1994. Hamburg said that Williams supervisors gave him a disciplinary memo that warned him of dire consequences if he were to continue his inappropriate conduct. And he added that sexual and racist talked seized after the letter. According to an article in The Legal Intelligencer Schofield as been unable to work since January 1995 due to psychological stress and she expects to be hospitalized an average of 21 days until the year 2000. Hamburg told The Legal Intelligencer in July that he will prove that Schofield engaged in a "pattern of on-the-job dishonest and fraudulent conduct" beginning in 1973 when she was fired from Fidelity Mutual Bank for stealing. She later pleaded guilty to theft charges, according to Hamburg. Schofield, 43, graduated from the Wharton School with a marketing degree two years after she was has hired by the University.
(08/10/95 9:00am)
Wharton graduate student John Knight, who claims his ex-wife and in-laws tricked him into marriage, settled a federal lawsuit against them Monday for an undisclosed amount of money. Knight accused Mary Rourke and her parents of fraud and misrepresentation, according to court papers. He had sought $100,000 in damages. He said Rourke lied when she told him he had fathered her child, convincing him to marry her. He also said she and her parents withheld the father's true identity for three years. Terms of the settlement were confidential, according to Norman Perlberger, Knight's attorney. But he added that Knight was pleased with the outcome. ''I think it's a groundbreaking case,'' said Perlberger. ''It calls for the possibility of claims like this, not just in paternity, but in other aspects of human relations.'' He added that he case was settled out of court because "Knight really didn't want it to become a media circus." Attorneys for Rourke and her parents were unavailable for comment. Knight began dating Rourke in December 1988, when he was a midshipman at the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Md. She told him she was pregnant with his baby in August 1989 and gave birth to Micaeli in May 1990 -- the same month Knight graduated. The couple was married a month later, according to court papers. In 1992, Rourke took Micaeli and moved out of the house, telling her husband that she was having an extramarital affair, according to the lawsuit. Knight instituted divorce proceedings after that, attempting to gain custody of Micaeli. But he didn't find out until June 1993 that the young girl had been fathered by someone else -- a college friend of Rourke's, according to the lawsuit. And he learned just prior to a custody hearing. The lawsuit contends that Rourke and her parents knew all along that the child was not Knight's. But Rourke replied in court papers that she firmly believed the child was Knight's until the summer of 1993, when DNA blood test results virtually excluded him as the father. Knight's lawsuit sought to recover money he had spent on the marriage, along with lost income from a career change that he said he made at his wife's strong urging.
(08/10/95 9:00am)
When Mumia Abu-Jamal was granted a stay of execution Tuesday, his supporters were astonished by their victory. The "Free Mumia" Campaign that has swept from Philadelphia to Hollywood was at last seeing its first glimmer of hope. But not everyone was surprised by Common Pleas Court Judge Albert Sabo's ruling, which allows Abu-Jamal more time to pursue state and federal appeals. Law School Lecturer David Rudovsky has served as Abu-Jamal's local counsel during his post-conviction hearing in front of Sabo -- the same judge who originally sentenced Abu-Jamal to death in 1982 for killing Philadelphia Police Officer Daniel Faulkner at 13th and Locust streets. Pennsylvania Governor Tom Ridge signed Abu-Jamal's death warrant earlier this summer. Rudovsky said he always expected Sabo to grant Abu-Jamal the stay of execution. He only wonders why the ruling took so long. "Nobody in the history of capital punishment has been executed this early," he said. "In any case involving the death penalty, everyone ought to be convinced that there was a fair trial." Many observers have indeed questioned whether justice prevailed at the 1982 murder trial. Demographics Professor Antonio McDaniel said it would have been a "miscarriage of justice" if Abu-Jamal had not been granted the stay of execution because Sabo had been biased by racial bigotry when he originally convicted Abu-Jamal. Sabo allowed Abu-Jamal's involvement in the Black Panthers Movement in the 1970's to be used as evidence of his guilt, McDaniel said, yet he found irrelevant the fact that the trajectory of the murder weapon did not match that of Abu-Jamal's gun. Many of Abu-Jamal's followers have also questioned Sabo's objectivity, as Sabo has sentenced more African Americans to death than any other judge in the country. "This case was fundamentally unfair," Rudovsky said. As Abu-Jamal's local counsel, Rudovsky will not be involved in appeals to higher courts. He added that Abu-Jamal is "very early in his appeals process." Rudovsky said Abu-Jamal's case has not been that different from other cases he has worked on during his career -- although it has been the most high-profile. Celebrities such as Whoopi Goldberg have come out in support of Abu-Jamal, and his book Live From Death Row has sold more than 35,000 copies. But at the core, Rudovsky said Abu-Jamal's case is merely one of many demonstrating problems with the capital punishment system. "When you strip it down to its essentials, there are the same serious questions of the fairness of the original trial [and] the effectiveness of the appointed counsel," he said. "I found the proficiency of the [appointed] defense counsel to be very weak." "These issues themselves point to the fact that the criminal justice system as a whole is unfair," he added. Rudovsky said the legislatures recent vote to slash all funding to legal resource centers aimed at those that cannot afford their own attorneys will only exacerbate matters. "Congress is running one way on the crime issue in order to appear that they are tough on crime," he said, "But their approach is dead wrong."
(08/10/95 9:00am)
Smith Hall is history. At least it will be by Tuesday. The building is being demolished in a slow, drawn out process. Brick by brick, workers have been taking apart Smith Hall for the past week, according to a worker at the site. The University was issued a permit by the city late June that allows for both the demolition of the building and the construction of phase one of the Institute for Advanced Science and Technology on the same location, according to Barry Cooperman, vice provost for research. Phase one entails the construction of a $34 million, 86,000-square-foot high-tech building on the Smith Hall site. This site was officially approved by the Air Force last month when it signed a Record of Decision and released the necessary funds. This approval came after more than four years of planning, discussions and controversy. Since the initial plans for the IAST were released, many students and alumni have expressed concern over the idea the historic building will be destroyed in order to make room for the IAST. Throughout July, the University prepared Smith Hall for demolition. This involved removing all of the asbestos in the building and hiring a contractor to undertake the project. The earliest the building could have been demolished was July 19 because the demolition notice has to be posted at least 21 days prior to the act, Cooperman said. Gravina said the University met with seven contracting companies in order to look into the various ways to approach tearing down the building. This project began in 1991, when the federal government selected the University as the site for the IAST. The project was then turned over to the Department of Defense and subsequently to the Air Force. The project is slated to create space for the Chemistry Department, additional Chemical Engineering laboratories and research space for the Bioengineering Department. Three years ago, the Air Force began an Environmental Impact Study, analyzing the plan's historical and environmental significance, focusing specifically on Smith Hall. In March, the Air Force finally completed the EIS and deemed the site appropriate. And last month's release of the Record of Decision made it official. As of March, the Air Force had already allocated $23.75 million in grant money for the entire project, according to Associate Director for Federal Relations Carl Maugeri. Its total contribution could reach $35 million. Cooperman has estimated that the construction phase of the project will cost between $44 and $50 million, and that the entire project could cost up to $70 million. Phase two of the project will consist of remodeling the Morgan Building and the Music Building and constructing a new wing that will connect the two buildings from the rear. For the third phase, the University will construct an engineering-science library in Hayden Hall. This will be expensive, and may take a long time to construct. The fourth and final phase of the project is the retro-renovating of space in both the engineering and chemical complexes. Because this phase is routine renovation work, its budget can be cut if the costs of the project become too high. Gravina has estimated that the entire project will take two years to complete.
(08/10/95 9:00am)
In a hearing at the Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas on July 18, the conviction of recent University graduate and former Daily Pennsylvanian columnist Ian Blake was overturned, Blake's attorney said. According to the attorney, Daniel Conner, the prosecution had no evidence to present and the charges were dismissed on Conner's motion. Blake had been convicted of charges including disorderly conduct in June, at a hearing presided over by Judge Robert Blasi at the Philadelphia Southwest Detectives Station. At that hearing, University Police Officer David Carroll testified that he went to Van Pelt Library at about 2:50 p.m. on May 2 in response to a woman's complaint that her wallet had been stolen. He said that the woman believed Blake to have committed the theft. According to Carroll, when he approached Blake the latter raised his voice and pushed the officer into the library office. Blake said he was reluctant to go into the stacks with Carroll, adding that the officer pulled him into the stacks, shoved him three or four times, and arrested him. Although no criminal charges remain against Blake, he is not out of trouble yet. Carroll filed a complaint with the Student Dispute Resolution Center concerning Blake's conduct. According to Blake, the charges at the SDRC made it impossible for him to graduate in May despite having the requisite academic credit. As a result, he says he has had to ask graduate schools of education at the University, Columbia University and Harvard University for permission to delay accepting their offers of admission. He added that they are all still waiting despite his having missed the extended deadline for at least one school. Blake says the SDRC has told him to expect a hearing on those charges sometime this month.
(08/10/95 9:00am)
and Betty Yuan September 2 will bring the last entering freshmen class of the millennium to the University. And the Class of 1996 certainly has its share of star, according to Admissions Dean Lee Stetson, ranging from budding television actors to rising professional athletes. One member of the entering class, Jessica Prunell, who has appeared on As the World Turns for the past three years, turned down a six-year contract for a television series to pursue a college career. From actor to authors, one entering freshman, who immigrated from Russia in 1988, has already co-authored a textbook. And another student is an egyptologist who had her work published. Joining their illustrious fellow classmates will be several young athletes as well, including a nationally ranked figure skater, a top male squash player from Pakistan and a champion snowboarder from Munich, Germany. And the talent seems to stem abundantly from global sources -- a number of foreign countries have contributed to this year's prestigious group of first-year students. From Mongolia, comes the first undergraduate of her nation to enter the University of Pennsylvania in recent history who aspires to be a pre-medical student and will someday take her medical practice back to her home country. In addition, the controversial nations -- Bosnia and Croatia will also be sending the University it's finest students this coming fall. And the University is prepared to welcome their entering freshmen in style. This includes freshmen-geared programs such as "PennQuest" and New Student Orientation. Described as "an outdoor experience" by its glossy brochures, "PennQuest" is a four-day excursion and will start on August 28. Participants will spend one day at the Pocono Environment Education Center and the following day backpacking on the Appalachian trail. Students who wish to join in the "Quest" will pay $150 for the chance to get a head start socially, by meeting their new peers before the move-in frenzy that is marked by NSO. After move-in, students will be able to take part in several time-honored University traditions. This year, the Penn Reading Project assignment is the play, Arcadia, by Tom Stoppard. Small workshops will be carried out where faculty and students and discuss their reactions to the reading. And the NSO convocation -- with speeches given by the President and Provost to name a few -- will be among the first events that help create the Class of 1999's first impression of the University. There will also be a "Philly and You" bus tour among the events that will be offered. NSO will end with a trip to Six Flags Great Adventure taking place the Sunday after classes start.
(08/10/95 9:00am)
After months of carefully reviewing candidates to replace John Kuprevich as University Police Commissioner, Executive Vice President John Fry said earlier this week that he has made his recommendation to University President Judith Rodin and Provost Stanley Chodorow. While Fry would not reveal what his recommendation was, a source close to public safety has disclosed that the top two candidates for the position were Rutgers University-Camden Chief of Police Gene Dooley and Philadelphia Police Deputy Commissioner Thomas Seamon. Fry declined comment on the issue. Dooley could neither confirm nor deny his candidacy but referred all calls to the Executive Vice President's Office. And Seamon did not return phone calls all week. Last month Fry reported that he had brought the search down to two candidates and that his next step was to bring the group to "select groups of students and faculty on campus to see what they think." These groups had the opportunity to meet with and interview Dooley and Seamon over the past few weeks. Since that time, several new candidates entered the picture, Fry said, adding that although he felt it would be irresponsible not to consider these new applicants, he would not let their emergence slow down the progress of his search. Fry said he made his consultative group to Rodin and Chodorow last Thursday, after collecting input from his committee. They will be meeting with the candidate today, and will give him their feedback by Monday, he added. And he hopes to be able to make a final announcement next week. But he said he will take their opinions very seriously, adding that if they are not satisfied with his choice he will come up with another candidate for them. As Deputy Commissioner, Seamon is second in command of the Philadelphia Police Department. He fills in as department head in the Commissioner's absence. And Seamon served as interim police commissioner in 1992 when Willy Williams, the Philadelphia police commissioner at the time, went to Los Angeles in May 1992 to become the commissioner there. Seamon ran for the commissioner position in 1992, but lost to current Philadelphia Police Commissioner Richard Neal. Some of Seamon's major duties include implementing strategies and devising policies for the department, in addition to working on the budget. Rutgers Police Captain Douglas Thompson said Dooley has accomplished a lot since his arrival to their Public Safety Department in 1992. He said Dooley has been instrumental in instituting a comprehensive crime prevention program at Rutgers, which includes programs pertaining to personal security, student orientation and crime prevention, as well as a Rape Aggression Defense program. "He has also been effective in having a harmonious liaison between local police agencies throughout South Jersey," Thompson added. He said the Rutgers security program is smaller, adding that Dooley has less responsibility and involvement than he would at the University. "I assume the job [at Penn] is much more involved and would pose more challenge than a particular job here," Thompson said. When Kuprevich announced his resignation in April, he expected to be done with his responsibilities by the end of July. But since the search for a new commissioner has been taking longer than originally projected, Kuprevich is going to remain at the University for another six weeks, until the replacement is selected, Fry said last month. The comprehensive national search for Kuprevich's replacement began promptly after he announced his resignation. Since then, Fry has narrowed the field of candidates from more than 70 applicants to the few that currently remain.
(08/10/95 9:00am)
University officials are working hard to fill several administrative positions as soon as possible. The search for a permanent vice provost for university life, african american resource center director, chaplain and press director are all reaching their final stages. The VPUL position could even be filled by the start of the fall semester, VPUL Committee Chairperson Dennis DeTurck said. He added that he will be delivering his recommendation to Provost Stanley Chodorow in the next few days. And after the provost receives the reports, he has the final say in deciding who will be the next VPUL. After the lengthy search, Deturck said that he has gained great respect for the people involved in the division of university life. Provost Stanley Chodorow began the search for a permanent VPUL last spring. Acting VPUL Valarie Swain-Cade McCoullum , who has occupied the post since December 1993 is one of the candidates for the permanent position. And the search for AARC director has narrowed down to a few candidates, University President Judith Rodin said yesterday. Rodin said she has been given several names to choose from and that she hopes to appoint someone by the end of September. She added that she was impressed by the candidates. "[The committee] worked over the summer to get this done because we are so eager to get someone in place for this year," she said. Rodin had high praise for the acting director of the AARC, Isabel Sampson-Mapp and AARC administrative assistant Afi Roberson. "I would really like to say what a great job the acting director did this year," Rodin said. "They kept the center running at full speed and they have really shown great loyalty towards it. Allen Green, the former director of AARC and assistant to the provost, left the University July 1 to become dean of the college at Wesleyan University in Middletown, Conn. Chodorow said he is working on finding an interim chaplain and hopes to have one in a couple of weeks. He added that he will organize the search for a new permanent chaplain when the new semester begins. After former Chaplain Stanley Johnson announced his retirement plans in March, the president and provost set up a committee to evaluate the role of a chaplain at a modern university. The committee, chaired by Social Work Professor Jane Lowe, recommended the position be maintained and expanded to include work with various campus ministries and groups. And the search for a press director is also down to the final round, according to Chodorow. He said that he is currently interviewing finalists and expects to make a decision in a couple of weeks.
(08/10/95 9:00am)
When safety and the University clash, the University has a secret weapon -- a paintbrush. The security kiosk located at 36th and Sansom streets, which was recently transformed into a blue structure with a tin roof, is an example of this. Originally, the five kiosks set up around campus were all wooden and shingled. But soon a Design Review Committee and Vice President for Facilities Management Arthur Gravina assessed the kiosks. They decided that there was a need to alter the appearance of the one at 36th and Sansom, according to Security Service Director Christopher Algard. "It did not meet the aesthetics of the surrounding buildings," he said. "The building style of the surrounding area is different than the Locust Walk area." And the closest neighbor of the kiosk, the Institute of Contemporary Art, agreed that the original design did not belong in the environment. "It would have been more suitable to a garden setting than a West Philadelphia street-scape," ICA Director Patrick Murphy said. But he said he was not involved in the decision to change the kiosk, adding that the whole situation has been a mystery to him. Diane Wynne, a recent graduate of the Graduate School of Education, was not as supportive of the changes, calling the blue kiosk "just plain ugly." "I do not know what possessed them to paint it blue and put that shiny roof on," she said on the upenn.safety newsgroup last month. College senior Matthew Ro disagrees. "This is a perfect example or art in everyday life, sort of the Mona Lisa of kiosks." University Police Commissioner John Kuprevich said there are no plans to change any of the other kiosks. Summer Pennsylvanian Staff Writer Josh Fineman contributed to this article.
(08/03/95 9:00am)
The trial of Wharton evening student Douglas Murphy, who was caught carrying a loaded 9-millimeter semiautomatic pistol into class in April will begin Monday, according to Victim Support Director Maureen Rush. And the ethnic intimidation lawsuit filed by two South Asian students is scheduled to begin trial Tuesday, prosecuting attorney Brian Hood said. The students allege they were harassed by intoxicated Drexel University students in March. Murphy was charged by the District Attorney's Office with violating Pennsylvania's Uniform Firearms Act and with one count of harassment. Acting Vice Provost for University Life Valarie Swain-Cade McCoullum said in April that the Murphy had been placed on an involuntary leave of absence. University Police brought Murphy into custody after they discovered that he was armed with a loaded gun in Steinberg-Dietrich Hall. The student who notified the police about the incident said he was assaulted by Murphy two weeks earlier. Another student in the class said that a "disagreement" during a class presentation led to the alleged assault two weeks prior. He said Murphy thought the victim was attempting to sabotage the presentation by removing transparencies and turing off the overhead projector before Murphy had finished with his speech. After class, the student said Murphy struck the victim and knocked him to the ground three times. The victim has filed a complaint with Philadelphia Police. In another University-related court case, Class of 1995 graduates Bela Shah and Monika Parikh claim they were harangued with racial epithets by Drexel students Gregory Rosenbaum and Victor Vencus. Shah and Parikh, then both residents of Hamilton Court, said they were awoken at 2 a.m. when they heard voices calling out a racial slur containing the words "Indian" and "7-11." When they asked Rosenbaum and Vencus to lower their voice, they were bombarded with more slurs for a period of about 15 minutes -- until University Police arrived at the scene after receiving about eight calls complaining of the noise. University Police took the Drexel students to Philadelphia Police Southwest Detectives for questioning. They were released at approximately 6 a.m. with no charges pressed, Shah and Parikh claimed the police mishandled the case, as they were not interviewed about the incident by detectives. While at Southwest, Shah said she overheard a discussion in the next room in which one person was urging another to release the students. Parikh said University Police officer Rudy Palmer told her that that the father of one of the Drexel students is an area police officer. Later that week, Rosenbaum turned himself into the police. He was charged with ethnic intimidation, harassment, conspiracy, disorderly conduct and open lewdness.
