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(09/11/91 9:00am)
Vladimir Bernstein is riding on the crest of history. The Wharton and College junior, who transferred from Moscow State University last year, was one of the first Russians to study abroad in the wake of perestroika while retaining his Soviet citizenship. And last month, he was one of the hundreds of thousands of citizens who turned the tide of the rightist coup in Moscow. Although he now spends his time walking up and down Locust Walk like any other student at the University, just three weeks ago he was one of the dozens of Muscovites at the barricades in front of the Russian Parliament Building. Bernstein said when he first heard of hard-line politicians' attempt to take over the Soviet government, he was afraid many of the Soviet Union's recent progressive reforms would be eliminated. As a business student and an entrepreneur, Bernstein's life was altered by policies of openness and economic restructuring instituted by President Mikhail Gorbachev, and it may be affected even more significantly by recent events. Although this is only his second year studying at Wharton, Bernstein is a veteran guide and interpreter. He has led three trips to the Soviet Union this year, and he said the country's decentralization will open many new business opportunities. "I will feel much safer going there now, being able to come back and not being afraid of new regulations being proposed," he said. "I am trying to find people who are interested in my services." While business enterprises were allowed under Gorbachev's government, Bernstein said he was afraid the coup would end that freedom. He feared his business associates and friends who were interested in cultivating economic relations with the U.S. would be arrested. Bernstein now lives with two friends from high school, both of whom are currently enrolled at the University. Vassily Sidorov, a Wharton junior who transferred from Moscow State University this year, was at his parents' house in New York when the coup took place. Sidorov, whose father is a deputy ambassador to the United Nations, said he feared he would not be able to return home. He was also worried about his brother and girlfriend in Moscow. "For two days I stayed in front of the television," Sidorov said. "It was really hard to imagine the city you've lived in for so many years being occupied or under curfew." The third housemate, Ivan Schevlov, was at the University this summer. He said that although it was frustrating to be cut off from information about his home, the Russian community at the University formed a strong support group. A satellite dish at the Annenberg School of Communication received a news broadcast from Moscow every day at 2 p.m., and according to Schevlov, the room in which the program was shown filled with students and faculty discussing the events every day during and after the coup. "My days were spent listening to the radio, trying to get through to my family, and going to watch the news," the College freshman said. Bernstein telephoned Schevlov the morning of August 20, and the two students, who describe themselves as best friends, discussed the possibility that Bernstein would not be able to return to campus. Schevlov said he went to the admissions office to discuss the problem, but when he got there, he found out the coup leaders had been toppled. The three students have different expectations for the future of the Soviet Union. Bernstein said he supports independence for the Baltic republics, but hopes there will be some kind of union agreement among all the republics. He added that although he supports Gorbachev, he gained increased respect for Russian President Boris Yeltsin, who led resistance to the coup in Moscow. "Gorbachev is a smart politician and a big diplomat," he said. "But Yeltsin definitely was a hero those three days." Sidorov said he is concerned that excitement over the blocked coup will distract leaders from long-term economic and political problems that have not yet been solved. He added he does not yet understand the full impact of the coup, but he believes the people of the crumbling nation will have to adjust their attitudes to life in a non-communist system.
(09/10/91 9:00am)
Vladimir Bernstein is riding on the crest of history. The Wharton and College junior, who transferred from Moscow State University last year, was one of the first Russians to study abroad in the wake of perestroika while retaining his Soviet citizenship. And last month, he was one of the hundreds of thousands of citizens who turned the tide of the rightist coup in Moscow. Although he now spends his time walking up and down Locust Walk like any other student at the University, just three weeks ago he was one of the dozens of Muscovites at the barricades in front of the Russian Parliament Building. Bernstein said when he first heard of hard-line politicians' attempt to take over the Soviet government, he was afraid many of the Soviet Union's recent progressive reforms would be eliminated. As a business student and an entrepreneur, Bernstein's life was altered by policies of openness and economic restructuring instituted by President Mikhail Gorbachev, and it may be affected even more significantly by recent events. Although this is only his second year studying at Wharton, Bernstein is a veteran guide and interpreter. He has led three trips to the Soviet Union this year, and he said the country's decentralization will open many new business opportunities. "I will feel much safer going there now, being able to come back and not being afraid of new regulations being proposed," he said. "I am trying to find people who are interested in my services." While business enterprises were allowed under Gorbachev's government, Bernstein said he was afraid the coup would end that freedom. He feared his business associates and friends who were interested in cultivating economic relations with the U.S. would be arrested. Bernstein now lives with two friends from high school, both of whom are currently enrolled at the University. Vassily Sidorov, a Wharton junior who transferred from Moscow State University this year, was at his parents' house in New York when the coup took place. Sidorov, whose father is a deputy ambassador to the United Nations, said he feared he would not be able to return home. He was also worried about his brother and girlfriend in Moscow. "For two days I stayed in front of the television," Sidorov said. "It was really hard to imagine the city you've lived in for so many years being occupied or under curfew." The third housemate, Ivan Schevlov, was at the University this summer. He said that although it was frustrating to be cut off from information about his home, the Russian community at the University formed a strong support group. A satellite dish at the Annenberg School of Communication received a news broadcast from Moscow every day at 2 p.m., and according to Schevlov, the room in which the program was shown filled with students and faculty discussing the events every day during and after the coup. "My days were spent listening to the radio, trying to get through to my family, and going to watch the news," the College freshman said. Bernstein telephoned Schevlov the morning of August 20, and the two students, who describe themselves as best friends, discussed the possibility that Bernstein would not be able to return to campus. Schevlov said he went to the admissions office to discuss the problem, but when he got there, he found out the coup leaders had been toppled. The three students have different expectations for the future of the Soviet Union. Bernstein said he supports independence for the Baltic republics, but hopes there will be some kind of union agreement among all the republics. He added that although he supports Gorbachev, he gained increased respect for Russian President Boris Yeltsin, who led resistance to the coup in Moscow. "Gorbachev is a smart politician and a big diplomat," he said. "But Yeltsin definitely was a hero those three days." Sidorov said he is concerned that excitement over the blocked coup will distract leaders from long-term economic and political problems that have not yet been solved. He added he does not yet understand the full impact of the coup, but he believes the people of the crumbling nation will have to adjust their attitudes to life in a non-communist system.
(04/17/91 9:00am)
Saturday Night Live veteran Kevin Nealon brought a touch of insanity to Irvine Auditorium last night, telling his audience to "Hear me now, believe me later." In an hour-long performance before approximately 1200 students, Nealon reduced his audience to tears of laughter, finding humor in the most mundane of topics and frequently crossing the bounds of good taste with gleeful abandon. Bronzed, tall and suffering from a slight paunch, Nealon combined the urbane charm of Chevy Chase with the wild ingenuity of Steven Wright. Nealon arrived on stage in the persona of "Hans," the quasi-Schwarzenegger body-builder he created for the NBC comedy show. Grabbing an unsuspecting member of the audience to be his cohort "Franz," Nealon roamed around the aisles of the auditorium, hailing various spectators with the hardly complimentary monicker of "Girlyman." Later on he became "Mr. Subliminal," peppering his routine with sotto-voiced messages -- "Standing ovation" -- in a comical attempt to brainwash his audience. "This is one of the nicest campuses I've ever been on," he said, while confessing that on his last visit, "I didn't get out of the car." Nealon's off-the-wall style won the audience over immediately, although as his act progressed, the elements of cheap and lewd humor in his act garnered more groans than laughs. But the middle-aged Nealon was always ready to convey words of wisdom to his student audience. "Marriage will calm you down," he told them. "Marriage . . . and neutering." After the show, Nealon said he enjoyed performing before a college audience. "It's very different from a nightclub audience, because students are more smarter," he said. Nealon also professed admiration for the cavernous Irvine Auditorium. "This is a great theater," he said. "When I came on stage, I felt like saying 'All Rise.' " Before leaving, Nealon showed he could draw pictures as well as he draws crowds, rapidly scribbling uncanny caricatures of six fans. Sponsored by the Pontiac All-Star Comedy Caravan, the event was organized by the recently-formed Social Planning and Events Committee Comedy Club. "We're dedicated to providing comedy for Penn students," said College junior Wai-Sum Lee, co-director of the club. "We're especially committed to stand-up comedy, and we really want students to perform," added fellow co-director Alexis Williams, a Wharton junior. Nealon was supported by College senior Hood Qa'im-Maqami -- who pronounced his last name "Johnson" -- who got the night off to a good start with his rapid-fire Iranian impressions. Qa'im-Maqami won the SPEC Comedy Club's Stand-Up Comedy Competition held in January.
(03/19/91 10:00am)
University students flying to Cancun over Spring Break knew their trip was going to be something special when they saw a man streak past them. And they were still on the plane. About two hours after Aerocancun's flight 71 departed from Philadelphia International Airport, a Wharton junior, who did not want to be identified, walked into the front bathroom of the plane. He then proceeded to strip naked and walk down the aisle. While a friend tried to keep the plane's steward from interfering, he stopped to talk to some friends and tried to "pick up" some women, the streaker said. When he reached the back of the plane and put on his clothes, the steward and pilot confronted him and told him indecent exposure is a federal crime in Mexico and that he would probably be deported when they arrived. The pilot then radioed Mexican officials and told them of the incident. "I don't understand how he doesn't have any respect for the people on the plane, not to mention himself," said Maria Joaquina Sierra, a stewardess on the plane. When the plane arrived at Mexico at 1:30 a.m., no one was allowed to get off the plane and two federal officers came on board to take the student to the airport's security office. The student said a group of his friends put him up to the stunt. "I think it was a combination of wanting to set a precedent for the week, a substantial amount of money, and the fact that I didn't know all the consequences [streaking would carry]," he said. The student said he was taken to a local Mexican jail at around 3 a.m., was advised he had a court appointment at 8 a.m. and told he would probably be deported and heavily fined. The student said that at about 4:30 a.m., he was taken from the room where he was being held and the deputy chief of police began questioning him. "When he found out what I did, he loved it," said the student. The student said he befriended the officer, who even offered him a drink of Tequila. About an hour into the conversation, the officer asked him how much money he had on him, but the student had been advised to leave all valuables with his friends. The officer then left the student's friends a message at their hotel and they came in at about 5:30 a.m, the student said. He added that the officer asked the friends for a $100 "bribe" to tear up the paperwork for the case, which would tie up the processing long enough for the student to remain in Cancun for the week and return safely to the States. After bargaining with the officer, the friends gave him $50 and the streaker was released at 6:15 a.m., he said. "When you leave for Mexico, the first thing people tell you is 'don't get arrested' . . . and that's the first thing I did," the Wharton junior said.
(02/13/91 10:00am)
All 29 students in Ms. Peay's third grade class in room 204 of the Harrity Elementary School leaned forward from their desks, stretched their hands to the sky, and cried, "Ooo, ooo, me, me." Christopher is finally called on to identify Iraq on the Persian Gulf map and all the students clap when he is correct. These enthusiastic students, unlike many of their counterparts, will be able to pursue education through college -- their class was selected to participate in the Say Yes to Education program. Say Yes and the College Access Program are both efforts spearheaded by University officials and graduates in an attempt to widen the narrow options facing area public school students once they graduate from high school. The Say Yes program guarantees college tuition for elementary classes chosen to participate. The College Access Program is described as a "last dollar" program, because it provides up to $2000 to close the financial gap facing a college-bound senior. The idea of the College Access Program was conceived four years ago by Adjunct Associate Education Professor Norman Newberg, director of the Collaborative for West Philadelphia Schools, who was also involved in starting the Say Yes program. Newberg said he was motivated to form the program because while Say Yes provided "in depth" support for one class, he "simultaneously knew that there were a lot of students out there who needed help." · The Say Yes program, which is designed to encourage students to stay in school, unites interested philanthropists with children in need of money for college. Donors, such as 1966 Law School graduate Robert Toll and Graduate School of Education graduate Jane Toll -- who began sponsoring the Harrity School third graders last October -- promise to pay the tuitions for the students they "adopt." Many of the students' families otherwise would not be able to afford college. Several students in the other third grade class, Ms. Murphy's room 205, said their parents cried when they found out that their class was chosen. "My mom hugged me and kissed me," said Melody, who wants to be a rapper when she grows up. Leeshon, who wants to be a lawyer, said his grandmother "almost had a heart attack" at the award ceremony. "She didn't know where the money would come from to go to college," Leeshon said. As young as the third graders are, the excitement and publicity surrounding the Say Yes scholarship now makes the program seem more like a big party than a chance at a college. As Ms. Murphy explained, most students did not understand the scholarship at first. "They thought it was a lottery and . . . they'd be coming into a lot of money," Murphy said. "Later on, as the weeks had gone by, and by talking to them and explaining exactly what the scholarship consisted of, [they learned] if they continued their good grades that it's a possible chance that all could go to college and college is basically paid for," she said. Philanthropist Eugene Lang originated the idea of a class scholarship in New York City in 1982. His program, called I Have A Dream, began when he gave a graduation speech at the public school he graduated from in Harlem. But Public Policy and Management Professor Alan Campbell said this month that researchers have found that these "standing alone" education incentives -- where individuals sponsor students -- do not seem to provide "sufficient motivation" for the students. "Just that offer does not change the behavior of the kids sufficiently to stop them from dropping out," Campbell said. He added that the programs need to be supplemented with health care, housing and drug prevention, especially for children from broken families. "Unless it is accompanied by a package of social services, the schools cannot provide an environment that's going to make education attractive to the students," Campbell said. But he added that the lack of other social reform packages does not negate the positive aspects of programs like Say Yes. The incomplete "social package," Campbell said, only highlights the point that "one shouldn't assume it is a major answer to the deterioration and near collapse of many central city schools." The students at Harrity are the second group of beneficiaries of the Say Yes scholarship in West Philadelphia. The first class was the former 112-member sixth grade of the Belmont Elementary School. In 1987, George Weiss, a University Trustee, and Diane Weiss, who is the overseer and an associate trustee of the Graduate School of Education, pledged to pay for their college educations. Those original students, now in tenth grade, will have the scholarship offer follow them throughout their pre-college careers, even if they move away to different districts or states. Students in the Say Yes classes at Harrity report that their older and younger friends become "really jealous" when they get taken to Philadelphia 76ers games, the zoo, or other special events designed to enrich the Say Yes classes. The tutoring sessions on Tuesdays and Thursdays are not envied by their older and younger schoolmates, however. But the Say Yes students understand the price of the perks. "You have to know all your times tables to be able to go see the Sixers," third-grade student Gregory said. · Those not in the Say Yes classes in need of financial assistance to go to college may be helped in high school by the College Access Program. College Access works intensely with students in nine high schools to help with college and financial aid applications. It also awards "last dollar" scholarships to fill in gaps between the money students get from financial aid or loans and what they can afford to pay to go to college. The award amount has just been raised to $2,000 a year per student for up to five years, starting with the class of 1991. Of the donation, University Trustee John Neff donated the first $250,000 two years ago and CoreStates Financial Corporation completed it through a University gift of $750,000 this January. Adjunct Associate Education Professor Newberg, said that President Sheldon Hackney was very "influential" in securing the funding. The program is seeking a fund of $15 million to provide the "last dollar" scholarships. Currently, the maximum amount that the fund can award each year is $50,000. 60 students received scholarships in 1990, its first year of operation. Newberg emphasized that even $250, which a student now attending Temple received last year, "could make the difference between going and not going." Cunningham echoed Newberg's sentiments, saying that small monetary awards can cover book or transportation costs. But she stressed the importance of the counseling in the program. "Just handing out money doesn't make the kids take the proper courses [to prepare for college]," she said. Cunningham added that many of the students are the first members of their families to go to college or to even graduate from high school, so that "academic lingo" and complicated financial aid forms can be "very intimidating." She recalled a meeting for students who had won scholarships to the state university system, where a father recognized that "going to college was a good thing" for his daughter but later asked Cunningham to clarify a term for him. "What is tuition?" the father asked.
(11/28/90 10:00am)
A University spokesperson said yesterday that the couple beaten in an off-campus robbery Sunday night were not as seriously injured as police originally believed, and the address was also reported incorrectly. University spokesperson Joanna Vogel said yesterday that -- contrary to what police reported Sunday night -- only one of the victims, the husband, was hospitalized. The man, a graduate student, remained in the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania last night. University Police reported Sunday night that both victims were University students and that both victims were in HUP Monday afternoon, one in the intensive care unit. The incorrect information was taken by a police spokesperson apparently from the initial crime report, which was written by an officer who saw the student at HUP, according to University Police. University Police reports are considered confidential, and the report was not available to the DP for verification. The female victim, who is not a student, received only minor injuries, Vogel said. She was treated at Student Health Sunday night and released. According to University Police, two men armed with a gun forced their way into the couple's apartment just after 10 p.m. Sunday night. The men robbed the couple of $30, a $200 watch and a cassette recorder. After robbing them, the men beat them over the head, police said. How the men entered the apartment is unclear. Accounts from a friend of the couple and police reports differ on the sequence of events. Police said Monday the two robbers accosted both victims outside their apartment, held them at gunpoint and then entered the house. But Associate Sociology Professor Susan Watkins, a friend of the couple, said she believes only the woman was approached on the street. The robbers held her at gunpoint to force their way into the house, Watkins said. The male victim, reached at his HUP hospital room last night, declined to comment on the incident.
(11/14/90 10:00am)
As part of the University's continuing 250th anniversary Future Forum series, a five-speaker panel addressed the extracurricular college experience to a five-person audience at the Annenberg School yesterday afternoon. During the 90-minute discussion, panelists discussed the growing need for more extracurricular activities saying that the University must continue to provide a structure for new programs. Panelist Gillian Johnson said that extracurricular activities "create energy." The College senior added that the University must encourage enthusiasm among its undergraduates through its extracurricular activities and maintain a variety of activities. Answering criticisms about how activities may divert a student's attention from academics, Johnson, who works on the Social Planning and Events Committee, said "No one can tell me that all those things got in the way of my academics." Another panelist, graduate student Eric Borguet, echoed the need for extracurricular activities, adding that there must be a greater emphasis made at the graduate level. "People's extracurricular needs do not disappear once they go to grad school," he said. "They are just put on the back burner. I hope these people will come out and show their concern about things other than their studies." Citing the low number of activities at the graduate level, he said he hopes that the University will lead graduate schools to develop "people as people rather than super-specialized technicians in some field." While the students on the panel told of a need for more extracurricular activities, Assistant Education Professor John Puckett urged that more academically-based public service programs be developed. He attributed it to "enlightened self-interest if not moral responsibility" on the part of the University. Puckett said students are "woefully lacking" in a sense of moral commitment and community. He said there are many advantages and reciprocal benefits of community-based public help including what he called "learning by serving." Dana Carver, the project coordinator of the 250th office, said she was disappointed with the turnout at the discussion. "The first two [forums] were better attended," Carver said. "What bothers me is that unless it's a party, the students don't come out. They are so willing to scream, but not to support."
