Last Friday at the second and final meeting of the Board of Trustees, Penn President Amy Gutmann announced that the "Making History" campaign is well on its way and will help fund the University's future loan-free financial aid initiative. The University has successfully engaged 1,800 alumni and has raised $1.

Elections are always competitive, but this year' presidential campaign has been exceptional. And as the battle intensifies, especially on the Democratic side, more and more celebrities, politicians and even companies are weighing in on the voters' decision.

When College freshman Clare Foran answers her geology professor's questions, it's not by raising her hand. She keys in the answer on a 'clicker' she brings to class. The electronic response pad, which all students in the class are required to purchase, transmits student answers to a computer which collates all the responses and displays them on a screen.

For the second time this year, Facebook has changed its policy after users voiced concerns over privacy issues. Most recently, the social-networking Web site made it easier for users to permanently delete their accounts this month. The change came after The New York Times published an article saying it was impossible to completely remove accounts from Facebook, followed by widespread user complaints.

At Penn Medicine, officials are thinking green, and they're not just referring to nauseated patients. The Raymond and Ruth Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine is on schedule to open early this summer and will have certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Last week the University announced that Michael Van Valkenburgh and Associates will design Penn Park, the 24-acre park and athletic facility that will run along 31st Street between Walnut and South streets. The park is being partially built on the 14 acres of the postal lands the University purchased last year.

Last Monday, Penn reached its single largest day of commingled recycling collection during the RecycleMania competition with 3,480 pounds of recycled material - or 1.74 tons. RecycleMania, a 10-week contest sponsored by the Environmental Protection Agency, designed to promote waste reduction, began on Jan.

Running late to class? Beginning next fall, Harnwell College House residents will no longer be able to blame the elevators. Renovations to the Harnwell elevators begin May 22 and will include installation of new elevator controls "with the latest microprocessor technology," new motors and new doors, Department of Design and Construction senior project manager David Dunn wrote in an e-mail.

Stanford has joined the ranks of many selective universities across the United States, including Penn, by announcing an increase in the levels of undergraduate financial aid. Under the university's new plan, students whose parents earn less than $100,000 a year will no longer be required to pay tuition.

The Philadelphia School District is evaluating the role of private-management companies, including Penn, in its schools. Although Penn's official management of local schools might be in jeopardy, the University says it is committed to staying involved. In 2002, Penn and five other private institutions, including Temple University, were hired to manage different public schools in the district.

Scales, yogurt and music - just some of the tools Nursing graduate students are using to gather research and to prevent obesity and diabetes in children. The Nursing students will meet in four sessions over two weeks and assess up to 80 elementary-school-age children in the Sayre Beacon After School Program.

While most students were dozing through Friday morning recitations two weeks ago, College sophomore Cameron Clark and his classmates were exploring African and Native American Art artifacts. The excursion was a required field trip for his World History Class to the University of Pennsylvania Museum.

What comes to mind when you think of blinking traffic lights? For B.J. Ellis , executive director of The N Crowd, a Philadelphia comedy troupe, they are a "clear attack of the epileptic liberation front". It takes about five seconds before the audience will find themselves laughing out loud.

The 10th annual WILith Fair hosted by the Women in Leadership Series went off without a hitch last night. WILith Fair - a celebration of female leaders on campus - featured good food, quality entertainment and a long list of honorees, guests and students being recognized for their distinguished leadership and outstanding achievement.

Instead of studying for exams and going out to parties, some Princeton freshmen could be spending their first year after high school overseas helping others. Earlier this week, Princeton University announced that it is working on a program to send about 100 students, or 10 percent of its entering class, abroad for a gap-year program before the students come to campus.

Last night, about 15 protesters gathered outside of a Hillel-Steinhardt conference room that was hosting a dinner and discussion with the two former Israeli soldiers who have put on a controversial exhibition of photographs about the Israeli occupation. Mostly members of the Zionist Freedom Alliance, the protesters sang Jewish songs and refused to join the discussion going on inside, citing philosophical differences with the exhibit, called Breaking the Silence.

In 2006, 2.8 million college students gave almost 300 million hours of volunteer service worth more than $5.6 billion. Last week, Penn was among six colleges and universities nationwide to receive presidential recognition for its contributions. The University was one of three recipients of the 2007 Presidential Award for General Community Service in the second annual President's Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll, along with Otterbein College in Westerville, Ohio, and the University of Colorado at Boulder.