Administration
As peer institutions adopt mandatory pass/fail policy, Penn says it has 'no plan' to do so
Harvard University, Stanford University, and Columbia University have established policies that make all classes graded on a pass/fail, pass/no credit, or satisfactory/no credit basis.
Penn students can now opt in to pass/fail grading for all courses. Here’s what that means.
The new University-wide pass/fail policy eliminates many restrictions that the four undergraduate schools have placed on pass/fail courses.
Penn will allow students to opt in to pass/fail grading for all courses by April 13
Provost Wendell Pritchett wrote in an email to Penn undergraduates Friday morning that students must opt in to take their classes pass/fail, and have until April 13 to do so.
As Penn students petition, some schools have already adopted pass/fail grading
Some institutions have implemented mandatory pass/fail grading systems, while others are allowing students to opt-in to pass/fail grading.
Off-campus residents demand financial support after Penn tells them to return home
Penn’s request was met with pushback from off-campus residents, some of whom are unsure of how to pay their leases without strengthened financial support from the University.
Three Penn students test positive for coronavirus after traveling abroad for spring break
Associate Provost and Chief Wellness Officer Benoit Dubé wrote in an email to the Penn community Monday afternoon that two of the positive coronavirus cases are away from campus and one is currently on campus.
Students must leave campus by March 17 after Penn extends mandatory move-out by two days
President Amy Gutmann and Provost Wendell Pritchett announced Thursday evening that students will now be expected to move out of their on-campus residences by March 17 at 8 p.m.
Penn moves spring semester classes online and asks students to move off campus by March 15
Penn will extend spring break by one week and move to remote instruction beginning March 23, President Amy Gutmann Provost Wendell Pritchett announced in an email to Penn faculty.
‘Not everyone has a home to go to’: International, FGLI students await U. coronavirus plan
Global travel bans and the uncertain fate of Penn's classes and dormitory availabilities have left international and first-generation, low-income students unsure of where they will live and how they will pay for housing and meals.
Coronavirus prompts Penn to suspend Univ. travel to China, South Korea, Iran, and Italy
According to a University–wide email, Penn has also created a task force to review and update the “existing pandemic planning procedure.”
Fossil Free Penn blockades board meeting, forcing most trustees to leave through fire exit
Protesters held signs cut and painted to look like gravestones with epitaphs citing facts about the climate crisis and demanding that the University divest from fossil fuels.
Penn’s total cost of attendance will rise to $76,826 next year, a 3.9% increase
The Trustees also approved an undergraduate financial aid budget of $256 million for the next academic year, a 3.7% increase from last year’s budget of $247 million.
Incoming Wharton dean Erika James aims to continue legacy of ‘solving world’s challenges’
James said that her long-term goal is to leave Wharton better than it was when she began the job.
Michael Horowitz named director of Perry World House
Horowitz has served as interim director of PWH since July 2019 and will succeed PWH’s founding director, Penn Law professor William Burke-White.
Penn received nearly $258 million in foreign money — with possibly more to be disclosed
The identity of Penn’s foreign donors remains unclear in many cases, but some include Chinese banks, foreign pharmaceutical countries, and Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Defense, The Philadelphia Inquirer reported.
Students demand Penn lead universities in fighting climate change at open forum
Other topics presented by students at the open forum included sexual assault reporting and voter turnout at Penn.
Penn President Amy Gutmann earned $3.6 million in 2017, an 8% decrease from 2016
Gutmann is now the fourth-highest paid president in the nation and the highest-paid president in the Ivy League, according to The Chronicle for Higher Education.
Penn raised $626 million from donors in 2019, more than all other local colleges combined
Penn raised 6 times more than its most the second-highest fundraiser, Thomas Jefferson University at approximately $93 million.
Vice Provost for University Life will leave position for new student engagement role
In her new role, McCoullum said she will be able to focus more on Penn's pipeline and college preparatory programs for high school students in Philadelphia.