Feb. 26, 6:35 p.m. The University's endowment dropped 19.1 percent in the first half of the current fiscal year, according to an e-mail University President Amy Gutmann sent to the Penn community. The e-mail also announced that tuition is increasing 3.75 percent for the 2009-2010 academic year, which is the lowest increase in more than 40 years.

Last week, as I waited on the corner of N. 8th and Lehigh for the No. 47 SEPTA bus that would take me back to Center City, I was struck by the depressing, sporadic gaps of land every few houses. The entire street was pockmarked with vacant lots on which scrubby brown grass competed for space with broken glass, crushed beer cans and discarded candy wrappers.

Vice President Joe Biden, several major members of President Barack Obama's cabinet and city and state officials will gather in Irvine Auditorium tomorrow for the first official meeting of the Middle Class Task Force. The meeting, which begins at 12:30 p.

Amira Fawcett is an Engineering senior from Houston. Her e-mail address is fawcett@dailypennsylvanian.com.

Total employment in the legal industry may be down 1 percent since January 2008, according to data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, but that hasn't dissuaded many students who aim to study law at Penn. While applications to law schools across the nation have declined slightly compared to this time last year, Penn Law reported a 6-percent increase in applications.

Next time you feel the urge to just grab a Starbucks latte on your way to class, Chris Bosch wants you to rethink skipping breakfast. Last night in Harrison College House, a group of personal trainers including Bosch, an associate director of Penn Recreation, discussed the best workout programs for a variety of desired results and how students can develop exercise programs for their own lifestyle and goals.

A DNA test by the Philadelphia Police Department linked Dominique Wilson, 23, to the armed home invasion and sexual assault that occurred on the 4400 block of Spruce Street in December. "We are convinced that this is the perpetrator," said Capt. John Darby of the PPD, according to an article from FOX.

ew England is no stranger to undefeated seasons. After watching their Patriots go a perfect 16-0 in the regular season before losing in Super Bowl XLII to the New York Giants, those fans in the Northeast can only hope that the Dartmouth women's basketball team doesn't follow in the Pats' footsteps.

An owner's instinctual response to a dog's aggressive behavior might be to act aggressively toward the dog, but a new study shows that this could actually exacerbate that behavior. Meghan Herron, lead author and resident at the behavior clinic at the School of Veterinary Medicine's Matthew J.

In the past few months, President Barack Obama's administration has brought morality to the table of U.S. domestic and foreign policy. And yesterday, the Penn Democrats brought the topic to the attention of professors and students on campus. Penn Democrats sponsored and organized a BYOL - "Bring Your Own Lunch" - panel discussion in the Ben Franklin Room of Houston Hall with Political Science professors Rogers Smith, Michael Horowitz, Nancy Hirschmann and Alex Weisiger.

Next time you feel the urge to just grab a Starbucks latte on your way to class, Chris Bosch wants you to rethink skipping breakfast. Last night in Harrison College House, a group of personal trainers including Bosch, an associate director of Penn Recreation, discussed the best workout programs for a variety of desired results and how students can develop exercise programs for their own lifestyle and goals.

Money was a major factor when international students are considering whether to apply to colleges abroad. It was for Ana Tere del Toro, a high school senior from Mexico. School is considerably cheaper at home, there are more scholarship opportunities and the applicant pool is less competitive.

New management by an outside company may help some of Philadelphia's failing schools make the grade. A recent study by Harvard's Kennedy School of Government professor Paul Peterson and Harvard graduate student Matt Chingos shows that students in schools managed by for-profit companies performed better in math than those in regular public schools.

The statistics are staggering: Only 7 percent of black eighth-graders perform at grade level in math, there is a 33-percent chance that a black boy born in 2001 will go to prison and 60 percent of black, male, high-school dropouts have spent time in prison.

For most Penn students, the homeless are accepted as a fact of life in West Philadelphia, one of the things seen but not quite registered on a daily basis. That's why it's gratifying to hear about Penn students' recent outreach efforts to homeless Philadelphia residents.

Opponents of the proposed Campus Inn extended-stay hotel project at 40th and Pine streets will have to wait a little longer to make their case. Their appeal of a Historical Commission decision allowing the project to move forward was scheduled to be heard yesterday before the Department of Licenses & Inspections Review Board.

President Barack Obama's stimulus plan may provide funds for the Philadelphia Police Department to hire additional officers. The bill, which was signed into law last week, allocates $1 billion nationally for the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services of the U.