Alicia Puglionesi is a College junior from Havertown, Pa. Her e-mail address is puglionesi@dailypennsylvanian.com.

The typical "American-dream" family - complete with pet, SUV and soccer-mom - has in recent decades given way to an increasing number of divorced and single-parent families. As a result, colleges like Penn may have to rethink traditional formulas in financial aid and admissions.

Polls for the 2008-2009 student government elections closed yesterday afternoon after record voter turnout, but results will not be announced until two violations filed yesterday are settled by the Nominations and Elections Committee. Both charges were filed regarding the Class of 2011 Class Board and Undergraduate Assembly races.

When College freshmen Everett Benjamin and Ryan Jobson applied for housing as incoming students, they listed the same top three preferences: DuBois College House, DuBois and DuBois. Now the two roommates and Political Co-chairs of UMOJA - the umbrella organization for student groups of the African Diaspora - are fighting to keep DuBois at the top of other students' lists by pushing for renovations of the 36-year-old college house.

Harvard University has announced that it will stop accepting transfer applications for the next two academic years because there is no place available to house transfer students. Additionally, Harvard did not accept any transfer students for this year's admissions cycle and refunded the students' application fees.

Safety officials are not taking any major steps to increase SEPTA security after a man was fatally beaten by a gang in a SEPTA station last week. The beating occurred in the station located at 13th and Market streets last Wednesday at about 2:45 p.

Craig Sinkinson, President and founder of the Mayan Medical Aid, a non-profit organization that funds medically related projects involving Mayan Indians, spoke at Civic House last night. He addressed the impact of maternal and childhood nutritional diseases during pregnancy and early childhood development.

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton and Rocky Balboa have a lot in common - or so she said during a speech in Center City yesterday morning. Responding to recent pressure to drop out of the race, Clinton used the famous scene at the Philadelphia Museum of Art as an analogy for her continued fight for the nomination.

The numbers are in, and Democrats are up in Pennsylvania. On March 24, the final day to register voters for the April 22 primary, more than 33,000 new voters registered as Democrats. Additionally, nearly 46,000 registered voters switched their party affiliation to become Democrats before the primary between Democratic presidential candidates Illinois Sen.

For the Penn men's golfers, practice always starts with a long drive. But not the kind of drive you're thinking of. Without traffic, they can be at the team's home course to practice in thirty minutes. With traffic, who knows? And in the winter, when they can only use some camera equipment, a mat and a net, it's not easy to work on course management, unless you trust the accuracy of Pottruck's simulator.

Voters and presidential candidates are debating many issues this election cycle, but while candidates are offering higher-education policy proposals, most voters are focusing their attention elsewhere. According to a nationwide survey conducted by The Chronicle of Higher Education and Gallup, issues in higher-education came least-important out of nine issues which Americans were asked to rank.

Assault March 22 - Samuel Benesby, 21, of the 1700 block of Cold Springs Road in Newton Square, was arrested on the 200 block of S. 40th Street by Penn Police for allegedly assaulting a Penn Police officer at about 2:10 a.m. Auto theft March 27 - A male student, 27, reported that his dirt bike, secured with a cable lock, was removed by an unknown suspect at about 9:30 a.

"What you stand for is just as important as what you stand in," said last night's Fashion Week keynote speaker Kenneth Cole. Cole, known for his humanitarian efforts, fashion brand and quirky campaign slogans, discussed the role philanthropy plays in his position as CEO and Chairman of the Board of Kenneth Cole Productions, Inc.

When you grow up in a medical professional's home, you kind of get used to the fact that every pen and notepad is emblazoned with the name of a drug company or one of its high-priced prescription drugs. In my house, Pfizer always provided more pens than Bic.

When the women's lacrosse team traveled to Baltimore last year to take on Johns Hopkins, the then-No. 14 Quakers upset the No. 12 Blue Jays 12-4, giving Penn its first-ever win over its Maryland rival. But this year, the tables have turned. The No. 8 Quakers (7-1) are now the higher-ranked team and look to avoid a revenge upset by the No.

In contrast to the other Ivy League schools, Penn's overall acceptance rate increased to 16.4 percent for the class of 2012. Penn is the only Ivy League school thus far that has not reported a record-low acceptance rate. This admissions cycle, Penn admitted a total of 3,769 of 22,922 applications.

As fuel costs rise, the benefits of solar energy are often touted - but solar power is easier to implement in some places than others. The construction of a solar community in Northeast Philadelphia displays the benefits of obtaining energy from the sun. But it also highlights the difficulties in applying such technology on a large-scale, such as at institutions like Penn.