As Penn's Faculty Senate debates whether or not to require prospective professors to self-disclose criminal backgrounds, it's important to remember that a little precaution goes a long way. To that end, we encourage the Faculty Senate to go a step further in its efforts to reform the University's hiring practices, by requiring criminal background checks on prospective professors.

Daniel Schwartz is a College sophomore from Decatur, Ga. His e-mail address is schwartz@dailypennsylvanian.com.

Less than a month into his first season with Harvard, coach Tommy Amaker was feeling good. After a 62-51 win over Michigan on Dec. 1, Amaker had not only stuck it to his former team, he had also pulled the Crimson's record up to .500 in the tough early going of the non-conference season.

An AlliedBarton security guard has been arrested and charged with theft and receiving stolen property, according to Deputy Chief of Investigations Mike Morrin of the Penn Police. The incident marks the second time since November that an on-campus AlliedBarton guard has been arrested.

When Penn women's tennis coach Mike Dowd arrived in Philadelphia in December 1996 at the ripe age of 24, he was starving. He was looking for tennis players who wanted to sit down at the table with him and dig in. "We wanted to find hungry tennis players, players that are still getting better and wanted to prove themselves when they got to college," Dowd said of his plan to reinvent the program.

Sleep. Exercise. Fling. These are all things being recommended to students this year. "Fling: Ask Us Why" was revealed by the Social Planning and Events Committee last Friday to be the theme of this year's Spring Fling, which will take place on Friday, April 11 and Saturday, April 12.

Last week, the Daily Pennsylvanian ran an editorial advocating the expansion of need-blind admissions to international students. In other words, it argued that Penn shouldn't factor a foreign student's ability to pay in the admissions process. I'm in favor of diversity, but I beg to differ.

Saint Joseph's Nick Tuxen raised both his sweaty palms to the sky as if asking for help from the Hawk itself. But the only thing that came from the heavens was a blistering serve from Penn's Eric Riley. Tuxen was overwhelmed, and any hope that was still lingering was dashed.

The ashes of Kentucky Derby winner Barbaro will be interred at Churchill Downs, where the Derby is run every year, his owners, Roy and Gretchen Jackson, announced yesterday, according to The Associated Press. Barbaro, who was injured during the 2006 Preakness Stakes, was treated for over eight months at Penn's New Bolton Center in Kennett Square, Pa.

Across the country, 1,100 schools are heating up for Focus the Nation, a teach-in about global warming solutions. The Fox Leadership Program and the student group Campus Progress and the Penn Environmental Group are making an effort to join the discussion with an all-day conference today in Houston Hall.

Carbon Trading 101. It isn't listed in the spring course timetable - yet. In a few years, however, that may be a different story. In a speech yesterday presented by Penn's Institute for Environmental Studies, adjunct professor Andrew Huemmler discussed what he believes to be the next frontier in U.

Thanks to record-breaking investment and fundraising, Penn's endowment for the 2007 fiscal year reached an all-time high - a high that, for the first time in history, pushed Penn into the top 10 schools with the highest endowments in the country. Penn's $6.

Cornell is not used to being in this position. In fact, no one is besides Penn and Princeton. The Big Red (10-5, 2-0 Ivy) were picked to win the Ivy League by media members before the season began, and so far, their play has pretty much lived up to the hype.

Last Saturday night, in Columbia, S.C., presidential hopeful Barack Obama delivered a rousing victory speech following his triumph in the South Carolina Democratic primary. "This election is about the past versus the future," Obama told a throng of supporters.

On Tuesday night, The Lambda Alliance, the umbrella organization for campus groups serving the LGBT community, elected a new board. Wharton sophomore Dennie Zastrow, stepping up as chairperson, will use his term to push for policy changes at the University level and to further collaboration with the LGBT community both on campus and off.

I hate cheaters. I generally believe they belong in the lowest circles of the Inferno, chilling with Judas, Brutus and Cassius in Satan's mouth. But, unlike many professors at this fine institution, I'm realistic. Cheating exists everywhere, and Penn's no exception.

When do Penn students, staff and administration collaborate to promote a cause? Yesterday - at RecycleMania's latest event, the signing of the Recycling Pledge in Houston Hall. Students signed the pledge, which encourages them to take action by learning about recycling and waste reduction and lead by example.