From business founders to marathon runners, the Class of 2012 will bring a host of talented students to Penn. And now incoming Nursing freshman Jaclyn Gage can add another skill to the class roster - bird calling. Gage recently won second place in Piedmont High School's 43rd-annual Bird-Calling Contest, a well-known competition in which groups of students imitate birds of their choosing.

For Penn's graduating seniors, stepping out into the real world may be tougher than expected. According to a survey by Vault.com - a leading media company that focuses on inside career information - only 50 percent of graduating seniors have received job offers this year.

University commencement speakers range from public officials to TV celebrities this year, with many colleges seeming intent on procuring big-name speakers to address their graduating classes. But students noticed that their graduation speakers and ceremonies focused on political issues - sometimes excessively - because the country is in the midst of a highly contested election.

A small crowd gathered at the Paul Peck Alumni Center at Drexel University yesterday to hear Melissa Thomas, a professor at Johns Hopkins University, speak about the effectiveness of international debt-relief programs in improving the quality of life in third-world countries.

The recent shooting of Philadelphia police Sergeant Stephen Liczbinski has spurred city residents and legislators alike to take another look at gun control in Philadelphia and across the state. Last week, Mayor Michael Nutter and Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell urged members of Congress to vote for the reenactment of the federal assault-weapons ban that expired in 2004.

College students have long been known as some of the most sleep-deprived people in the nation, but one recent study found that sleepiness may be the least of our problems. Sleeping too much or too little is associated with higher rates of obesity, smoking and alcohol use, according to a study released last week by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

As hotels see a deluge of demand for lodging at this time of year, visitors may have a hard time squeezing into a room in on-campus hotels. With commencement ceremonies taking place at roughly the same time of year for high schools and universities alike across the city, last-minute bookings may no longer be a viable option.

Former Law student Joseph Cho's latest psychiatric evaluation found him mentally incompetent to face charges of attempted murder. Cho, 32, allegedly fired 15 rounds from a 9 mm handgun into the door of his downstairs neighbors, two male Drexel University students, whom he believed to be spies.

At the end of January, the Division of Public Safety initiated a campaign to curb unattended theft on campus, and DPS officials say the results appear promising. According to Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush a couple of recent key arrests should substantially lower the high number of thefts from buildings.

Penn President Amy Gutmann announced at the University Board of Trustees' Stated Meeting on Thursday that the University has appointed Marilyn Jordan Taylor as the new dean of the School of Design. Taylor, who will assume her new position Oct. 1, will take over from current dean Gary Hack, who has been dean of the School of Design for the past 12 years.

Students trying to figure out where to pick up a six-pack of beer on a Friday night may soon have more options to do so. The Pennsylvania Supreme Court heard arguments Wednesday in a case that could overturn current law and allow convenience stores to sell beer packs to-go.

Although Lasik eye surgery has relieved 8 million Americans of the need to wear glasses or contact lenses, new concerns about surgical risks are being raised on the eve of its 10-year anniversary. New findings show that people who are not suitable candidates for the procedure for a variety of reasons are at greater risk for a problem during the surgery.

The preliminary yield rate for the class of 2012 fell to 63 percent, leading the admissions office to utilize its waitlist more extensively this year. The percentage of students accepted before May 1 who decided to enroll is down from the 66-percent yield at this time last year.

1:52 a.m. - May 20, 2008 Standing in the middle of a sunny Franklin Field and before a sea of excited students in black robes and mortarboard caps, University President Amy Gutmann started out the 252nd Commencement Ceremony by warning the graduates that, before receiving their diplomas, "you must prove yourselves worthy of your Penn degrees by performing one last task: Endure our speeches." But despite the light-hearted start, the speakers of Monday's ceremony went on to address politics and activism in their remarks to the graduating class.

The judge in the case of former Economics professor Rafael Robb agreed earlier this month to review the psychiatric records of his late wife, Ellen, before Rafael Robb's sentencing. On Nov. 26, 2007, Robb pleaded guilty to voluntary manslaughter for killing his wife.

Legally Blonde was set at Harvard University, but its producer Marc Platt is a proud Penn alumnus. Platt, a 1979 College graduate who is known for producing the Grammy-winning musical Wicked and the Legally Blonde movies, has been selected as the alumni graduation speaker for the College of Arts and Sciences.

Violent crime in the Penn patrol zone decreased significantly this spring compared to last year, but a large uptick in property crimes contributed to a 14-percent increase in total crime for the semester. Crimes against people, which include violent offenses such as robbery and assault, were down 41 percent from January through April of this year, compared with the same time period last year.