A four-block stretch of Locust Street was subject to five violent crimes during the first week of July, prompting the Division of Public Safety to issue an alert on juvenile crime.

In an effort to battle escalating college tuition costs and increasing student debt, the House of Representatives approved the College Cost Reduction Act of 2007 July 11, revamping the structure of federal student financial aid. The bill will cut $19 billion in federal subsidies to student lenders over five years.

Penn's Division of Public Safety released an alert last night. According to DPS, groups of juveniles have been allegedly harassing, assaulting and robbing people in University City. DPS reports that the juveniles, all male, have been seen in groups of three to eight.

SEPTA implemented a fare increase on Monday "in an effort to begin to partially address the expected shortfall in the proposed budget," according to the SEPTA Web site. The $2 base fare for use of intra-city transportation like the Market-Frankford El, Broad Street subway, subway-suface trolleys and buses won't be affected by the increase, nor will token prices, which will remain at $1.

Two distinguished professors of African-American culture will be leaving Penn this fall for positions at other peer institutions. Elijah Anderson, a Sociology professor for over 32 years at the University and a noted specialist on urban inequality will join the sociology department at Yale University, while Religious Studies professor Michael Eric Dyson will become a university professor - the highest position a faculty member can hold- - at Georgetown University.

As the 2008 election approaches, young Americans appear to be more liberal than they are conservative, and lean more to the left than the population as a whole. Fifty-four percent of Americans age 17 to 29 say they intend to vote for a Democrat for president in 2008, according to a June New York Times/CBS News/MTV poll.

In this castle siege, there's no need to brace yourself for boiling tar and thousand-pound rocks - instead, enjoy over 2,000 Tastykake Butterscotch Krimpets. That's exactly the treat visitors will receive at the Eastern State Penitentiary, located at 22nd Street and Fairmount Avenue, as it hosts the 13th annual Bastille Day Festival this Saturday.

Robbery July 3 - A 43-year-old man, unaffiliated with the University, reported that several suspects on bikes allegedly attempted to take items from him while he was walking on the 4200 block of Locust Street at about 10 p.m. July 7 - A 40-year-old male Penn employee reported that two people allegedly assaulted him and took items from him on the 4200 block of Locust Street at about 5:10 p.

Penn's biomedical research is about to get a booster shot, in the form of a multi-million dollar, 10-story research facility. University officials plan to construct a $370 million biomedical tower that will focus on providing resources for research into human diseases next to the Perelman Center for Advanced Medicine on Civic Center Boulevard.

Next time you make a search for the musician "Dylan" on iTunes, don't be surprised to find some Dylan Thomas alongside Bob Dylan. And if English professor Al Filreis gets his wish, what you'll be listening to is a poetry podcast straight from the Kelly Writers House's Pennsound Project.

Books and bikes? While it may seem like an unlikely combination, two activists in a '70s style mini-bus are taking their cause national. The multi-colored bus that houses Books on Wheels was on Penn's campus last Sunday at Saint Mary's Episcopal Church for a community event called Bike Church.

The Association of Pennsylvania State College and University Faculties has threatened to go on strike starting Monday if negotiations with the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education fail to result in a new contract. The association represents 5,500 professors at 14 state-owned universities excluding those at the Penn State University system.

Don't fret about missing Jack Johnson's performance in Australia at the LiveEarth concert this summer - Penn is providing live feed of the international event. The Mid-Atlantic Gigapop in Philadelphia for Internet2, a high-speed Internet2 network based at Penn, will provide a live DVD-quality multicast of the climate change-focused Live Earth concerts on July 7 for computers on networks with Internet2 capabilities, which include those at many research and educational institutions.

The School Reform Commission decided yesterday what action to take with dozens of privately run Philadelphia schools by retaining private managers but giving them less funding. The six private managers, which include Penn, will now receive $500 from the district per student, a cut in $250 for the private companies, but an increase of $50 for Penn and Temple University.

The administration announced on Tuesday that current Wharton Deputy Dean and Marketing professor David Schmittlein will serve as interim dean of the Wharton School for July. Tom Robertson will assume the top position at Wharton on Aug. 1. A Wharton faculty member since 1980, Schmittlein has served as deputy dean since 2000 and has been heavily involved in Wharton administration, having previously held the positions of chairman of the Marketing Department and vice dean and director of Wharton doctoral programs.

In a decision last Friday by a Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas jury, Penn was ordered to pay Mark Helpin, a former Penn faculty member, more than $4 million in a workplace dispute centering around a dental clinic he helped start up. Helpin, a dentist, was employed at the University from 1989 to 2003, during which time he helped to found a dental clinic that specialized in treating special-needs children.

Thomas Robertson will lead the Wharton School as its new dean, Penn President Amy Gutmann and Provost Ron Daniels announced last week. As Wharton's 13th dean, Robertson will be responsible for increasing the school's global presence, diversity and interdisciplinary efforts.