Some students are singing his praises, some have no idea who he is and others are "appalled" by the University's decision to bring in James Baker to speak at graduation. Yesterday's announcement of Baker as this year's commencement speaker has raised controversy among Jewish and pro-Israel campus groups about whether Bakeris an appropriate choice for graduation.
News Brief: Prelim for 'Screwdriver bandit' pushed to May
The date for a preliminary hearing for Troy Brown, the man charged with a string of robberies with a screwdriver, has been reset for May 4 after he was assigned a new court-appointed lawyer last week. Cathie Abookire, a spokeswoman for the district attorney's office, said the preliminary hearing that had been scheduled for March 5 had been changed to a status listing, in which Brown was appointed a new attorney, Alston Meade.
Alternative pop choices ignore alternative styles
If Ben Folds seems like a familiar choice for this year's Spring Fling headliner, it's because he is. Folds, who will perform at Penn on April 13, follows a line of music artists brought to Penn that all tend to play similar, alternative-pop styles of music.
Three-time presidential cabinet member and co-chairman of the Iraq Study Group James Baker will address Penn's 251st graduating class, University officials announced yesterday.
News Brief: Prelim for 'Screwdriver bandit' pushed to May
The date for a preliminary hearing for Troy Brown, the man charged with a string of robberies with a screwdriver, has been reset for May 4 after he was assigned a new court-appointed lawyer last week. Cathie Abookire, a spokeswoman for the district attorney's office, said the preliminary hearing that had been scheduled for March 5 had been changed to a status listing, in which Brown was appointed a new attorney, Alston Meade.
Alternative pop choices ignore alternative styles
If Ben Folds seems like a familiar choice for this year's Spring Fling headliner, it's because he is. Folds, who will perform at Penn on April 13, follows a line of music artists brought to Penn that all tend to play similar, alternative-pop styles of music.
Admissions film gets its latest makeover
A "typical" day for Penn students should prove pretty tempting for high school seniors. At least that's what the Admissions Office hopes as it updates the Penn Admissions film, used to attract prospective students to the University. This new film will focus on the daily lives of 10 Penn students who participate in a wide variety of extracurricular activities.
Cho withdraws from Law School
The former second-year Law student who faces charges of attempted murder has withdrawn from the Law School.
Street pulls out - and comes back
Last week, Philadelphia's most colorful mayoral candidate bowed out of the race. But don't worry, Milton Street fans: He's already back in the action. Street announced last week just hours before the filing deadline that he was dropping out of the race to become Philadelphia's next mayor.
Food for thought - and charity
For charitable - and hungry - Law students, the idea is simple: Round up as many friends as possible and go out to eat. The more friends you bring and the more food you eat, the better. These steps are the basic requirements for Dining for Change, a group launched earlier this month by two first-year Law students, Madhu Muthukumar and Dimitri Islam.
Former Penn prof named NYU Med dean
Former Penn professor Robert Grossman will be the next Dean of the New York University School of Medicine, NYU officials announced last week. Grossman, who graduated from the Penn School of Medicine in 1973, will also serve as the new CEO of the NYU Hospitals Center.
Rap artist Juelz Santana has signed a contract and will officially headline Spectrum's annual spring concert, Penn officials and representatives for Santana confirmed yesterday. The concert will be held April 20 at the Theater of the Living Arts, the same venue as last year's concert.
Shooting stats a glimmer of hope
Though citywide shooting rates are soaring, it seems there may be a bit of hope for West Philadelphia. The number of assaults with firearms in West Philadelphia - comprised of the 12th, 16th, 18th and 19th police districts - has dropped 35 percent from 2003 to 2006.
Street's last budget proposal meets criticism
Mayor John Street delivered his final budget address to the city last week, praising his and his predecessor's work in delivering 15 years of balanced budgets. But Pennsylvania regulators and several mayoral candidates aren't so quick to congratulate Street's work.
Wharton now has two administrators to replace. The Conference Board officially named Wharton Vice Dean of Executive Education Jonathan Spector as its new president and chief executive officer on Tuesday.
Improved recycling comes to area
In the very near future, laziness will no longer be an excuse for area residents not to recycle. Beginning March 5, the City of Philadelphia Streets Department will implement its Single Stream Recycling methods in West and Southwest Philadelphia. "Single Stream is the wave of the future, and the wave of the present for a lot of cities already," said Evan Belser, community organizer for the Recycling Alliance of Philadelphia.
Official or not, frats extend pledge periods
The deadline for initiating new members into fraternities is today, but some fraternities will be running into overtime - with or without official permission. Under Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs regulations, pledging for both fraternities and sororities is supposed to last six weeks, after which pledges must be officially initiated.
Prof assoc. criticizes hiring-practices review
The nation's largest organization of college professors was less than sold on Penn's movement toward stricter hiring practices for faculty, calling the potential changes "an invasion of privacy."
It's a world of pure imagination
Wharton senior Michael Tolkin wants to make Willy Wonka's chocolate factory a reality. Through this Wharton senior's company, Foodily Chocolate Factory, customers would be able to create personal candy bars using potato chips, marshmallows, pretzels and chocolate at a company store.
James Baker, a former secretary of state and co-chair of the Iraq Study Group, will address the class of 2007 at Penn's 251st commencement on May 14. Baker will be joined by six honorary degree recipients, including Supreme Court justice Ruther Bader Ginsburg and R&B; songstress Aretha Franklin.



