When it comes to arson, Penn would make Smokey the Bear proud. According to Division of Public Safety statistics from 2002 to 2006, only four intentionally set fires have occurred at Penn: two in 2002, one in 2005 and one last year. A fifth destroyed a house on S.

For Yohann Sidhwa, next week's spring break is going to be all about work. The College sophomore will be spending his week off from school performing various logistical and other tasks for Securities Industry Institute, a Wharton-run program that begins on March 4.

City Controller Alan Butkovitz responded to a recent downgrading of Philadelphia School District's bond rating by Fitch Ratings at a press conference yesterday. The school district's bond rating is now one of the lowest in the nation. Butkovitz said one reason for the lower rating was that, "contrary to the school district's statements and reports," it has not balanced their budget for the past four years.

Family and friends will gather on Friday to pay their respects to Chemistry professor Alan MacDiarmid. The service for MacDiarmid, a Nobel Prize laureate who taught and researched chemistry at Penn for 52 years, follows his death three weeks ago at age 79.

A female University faculty member was assaulted on the 3100 block of Walnut Street Monday afternoon, marking the eighth assault in nine days on or near Penn's campus. The woman was walking eastbound on Walnut Street at about 3 p.m. when she was approached by an unknown male who struck her in the face, Division of Public Safety officials said.

At Yale University, bright ideas don't necessarily require that much energy. Yale officials announced last week that energy consumption in its 20 undergraduate college houses has decreased by 17.3 percent since the 2004 academic year. Installing new technology in the dorms, as well as educating students about conservation, helped the dorms cut down energy usage, Yale's energy manager Thomas Downing said.

Theft Feb. 17 - A male student reported that his camcorder, worth about $800, was stolen from a room inside Meyerson Hall at about 5:00 p.m. Feb. 17 - Michael Urquhart, 32, of the 700 block of Mayfair Street, allegedly took items without paying from the Wawa located at 3604 Chestnut St.

Chi Omega has been under an internal investigation since last week regarding events that took place during pledging. "Chi Omega did experience some small issues and inappropriate behavior during their new-member education process by a couple of individuals," Office of Fraternity and Sorority Affairs director Scott Reikofski said.

Already known for "Rockin' the Suburbs," Ben Folds will be rockin' Penn's campus this April. Folds will be this year's Spring Fling headline performer, Social Planning and Events Committee officials confirmed yesterday. Folds, a singer-songwriter, announced on his Myspace.

Fundraising, facilitating internal growth and reaffirming urban partnerships are on the agenda for incoming Graduate School of Education Dean Andrew Porter. Currently the director of Vanderbilt University's Learning Sciences Institute, Porter will replace Susan Fuhrman, who left GSE last spring to assume the presidency of Columbia University's Teachers College.

Despite 1,000 people dying every day in South Africa from AIDS, international response is moving at a snail's pace. Stephen Lewis, former UN ambassador, deputy executive director of UNICEF and special UN envoy for HIV/AIDS, spoke at yesterday's Penn Global Forum about both the many setbacks and achievements with regard to the disease and its spread throughout Africa.

For the first time, Penn has chosen to take advantage of the free ad space given to all tournament participants by the CBS network and will air one of three 30-second spots that it has developed with the advertisement agency Red-Tettemer.

Without the surgery, her heart would stop. But Esther refused because it just wasn't kosher - literally. As an Orthodox Jew, Esther deemed a pig-valve replacement unkosher, and the world watched as everyone's favorite surgical interns scrambled to find an appropriate alternative.

"I have a car at school." "Well, I have a Mercedes at school." "But I got an A on that last midterm." "Really? I got an A+." Obnoxiously trying to one-up a friend typically results in a never-ending conversation. But for one actor, it served as inspiration for a Web site: OneUpMe.

For most Penn students, four straight hours spent at night in a classroom would be the equivalent of a nightmare. But for Alberto Rosa, it's nothing less than a dream come true. Rosa, who recently returned from tours of duty in Afghanistan and Iraq, is now packing his bags once again to head off to University Park after being accepted to Penn State this year, all with the help of Penn's Veterans Upward Bound program.

Seven assaults occurred on or near campus in the last week, including attacks on two students and a University staff member, as well as an assault on a police officer by a student.

School of Arts and Sciences Grad Student Jonathan Fisher will make his debut at Carnegie Hall in New York on March 10. A pianist since the age of eight, Fisher will perform at 5:30 p.m. next Saturday in the facility's Weill Recital Hall - only two months before he expects to receive his doctorate in physics and astronomy from Penn.