Chairmanship of the United Minorities Council is a tough gig - so tough, in fact, that this year leaders say there were no qualified candidates to fill the role. The UMC - an umbrella organization for dozens of minority groups at Penn - held elections Wednesday night, and although two candidates were in the running, no chairman was elected.

It's only been a couple of months since the season's final Clark Park flea market, but you may already miss the cluttered tables of handmade jewelry and racks of patterned blazers from the '80s. Fortunately for Penn's flea-market junkies, the organizers of this community staple are putting together an event this Sunday that is sure to hold us over until Spring: a holiday bazaar at the Rotunda, located at 40th and Walnut streets.

It's not quite the cure to breast cancer, but Penn researchers may be getting closer to a vaccine to fight the disease. A Penn research team has tested a new vaccine - which is designed for patients with early-stage breast cancer - in a pilot study, and those involved say it was unusually successful.

Have you always struggled with foreign languages? Penn Linguistics professor Charles Yang suggests it may not be your fault in his new book. A crowd of about 25 - along with three babies - gathered at the Penn Bookstore yesterday afternoon to hear Yang speak about his new book, The Infinite Gift: How Children Learn and Unlearn the Languages of the World.

University of Delaware President David Roselle may have made close to $1 million last year, but that alone may not be enough to convince Wharton School Dean Patrick Harker to be Roselle's successor.

Campus Copy remembers the owner of the most venerable business at Penn.

A newly elected Democratic majority in Congress could spell changes for college affordability, experts say.

The midterm elections may be over, but that didn't stop members of two political groups from battling for the hearts and minds of Penn students. The Penn Libertarian Association and the International Socialist Organization faced off in a debate hosted by the Penn Forum and Fox Leadership at Huntsman Hall last night.

A car caught on fire outside the Penn Bookstore yesterday at around 12:20 p.m. The damage to the car was extensive, resulting in the charring of the front end. No one was injured. Penn's Division of Public Safety reported that it is still unclear why the car, a dark gray Oldsmobile, ignited.

A string of child-abuse cases have come to light in Philadelphia over the past few weeks, and Carol Spigner has a chance do something about the problem. Spigner, a professor at Penn's School of Social Policy and Practice, was appointed co-chair of Mayor John Street's recently announced Child Welfare Advisory Panel for Philadelphia.

This afternoon, students can put their names down to potentially save lives. The National Marrow Donor Program will hold the second of two on-campus drives from 1 to 4 p.m. in Biomedical Research Building I. The program is an effort to get community members to volunteer their information for the national registry, which links donors to cancer patients in need of bone marrow transplants.

Undecided major? Too many career options to choose from and not enough time to decide? Sometimes, a little help from an alumnus is all you need. At least, that's the premise of the Alumni Mentoring Program at the School of Arts and Sciences. As the program's first semester draws to a close, officials say they are pleased with how it's going so far - but hope even more students decide to participate.

Penn is losing a tenth of its city funding for programs run with two West Philadelphia elementary schools.

Sweet-potato casserole. Cream-of-mushroom soup. Asian-sesame pasta. The missing ingredient from these culinary masterpieces available at Penn? Meat. And that food group's absence from many Penn dining-hall dishes has earned the University a spot on a recent list released by the People for Ethical Treatment of Animals.

Fashionable Philadelphia restaurant Deux Cheminees is shutting its doors, to the disappointment of epicures all over. But the retiring owner, Fritz Blank, hasn't decided on a closing date yet. The reason? He's trying to unload thousands of books that now occupy his restaurant onto Van Pelt Library.

In just a few months, a new school will debut on campus, but it won't be part of the University. The Jean Madeline Salon and Aveda Institute will be opening in late February at the Hub apartment complex, located at 40th and Chestnut streets. The institute - which trains individuals for professional service in hair, nails, skin and body - will occupy the first floor of the building and will include a store for Aveda beauty products.

Simple assault and harassment convictions may have two Penn students on nine months probation, but the repercussions likely won't end after that. The two Alpha Phi Alpha fraternity members convicted last Monday also face the possibility of having to list their crimes on job applications.