View Larger Map Theft Feb. 20 - Eugene Chakejian, 39, unaffiliated with the University and of the 900 block of Meadow Creek, Chester Springs, Pa., was arrested at about 12:15 a.m. for allegedly attempting to leave Wawa, located at 3744 Spruce St., without paying for merchandise valued at about $40.

The Social Planning and Events Film Committee will leave its mark today by bringing Spike Lee to campus as the first-ever SPEC Film keynote speaker. The Emmy award-winning filmmaker will speak at Irvine Auditorium tonight at 7:30 p.m. at an event entitled "The World Through My Lens: A Conversation on Film Making with Spike Lee.

In his budget proposal last week, President Barack Obama announced that he wants the United States to have the "highest proportion of college graduates in the world" by 2020. His $3.55-trillion budget presents this kind of "real and dramatic change," including a significant amount of education budget reform, Obama explained.

In response to the global economic downfall, World Bank President Robert Zoellick advocates a "multidisciplinary approach" to solving the current problems. Last night, in a moderated discussion held by the Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business, Zoellick outlined specific ways in which the World Bank aims to help developing countries during the crisis.

Faye Allard may be from London, but her British accent gives her an unusual advantage in West Philadelphia. Yesterday night, Allard gave a talk about her dissertation, titled "Mind the Gap," as part of the Philomathean Society's weekly lecture series. For her recent in-depth study on the disparity between black male and female academic achievement in Philadelphia, Allard spent the majority of a year with students in West Philadelphia, following them from their classes to their neighborhoods, and even on excursions to the mall.

In the past, local politicians have tackled Philadelphia's problems - but President Barack Obama's newly created Office of Urban Affairs will take City issues to the federal level. The Office of Urban Affairs will bring "long-overdue attention to the urban areas where 80 percent of the American people live," said Obama on Feb.

As of 2007, 33 million people were infected with HIV internationally, according to AVERT, an international HIV/AIDS charity. For decades, researchers around the globe have been working to alleviate this annually growing number of people infected with the disease.

Students registering for fall classes later this month can base their selections on more than just paragraph-long descriptions on Penn InTouch. During advance registration professors from Penn's 12 schools will be able to upload syllabi through a centralized repository system.

On the heels of student protests at New York University, a group of graduate students is asking University President Amy Gutmann to make a public statement on the events and clarify Penn's position on the use of force against students. The student activist group "Take Back NYU!" - who recently occupied a student center for two days over concerns including tuition costs and the school's investments - accuses NYU of using "excessive force" against them, according to the group's Web site.

Buckingham Palace, Big Ben, the Thames - nine students will see it all without paying. The Thouron Award, a Penn-specific scholarship, was awarded to sophomores, juniors, seniors and graduate students interested in studying in the United Kingdom last month. British students interested in doing graduate work at Penn can also benefit from the scholarship.

The U.S. Housing and Urban Development Agency announced last week that as part of President Barack Obama's economic-stimulus package, Philadelphia would receive slightly over $21 million to spend on fighting homelessness. The $21,486,240 that the city will receive to spend within three years is in addition to the $26.

To recruit more lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and ally students to Penn, the LGBT Center and the Office of Undergraduate Admissions have begun reaching out to Gay Straight Alliance groups at local Philadelphia high schools. Bob Schoenberg, director of Penn's LGBT Center, said the center has been working with the Admissions Office for several years to recruit more "LGBT and LGBT-friendly" students.

Over five hours, $1.78 million and a snowstorm later, campus leaders discussing 2009-2010 student government expenses left Huntsman Hall with a budget unchanged from the one initially proposed. On Sunday night, the six umbrella groups of student government met to discuss the budget for the next academic year, proposed by the Undergraduate Assembly's budget committee.

When the storm that started Sunday night continued to persist yesterday, not only did it bring more snow but it also brought a sigh of relief to some Penn students hit with heavy workloads this week. "I have a midterm Wednesday so it gave me more time to study," said College junior Alex Lee, whose World at War class was canceled because of the snow.

Students looking to live Greek this year might have to pick a number and wait. With the majority of this year's new pledges looking for space in one of 38 fraternities and sororities, it's often hard to find an open room in popular houses. While the average pledge-class numbers nearly 19, some chapters have welcomed over 40 new members to a house with room for only fifteen or twenty.

In October 2007, a man was shot and killed near 38th and Chestnut streets, just outside Koko Bongo nightclub that closed shortly after. But Ned Taddei, who is opening two connecting establishments - The Blockely Pourhouse bar and Mary Oaks restaurant - on March 28 hopes to breathe new life into the area.

After moving from location to location on campus for the past decade, Penn's HIV testing center has found a permanent home in the Student Health Service offices, located at 3535 Market St. Penn started HIV testing on campus in the 1990s. But the program has occupied several different locations because it was unable to find an adequate space.