Ella Duangkaew

Several professors are in the process of revising their curricula or creating new ones for fall semester courses — from Political Science to journalistic writing and communication studies — that will center around the election.

The minor was granted final approval by the faculty of the School of Arts and Sciences in their meeting yesterday, following its approval by the College Curriculum Committee in March.

According to undergraduate department chair and music composition professor James Primosch, the Music Department will be adding more performance-based courses in the fall as part of an effort to emphasize the value of performance among music majors.

Dorothy Roberts has been appointed as the newest Penn Integrates Knowledge professor and will join Penn this fall as a joint faculty member of the School of Arts and Sciences and the School of Law. RELATED: Faculty find faults with ‘Penn Integrates Knowledge’

The Center for the Advanced Study of India is celebrating its 20th anniversary throughout 2012. This yearlong celebration is an exploration of “two decades of transformations” in India and the center, according to CASI Director Devesh Kapur.

A Graduate School of Education student is empowering inner-city high school students to research issues like violence, crime and poverty that are prevalent in their lives.

The BFS course design grants were launched in May 2011, and the BFS program accepted proposals for new courses through March 16.

The James Joo-Jin Kim Program in Korean Studies is “providing important operational support this year for the program,” according to School of Arts and Sciences Dean Rebecca Bushnell.

VIPER — the Vagelos Integrated Program in Energy Research — was announced in the fall and is currently working to finalize its curriculum and admit its first freshman class ever. VIPER will combine courses from the College of Arts and Sciences and the School of Engineering and Applied Science to educate students on alternative energy resources.

With the College topping the charts in course-size enrollment again this year, professors of large classes are finding new ways to engage students. College Dean Dennis DeTurck noted that some of the highest enrolled courses have made distinctive changes to their overall nature this year.