August 18, 2026

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

30 must-knows for Penn’s Class of 2030 AIDAN SHAUGHNESSY Senior Reporter

Incoming first-year students will spend the fall learning to navigate the ins and outs of life at Penn, from adjusting to terms like course units and Dining Dollars to SABS-ing and participating in the Econ Scream. New to Penn and have questions? Don’t worry! Here are some answers: 1. Where is everyone living? Penn has six first-year College Houses: Riepe, Fisher Hassenfeld, and Ware in the Quad — where renovations were recently completed after a threeyear process — in addition to Hill College House, Kings Court English College House, and Lauder College House. First years can also live alongside upperclassmen in Gregory, Stouffer, and Du Bois College Houses. Some students live in program communities, including the Benjamin Franklin Scholars program in Hill College House. By default, students in the Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business reside in Kings Court English College House. 2. What is New Student Orientation? New Student Orientation, better known as NSO, is a week of information sessions, activities, and social events welcoming first-year students to campus. Events include a gala hosted at the Philadelphia Museum of Art and preceptorials which are noncredit programs led by Penn faculty and staff that range from Penn Museum tours to walks around Philadelphia neighborhoods. 3. What is a CU and how do I add, drop, or withdraw from a class? Instead of credit hours, Penn measures courses in course units, or CUs. Most semester-long classes are worth one CU, while some are worth more or less. The number of CUs students enroll in each semester varies by school and program. First-year students in the College of Arts and Sciences cannot take more than 4.5 course units their first semester, while first years in the School of Engineering and Applied Science and the Wharton School can take up to 5.5 CUs in the fall. Even though Advance Registration has ended, students can continue to change their schedules through Path@Penn. Students can add and drop courses until the course selection period closes on Sept. 8. The drop period continues through Oct. 5, while Nov. 2 is the final day to withdraw from a course. A withdrawal appears on a student’s transcript as a “W” but does not affect their GPA. 4. When do I declare my major? College students are expected to declare a major by the spring of their sophomore year, while Engineering students must declare by the end of their first year. Wharton students typically select concentrations as part of their economics degree by the end of their sophomore year, although decisions can be deferred until the end of junior year. School of Nursing students do not declare a major. 5. How do I find out if a class is hard? Penn Course Review, developed by the student-run Penn Labs, allows students to compare courses based on instructor quality, difficulty, and workload.

The site is accessible with a PennKey and draws its ratings from end-of-semester course evaluations administered by the Office of the Provost. 6. Where can I go to study? Penn has 19 libraries, including Van Pelt-Dietrich Library and Fisher Fine Arts Library. Study spaces are also scattered throughout academic buildings. Select rooms in buildings like Huntsman Hall and Amy Gutmann Hall are restricted to students in the Wharton and Engineering schools, respectively. Other academic buildings are open to all Penn students. The Academic Research Building, located adjacent to the Quad, offers two additional floors of study space. 7. What do PPE, M&T, BEPP, and all these other acronyms mean? Penn has an innumerable list of academic acronyms. PPE refers to a philosophy, politics, and economics major, while HSOC stands for health and societies. BEPP refers to Business Economics and Public Policy, and OIDD stands for Operations, Information and Decisions. M&T refers to the Jerome Fisher Program in Management and Technology, a dual-degree program jointly run by Wharton and Engineering. For other acronyms, the College Dean’s Office maintains a PennSpeak glossary — and the DP has its own guide to Penn lingo. 8. Where can I print for class? All library locations and most College Houses have machines to copy, print, and scan. The cost to print is around seven cents per page for single-sided printing, and five cents per page for double-sided printing. Printing is paid through students’ PennCash account, which can be reloaded at any time. Free printing is available to Wharton students in Huntsman Hall and is available to all students at the Kelly Writers House. 9. What dining halls are there? Penn has six residential dining halls across campus. Kings Court English House, Hill House, Lauder College House, and 1920 Commons offer allyou-care-to-eat dining. Falk Dining Commons in Steinhardt Hall offers kosher dining. Quaker Kitchen in Gutmann College House, which offers a gourmet meal that rotates weekly, operates differently. Students make reservations in advance through the Penn Eats Mobile app. Quaker Kitchen also offers Culinary Sessions where students can learn to cook from a lineup of guest chefs. 10. How does my meal plan work? First-year students choose between two meal plans, which offer a different combination of meal swipes and Dining Dollars. Meal swipes can be used at Penn’s all-you-careto-eat dining halls and do not carry over between semesters. All first-year dining plans also include 10 guest swipes per semester. Students can track their remaining swipes and Dining Dollars through Penn Mobile, an app developed by Penn Labs that also offers a (at times unreliable) estimate as to what point in the semester

CATHERINE GARCIA | DESIGN ASSOCIATE

their dining plan might run out. 11. Where can I use my dining dollars? Dining Dollars work like cash and can be used at several locations across campus, including Gourmet Grocer, Pret a Manger, and Starbucks at 1920 Commons. Other locations that accept Dining Dollars include Houston Market, Accenture Cafe in the Towne Building, and Joe’s Cafe in Steinberg-Dietrich Hall. From September through May, students can also use Dining Dollars at the University Square Farmers Market on Wednesdays. Unlike meal swipes, unused Dining Dollars carry over from the fall to the spring semester. 12. Where can I get groceries? Several grocery stores are located within roughly a mile of Penn’s campus. That includes ACME Markets at 40th and Walnut streets, GIANT Heirloom Market at 34th and Chestnut streets, Trader Joe’s at 21st and Market streets, and Aldi at 44th and Market streets. For a closer option, Gourmet Grocer located inside 1920 Commons accepts Dining Dollars and offers select items. 13. Where can I get coffee? Coffee options on and around campus include Williams Cafe — a student-run cafe in Williams Hall — as well as Pret a Manger, Starbucks, The Board and Brew, Green Line Cafe, Haraz Coffee House, and Port Coffee Co. 14. Where can I do laundry? Each College House has washers and dryers that residents can use for free. Students can check machine availability through the Speed Queen app by creating an account and entering the location code “quaker.” 15. Is there a gym on campus? Pottruck Health and Fitness Center, located at 3701 Walnut Street, is Penn’s main recreation facility and is accessible with a PennCard. It includes four floors

of weight and cardio equipment, an Olympic-size swimming pool, basketball courts, and a climbing wall. The Fox Fitness Center at Franklin Field also has weight and cardio equipment. Franklin Field’s track is open for recreational walking and running in lanes one through four from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on weekdays. 16. Where do I go when I’m sick? Student Health and Counseling provides medical and mental health services to Penn students. Their medical office is located at 3535 Market Street and their counseling resources at 3624 Market Street. For medical emergencies on campus, students should call Penn’s Division of Public Safety at 215573-3333 or go to the nearest emergency room. Penn’s student-run Medical Emergency Response Team, commonly known as MERT, also works with DPS and the Philadelphia Fire Department to provide pre-hospital emergency care. 17. What safety resources does Penn have? DPS patrols campus and the surrounding area and operates several safety services. More than 300 blue-light emergency phones are located on and around campus, and DPS operates a 24-hour walking escort service which can be reached by calling 215-898-9255. Students are also automatically registered for UPennAlerts, the University’s emergency notification system. 18. What’s a PennCard, and what is a PAC Code? Your PennCard is your University identification card and is used to access College Houses, libraries, recreation facilities, and other campus buildings and services. Your PennCard Access Code is the four-digit number used with your PennCard to access residential buildings. 19. What are WUCC, WUFC, and WITG? See MUST-KNOWS, page 18

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4 OPINION

TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

Opinion

142nd Year of Publication

THIS YEAR’S BOARD NEEMA BADDAM President JASMINE NI Executive Editor ETHAN YOUNG DP Editor-in-Chief ANNELISE DO Design Editor KATE AHN Design Editor PRASHANT BHATTARAI Copy Editor JESSICA HUANG Copy Editor ISHA CHITIRALA News Editor FINN RYAN News Editor AYANA CHARI Assignments Editor INGRID HOLMQUIST Opinion Editor HANNAH CHANG Sports Editor EMILIE CHI Sports Editor KENNY CHEN Photo Editor UMA MUKHOPADHYAY Video Editor ARINA AXINIA Social Media Editor NIRA GOYAL Puzzles Editor RANVITH ADULLA Business Manager MAYA ECHAMBADI Corporate Relations Manager SHREYA SRINIVASAN Strategy & Promotions Manager

THIS ISSUE’S TEAM ANANYA KARTHIK Summer Copy Editor ROSE MARONE Summer Copy Editor CHARLOTTE PULICA Summer Opinion Editor

ETHAN YOUNG | DP FILE PHOTO

Editorial | The Trump administration’s continued attack on higher education On June 29, the Department of Education released its final ruling on legislation calling for “accountability” in post-secondary education. Under the rule, students enrolled in programs whose graduates earn a lower median salary than high school graduates in the same area will no longer be eligible for federal student loans. While the policy is intended to address the student debt crisis, the Trump administration has instead taken another step toward devaluing higher education by placing the financial burden on students. ​Federal loans were created to expand college access. The ability to get a loan that didn’t take into account credit scores, offered flexible repayment schedules, and featured varying interest rates allowed students from all backgrounds to earn their desired college degree. Students are now left with two options: take out a private loan or give up on pursuing the degree. ​Taking out a private loan means a higher chance of credit checks, fixed interest rates, and inflexible payments, a lower chance of pausing payments if necessary,

and no chance of loan forgiveness. Student loans, no matter the amount, can place stress on the person making that decision. The goal, of course, is to encourage students to avoid certain degrees — typically in fields such as social work, education, cosmetology, fine arts, or broader humanities. But will students with a passion to become a teacher, a caseworker, or an artist suddenly make a career switch? Or will they choose not to earn a degree at all? An education is lost either way. Are we only seeking a degree in order to participate in an inherently capitalistic society? Or are we at college to learn about, pursue, and eventually live out our passions? Whether in the humanities, STEM, fine arts, business, we have the right to educate ourselves and pursue whatever career we desire. But higher education is also about expanding your perspectives and knowledge and broadening your experiences. ​T his is not the first piece of legislation passed by the Trump administration

that restricts access to education. In July of 2025, Congress passed a bill that declassified certain fields of study as “professional,” limiting the amount of available federal loans. One of these “unprofessional” fields was nursing, a decision that sparked backlash from universities across the country, including Penn. While the move was temporarily blocked last month, the government’s intention is clear: to devalue higher education. While some might consider Penn insulated from the legislation, no program or degree is safe when the measuring tool they use has very little to do with the education itself. The bill disregards whether or not the graduates work in the same field that they studied, instead choosing to focus solely on the age and median earnings for comparison. This broad generalization of every graduate, regardless of career choice or financial situation, is exactly what makes this legislation so reckless. ​I f bills can be so easily passed to refuse

students federal loans, why can’t we begin to regulate college tuition? Instead of targeting the small number of people seeking degrees based on passion, we should be looking at the institutions that consistently choose profit over the well-being of students. Penn’s own undergraduate tuition will rise by 3.9% this coming academic year — and it’s not alone. Higher education should not only be valued as a bartering tool for a higher wage but also as a stepping stone toward a desired career and future. The Trump administration may call this an “accountability framework,” but the only way to truly promote accountability is to focus on the institutions, not a handful of programs that prioritize passion.

my high school self rip her braids out. It got to a point where the struggle wasn’t just affecting my grades but was beginning to erode my passion. As my average declined, so did my enthusiasm for the subject. International relations is an inherently analytical concentration within political science, yet I felt that my performance in the course did not ref lect my actual understanding. I had assumed that genuine passion would naturally lead to mastery, but it did not. As the semester progressed, it became increasingly easy to disengage from lectures, as I no longer believed I would meaningfully absorb the material.

Gradually, I stopped keeping up with current events, hesitated to attend events related to my major, and disengaged from course readings altogether. As winter break approached, I found myself questioning: If departments want to attract prospective majors, why design introductory courses in ways that alienate them? Courses structured in this manner discourage students who once held a strong interest in the subject, ultimately pushing them away rather than drawing them in. While such changes can reflect genuine intellectual growth, leaving a field due to discouragement in an introductory course suggests a failure to cultivate, rather than filter, student interest. I am not arguing for the University to rid itself of difficult classes. Rather, I believe that rigor should be balanced with purpose. Challenging coursework is essential to intellectual growth, as it pushes students to think critically, engage deeply, and expand their understanding beyond surfacelevel knowledge. However, there is a difference between a class that challenges students to rise to the occasion and a class that discourages them from trying at all. When difficulty becomes overwhelming without clear support or direction, it can leave students feeling disconnected from the material and insecure about their own abilities. In these cases, rigor no longer serves as a tool for growth but a barrier that distances students from the very subjects they once felt passionate about. Penn should strive to create environments where difficulty inspires resilience and curiosity rather than diminishes interest and confidence. I eventually moved on from PSCI 0400 and took other classes that restored my love for international relations because of professors who communicated information with enthusiasm and care. But an education at an institution like Penn should not depend on chance encounters with inspiring professors. We should consistently foster curiosity, engagement, and a genuine love of learning in every student.

This editorial represents the majority view of members of The Daily Pennsylvanian Summer Editorial Board, which is entirely separate from the newsroom. Questions or comments should be directed to letters@thedp.com.

Weed-out classes kill curiosity ZOE’S PEN | The consequences of academic gatekeeping When I came to Penn, there was only one thing I thought I would study: international relations. I had participated in mock trial and Model United Nations in high school, caring deeply about politics and economics. Of course, when coming to college, I wanted a major that would make me money. But I also wanted a major that would be the reason I woke up in the morning, put on my suit, and went to work excited. However, that passion for international relations dwindled upon taking my first weed-out class. A weed-out class is a notoriously difficult introductory course designed to filter out students who are not projected

to succeed academically in a certain major. These classes intimidate students who struggle with the coursework, often encouraging them to explore other areas of study that are considered less demanding. Hoping to dip my toes into a field of my interest, I took PSCI 0400: “Introduction to International Relations.” Instead, I drowned. I went to every lecture and recitation, attended countless office hours, and even recited the content that I learned to my friends to the point that they could repeat it themselves. But no matter how hard I tried and how much I studied, I kept receiving grades that would make

Cover illustration by Kate Ahn

LETTER SUBMISSION Have your own opinion? Send your letter to the editor or guest column to letters@thedp.com. Editorials represent the majority view of members of The Daily Pennsylvanian, Inc. Editorial Board, which meets regularly to discuss issues relevant to Penn’s campus. Participants in these meetings are not involved in the reporting of articles on related topics.

LAND ACKNOWLEDGEMENT The Land on which the office of The Daily Pennsylvanian stands is a part of the homeland and territory of the LenniLenape people, known to the original Indigenous people as “Lenapehoking.” We affirm Indigenous sovereignty and will work to hold The Daily Pennsylvanian and the University of Pennsylvania more accountable to the needs of Native American and Indigenous people.

ANNA WU | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Columnist Zoe Mackey explores the meaning of “weed-out” classes and their negative impact on students’ genuine passion for the subjects they pursue.

ZOE MACKEY is a College junior studying political science and international relations from Philadelphia. Her email is zmackey@sas.upenn.edu.

TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

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OPINION

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The Ivy League gives us the most. Why do we risk the least? DIYA-LOGUES | On phantom students, crowded hallways, and the quiet paralysis of elite privilege In the summer before my junior year, halfway through my time at Penn, I find myself reflecting on the person I have become. I have four semesters left, which sounds generous until I measure it against how quickly the first four went, and how little of college I still feel I understand. But the counting has led me to a far more unsettling question: when, exactly, did I determine what my

college experience was supposed to be? Sometime during your first semester, you meet the phantom of Locust Walk. No one can describe their face, and yet everyone knows them; no one has met them, and yet they are all anyone talks about. The phantom has a perfect GPA, a flashy return offer, the “right” greek bid, and a look smothered in catalog Ralph Lauren. You catch glimpses of them in overly

ANNA WU | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Senior columnist Diya Choksey questions why students at one of the world’s most prestigious universities end up taking the smallest deviations from what’s considered “normal.”

humbled LinkedIn posts and Stommons small talk, until slowly they become a standing reminder of an ideal self you are always an action item behind. And so, as students who spent our youth learning how to achieve, we let the phantom’s shadow creep into our own. In a bid to optimize the “best four years of our lives,” we maximize and streamline, as though joy were yet another deliverable, guarding against the gnawing suspicion that somewhere, someone is doing this correctly. We recruit two years early to avoid squandering our target school status. We rush because friendship, too, has an application cycle. We spend midnight hours formatting club slide decks nobody will read, all for a single line on a resume. We keep every door open until we are left standing in a crowded hallway with nowhere to go. At some point, I became that student. I came to Penn to study cognitive science because I was fascinated by human consciousness and memory. Try defending that utility in a 200-word application essay. In every campus coffee chat, I noticed my descriptions increasingly peppered with references to consumer behavior and analytics systems, enough to pacify an interviewer about my fit. They never asked a follow-up question. Neither did I. We tend to assume peer pressure will be loud, that it will announce itself clearly enough to choose whether to accept or reject it. Most often, though, the most insidious forms arrive quietly, planting the fear that every other student is in on an insider secret about the “right” path. You find yourself formulating your own proofs. Maybe the point of a school like Penn is, in fact, its recruiting pipeline, making it foolish not to step onto it. Maybe the club initiations eating into every waking hour are the price of community. Maybe the value of an Ivy League education is hidden inside the sameness

of rituals every student seems so eager to survive. But if we, students at one of the wealthiest and most prestigious institutions in the world, cannot afford to take risks, then who can? Who will? If elite institutions admit students for their unique interests only to funnel half of them into two industries, we might as well select on test scores alone and drop the pretense of individuality entirely. The prestige that should license experimentation instead morphs into a compulsive caution against deviation. The pedestal we put ourselves on is narrow enough to become a battleground for yet another status quo. And so we choose the doors that open instantly, and in front of each other, over the ones that must be built quietly and alone. The phantom, I have come to understand, does not exist to bring pain. In many ways, it offers a twisted comfort, a way to give success a shape after a childhood so full of right schools and right scores that we cannot bear a future without one. It spares us the vertigo of a path without hallways, where every door must be constructed on your own. And in accepting that comfort, we forget the real value of schools like Penn: that the tools to build any door imaginable are almost always lying around. After two years of trying to predict which doors were the right ones, I am beginning to suspect that finding peace in the not knowing is the real education. That building your own doors, however uncertain, is worth more than standing in a crowded hallway, staring at a shadow, unable to tell where the phantom ends and you begin.

him to delete Instagram for a few weeks to escape the urge to doomscroll. The result? A boost in confidence, a restored attention span, and a realization that social media is largely just a mirage. For incoming students suffocating under the weight of early comparison, Shah offers a crucial reminder: “My advice to incoming freshmen is that you are not behind. Everyone’s graph in life, specifically throughout college, is very different … It is always going to seem like everyone is one, or many, steps ahead of you, but on the inside, everyone is also struggling to find their path.” We can’t turn off technology — but we can change

how much power we give it. When I finally step onto Locust Walk, my goal will not be to meet up with the “profiles” I have spent the summer chatting with on a phone screen. Instead, the real challenge of our generation will be to consciously step back into the unknown: to leave our curated profiles behind, prop our dorm rooms open, and allow ourselves to be beautifully, authentically lost. Together.

DIYA CHOKSEY is a College junior from Mumbai, India, studying cognitive science. Her email is dchoksey@sas.upenn.edu.

Move-in day has become a myth XIE IT | Why social media has changed what it means to start college The classic Hollywood montage of college movein day is a cultural staple: minivans bursting with luggage, parents wrestling mini fridges upstairs, and nervous first years shaking their roommate’s hand for the first time. For decades, this day marked the beginning of a college student’s adulthood. But for the Class of 2030, this tradition has become a myth. Long before my family packs a single box for Philadelphia, my college experience has already begun — not on Locust Walk — but from the soft glow of my phone screen. Today, college starts the moment we see confetti on our admissions pages. Immediately, the social sphere activates. On Instagram, pages such as “UPenn Class of 2030” become hubs for incoming students to introduce themselves, while WhatsApp group chats buzz constantly. James Thunström, rising Wharton first year and creator of the UPenn Class of 2030 WhatsApp Community, explained his motivation behind launching the platform: “I created the UPenn Class of 2030 WhatsApp Community so our class has a safe place to connect, make friends, ask questions, and feel a sense of belonging, before, during, and after our time at Penn. With over 800 of my peers already part of the WhatsApp Community, I hope it continues to inspire the Class of 2030 to collaborate, communicate, and be involved with everything Penn has to offer.” These student-led spaces are already being recognized, and Penn’s staff have even reached out to Thunström to help notify students about University events. But at a place as preprofessional as Penn, this experience shifts from social to professional and academic. Long before setting foot in a lecture hall, we feel expected to package ourselves into the model job applicant. We build our LinkedIn profiles, send connection requests, and draft resumes for fall club recruitment. From my childhood bedroom, I am writing for The Daily Pennsylvanian, already embedding myself into campus culture from afar. On paper, this overpreparation is a secure

foundation. For introverted students who dread introducing themselves in a dining hall, or international and marginalized students looking for micro-communities before arrival, these platforms are a lifeline. Sara Ilieva, a rising Wharton first year and international student from Bulgaria, shared, “[H]aving talked to people who are also going through the same change as me, helped me see that everyone is trying to figure it out just like me. And honestly finding people with similar interests even before getting to campus has helped me feel a little less alienated from my class … knowing who I’ll be living with during the year has provided some security too.” Technology replaces uncertainty with a sense of belonging. We no longer arrive at Penn wondering if we will fit in. Instead, many of us already do. But in conquering the anxiety of the unknown, we have also inadvertently killed its magic. This endless summer of networking trades a defining moment of young adulthood for a curated experience. The college transition used to be defined by a universal equalizer: On day one, everyone was lost and terrified. Today, that vulnerability is replaced by an unspoken pressure to flaunt a flawless friend group and a perfect resume before ever stepping onto campus. Rising College first year Steven Linkh experienced this, noting, “I’ve definitely felt some pressure to make some friends before moving into Penn … I’ve seen kids from other schools already make huge friend groups and … it can create this [sense] of feeling behind.” Krishiv Shah, a rising College and Wharton sophomore, recalls experiencing this anxiety when he arrived at Penn. “Throughout the year, looking at Instagram and seeing who was hanging out with who, what parties everyone was going to, etc., wasn’t necessarily helpful for me,” Shah reflects. “Places like LinkedIn were also similar, where it can feel overwhelming, especially at such a preprofessional school like Penn/Wharton.” The stream of curated milestones eventually led

TRACY XIE is a College first year studying philosophy, politics, and economics from Syosset, N.Y. Her email is tracyxie@sas.upenn.edu.

JACKSON FORD | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Summer columnist Tracy Xie argues that social media has shifted the college experience to begin long before move-in day, replacing uncertainty with connection but also fueling comparison and pressure.

Your race isn’t automatically your community CONSIDER THIS | Why shared identity does not guarantee instant belonging When my high school counselor suggested Penn as my first-choice college, one of her main points that stuck with me was the idea that it had a very connected Black community, both through academics and extracurriculars. Having spent my entire life in predominantly white and Asian spaces, the opportunity to connect more with my Black side as a biracial person felt unfamiliar yet exciting. So when I applied early decision to Penn and got in just a few weeks later, I was prepared to be woven seamlessly into the strong fabric that is Black Penn. Coming to Penn, or any college for that matter, most students recognize the importance of immersing themselves in affinity spaces. But what if you end up feeling ostracized in a group you were so adamant about being a part of? Since being admitted to Penn, I’ve become familiar with other Black incoming first years at Penn — both in person and through social media. The students I met were almost entirely born and raised on the East Coast, which immediately revealed a geographic difference for me as a Californian. I met many firstgeneration Black Americans as well as immigrants, many of whom exhibited a deep link to their African roots through music, language, and dance. I couldn’t relate to this at all, as my family doesn’t even know our African country of origin. Other dissimilarities regarding class and gender began to surface as I faced the reality of Black Penn truly being much more culturally engaged than I had ever personally felt. After getting to know many Black students from various backgrounds, I’ve slowly begun to face the harsh truth that hadn’t even crossed my mind when I applied to Penn: Your race isn’t automatically your community. Understanding that simply sharing a race didn’t correlate with a definite ability to “click” with everyone, I began naively losing faith in my capacity to thrive in Black Penn. The only way to do so, I thought, was to change my interests, like the music I listened to or the cultural activities I engaged with, to fit in with the Black Penn that I had too broadly generalized. Especially as a biracial person, it can be difficult to feel fully one race. The commonly shared sentiment among mixed people of “not being Black enough” stimulates a pressure to assimilate and cling to the

race most visible to others. Fully engaging with my Black identity by changing aspects of myself, however, is something I feel I can’t fully accomplish, with the guilt of “leaving behind” my Asian side. But my troubles with navigating a mixed racial identity were rooted in how narrowly I was choosing to understand race as a whole. Affinity spaces like Black Penn are a mosaic, not a uniform entity. While affinity groups often convene under a single label, they should serve as spaces for self-empowerment of the whole person, celebrating the diverse hobbies, career interests, and life experiences that shape each individual. In doing so, recognition of intersectionality, the overlap of identities, can flourish. To truly be inclusive to all members, individuals need to feel that their whole person belongs in affinity spaces. People mistakenly group individuals of the same race into a stereotypically monolithic image when, in reality, there is immense diversity. Differences in gender, sexuality, socioeconomic status, and more make people of the same race very distinct from one another. Sharing the same race can come with experiencing similar joys or struggles, but intersectionality makes for a more complicated experience. The complexity of oneself cannot be acknowledged when we use race or any single identity factor as an umbrella to group people under — it leads to the assumption that everyone will get along and relate to each other. At the end of the day, we are all individual people with various labels that make up a multifaceted identity. While it is true that affinity groups foster inclusion, they shouldn’t be relied upon as a means of guaranteeing belonging. By setting aside the expectation that community equals instant rapport, one can resist the urge to assimilate to achieve that unrealistic goal of complete acceptance. Possessing a sense of communal acceptance provides college students with a greater well-being, and should certainly be striven for, as the workload is heavy and academic pressure can often get the best of us. When navigating the social scene in college, stop framing “belonging” as finding an absolute community. Rather, focus on building individual bonds and appreciating the nuances of each person’s personality. As the new school year rolls in, don’t expect spaces to immediately validate you. Instead, take the time

ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL | DP FILE PHOTO

Summer columnist Carina Thomas highlights diversity within affinity spaces and explores what it means to truly find belonging.

to appreciate the highs and lows of building relationships person by person. Prioritize connections that are guided by you, not simply our labels.

CARINA THOMAS is a College first year studying sociology from Berkeley, Calif. Her email is carinath@sas.upenn.edu.

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

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These faculty stay on the clock. Meet Penn’s College House Fellows For house fellows and faculty directors, working with students is an opportunity to connect with and give back to the Penn community CHRISTINE OH Senior Reporter

Nicola Gentili’s daughter, Francesca Gentili, grew up against the backdrop of Penn’s campus. It was on the 23rd floor of Harrison College House that she took her first steps. Now seven years old, Francesca crosses Locust Walk with her father each morning as he drops her off at school before heading to teach in Fisher-Bennett Hall. Since 2007, Gentili has served as a house fellow at Harrison, where — among 20 floors filled with Penn students — he lives with his wife and daughter. College house fellows and faculty directors are members of the University community who live in undergraduate housing to provide students with additional mentorship and community engagement in addition to their roles as Penn faculty and staff. According to College House and Academic Services, fellows help “bring the intellectual life of the University along with them” by hosting academic and social programming and offering students guidance. Faculty directors supervise fellows and lead a residential faculty team within their college house, helping shape the house’s academic and social community. The positions operate in two- and four-year terms, respectively, and have competitive selection processes to match applicants with the best college house environments for all residents. Learning beyond the lecture hall

In an interview with The Daily Pennsylvanian, Gentili explained that one objective of the live-in faculty program is to “continue academic activity” outside the classroom. Each semester, Gentili offers a Film Culture in Residence course and hosts film screenings throughout the year in his residential building to “fulfill the mission of bringing together students with academic opportunities.” He said that the faculty residents in Harrison each bring their own subject-matter expertise, which gives the building its character. Faculty living in Harrison include professors in religious studies, history, and fine arts, according to Gentili. “The element of the arts and the humanities in Harrison is definitely very present,” Gentili said. History professor and Director of the McNeil Center for Early American Studies Emma Hart hopes to bring her academic experience to her upcoming fellowship at Gutmann College House. “The subject that I study is kind of my hobby as well,” Hart said. “History already crosses into all of the areas of my life anyway … so there’s not that much of a sharp line.” Hart described plans to explore “the hidden histories and spaces at Penn” with interested students, including the Common Press in the Fisher Fine Arts Library and the Arthur Ross Gallery exhibit on Revolutionary-era America.

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Like Hart and Gentili, Physics and Astronomy professor Arnold Mathijssen bridges the gap between academic and personal spaces by hosting events on food science for his residents in Stouffer College House. On one occasion, Mathijssen held a “Hot Ones”-style wing challenge where students

also learned about the chemical compound capsaicin. On another, he invited a Penn graduate to host a coffee tasting where they discussed the different climates and methods of bean harvesting.

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Penn President Larry Jameson to leave role in June During his term, Jameson was seen as a stabilizing force by many in the Penn community ARTI JAIN, LAVANYA MANI, AND JAMES WAN Senior Reporters

Penn President Larry Jameson will step down from his role at the helm of the University in June 2027. Jameson served — first in an interim capacity and then as Penn’s 10th permanent president — throughout a prolonged period of campus turmoil, administrative turnover, and federal scrutiny. During his term, the former executive vice president of the University of Pennsylvania Health System was seen as a stabilizing force by many in the Penn community. “When I accepted the honor of leading Penn, my goal was to help restore stability during unanticipated leadership transitions, refocus our community on Penn’s mission, and strengthen Penn for the future during a challenging time for higher education,” Jameson wrote in a June 12 message. He added that there is “no substitute for being in this role.” Jameson was named Penn’s interim president in December 2023 following former Penn President Liz Magill’s resignation — which came amid national criticism of the University’s response to antisemitism on campus and her remarks at a congressional hearing. Magill was the first Penn president to resign for reasons other than a government appointment. And Jameson’s tenure as permanent Penn president will be the University’s second-shortest, only longer than Magill’s tenure. In June, University Board of Trustees Chair Ramanan Raghavendran explained that the remainder of Jameson’s term would be devoted to expanding strategic initiatives and broadening the University’s “geographic reach and impact.” “Dr. Jameson stepped in at a pivotal moment, and what he has accomplished in two and a half years has been simply extraordinary,” Raghavendran wrote. “His work is far from finished.” At the start of the 2025-26 academic year, Jameson

announced the “Penn Forward” strategic framework. The initiative, Jameson’s defining institutional effort as president, builds on efforts established by his predecessor’s “In Principle and Practice” strategic plan. Jameson’s plan outlined the creation of six working groups composed of undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral scholars, alongside faculty, staff, and administrative support. He updated the University community on Penn Forward’s progress in April, explaining that nine key initiatives will move forward from the working groups’ initial planning. The projects include efforts to redesign tuition and financial aid, lead artificial intelligence development, and expand the Wharton School’s San Francisco campus. In July, Raghavendran sought community feedback on the presidential search. Responses will be compiled by executive search firm Spencer Stuart, a leadership consulting company based in Chicago. The firm has previously supported presidential searches at Princeton University, Duke University, and the University of Michigan. The feedback will inform the 19 faculty, alumni, and senior administrators who serve on the Consultative Committee, which is tasked with identifying “the priorities, challenges, and qualifications most important to Penn” to help steer the selection process. The final selection process will then be overseen by a separate, yet to be named, search committee. Procedures outlined in the Faculty Handbook state that the members of the search committee “will be selected primarily from among those of the Consultative Committee.” According to an analysis by The Daily Pennsylvanian, the committee skews toward individuals from the University’s larger schools — including the School of Arts and Sciences. Of Penn’s 12 schools, five have no alumni or administrative representation on the committee.

KEVIN REN | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

Jameson during an interview on Oct. 24, 2025.

From credit cards to health insurance, a guide to adulthood at Penn The Daily Pennsylvanian compiled a guide of resources that incoming students can use to soften the blow of adulthood’s less exciting milestones AMY LIAO Senior Reporter

From losing socks in the laundry machine to grappling with the importance of a credit score, heading to college often means navigating the less glamorous realities of newfound freedom. Penn offers a variety of financial services, health care resources, and wellness programs to assist students in their transition to college. The Daily Pennsylvanian compiled a guide of those resources for incoming students. All things credit For many students, a first step into adulthood is opening a credit card in their own name. Credit card companies often offer programs specially designed for students that do not require prior credit history because they understand the dilemma of “needing credit to get credit,” according to Penn Student Registration and Financial Services. To build a credit score, students can also use secured credit cards, which avoid lender risk, and credit builder programs, which offer small repayable loans. Many banks and credit unions, including the Student Federal Credit Union at Penn, offer credit builder programs designed to help people with no credit history establish one. College senior and student credit union chief executive Jazz Ch’ng said the organization offers several benefits compared to traditional banks, including “lower fees” and “lower rates on loans.” The program is structured to offer a “guaranteed” loan, meaning that the money students borrow is held in a “frozen account” while their automatic monthly payments are reported to the three main credit bureaus. This allows participants to establish a record of making payments on time and quickly raise their credit score. The amount and length of the loan can affect how much a participant’s credit score increases. SFCU offers multiple options depending on factors such as how long a student plans to remain at Penn and how long they want to keep the account open. The dividends Penn’s student credit union pays on savings accounts can be “about two

to five times higher” than those paid by other banks, according to Ch’ng. To open an account, students must complete an application online or in person at SFCU’s campus office located at 3401 Walnut St. When choosing a credit card, Wharton senior and president of Volunteer Income Tax Assistance at Penn Melissa Domen recommended that students consider whether a card charges an annual fee and how the card’s rewards align with their spending habits. “If you’re a really big traveler, there’s a lot of different travel credit cards out there that will give you points and benefits based on travel or renting a car [and] staying at a hotel,” she said, adding that it is common for students to get “cash back” on their credit cards for “food or everyday purchases.” The decision “comes down to what your goals are in the first place,” she explained. Domen recommended that students — especially those with an income or money in a checking account — apply for a credit card as early as possible, because paying “off a credit card in full for a long period of time” will help them establish a credit history. Wharton junior and chief operating officer of the SFCU Stella Kyaw underscored the importance of international students understanding “how different finances, credit scores, and transfers work in the United States” as compared to their home country. Kyaw, an international student herself, said that opening a U.S. bank account is “the most important thing that you can do” after arriving in the country. While students can continue using international accounts, managing finances in the United States can be easier with a domestic one. She added that SFCU allows international students to open an account using only their PennCard and passport. Health insurance Penn requires all students to have health insurance coverage, whether they enroll in the University’s insurance plan or obtain a waiver with proof of alternative coverage. This year’s deadline to do either is August 31. Students must log into Penn Wellness’ Insurance Navigation Portal using their PennKey to register for the Penn Student Insurance Plan. That plan is offered through Aetna Student Health, and students who enroll can access their insurance card about a week later on Aetna’s platform. Those who choose to opt out of the Penn plan must log in to the Penn Wellness portal and submit their current insurance information. An accepted alternative plan must meet all University requirements: based in the United States, covering pre-existing conditions, and offering local Philadelphia medical and mental health care. If students do not submit an approved waiver by the deadline, they are auto-enrolled in the Penn insurance plan and billed for a non-refundable annual premium fee. See ADULTHOOD, page 17

NEWS

Welcome Class of 2030!

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

New This Year

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

NEW PLATFORMS There’s always something new to try at Penn Dining, such as more plant-forward options throughout campus, Fried Chicken Fridays at Hill, and a Fermentation Bar at 1920 Commons, and more!

IN DINING TXT&TELL Your feedback helps shape Penn Dining. Txt&Tell makes it easy to tell us what you loved, what could be better, or what you’d like to see in our cafés. Look for signage in our cafés, scan the QR code, and let us know what you think.

EVENTS Penn Dining events bring special menus, new flavors, and a little extra fun to cafés throughout the year. Keep an eye on Penn Dining emails and social for what’s coming next!

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A year of firsts: Tracking milestones for Penn freshmen JACK GUERIN Senior Reporter

As the Class of 2030 begins their time at Penn, here’s a list of events that every first-year Quaker should know.

The night is geared toward first-year and transfer students looking to learn about performing arts groups before fall auditions begin.

Class photo Towards the beginning of New Student Orientation, first-year students will don their class T-shirts and gather on Franklin Field in the shape of 2030, their class year. The photo will take place on Aug. 20 from 7:30 to 8 p.m.

Econ Scream Every year, students in the introductory microeconomics course ECON 0100 gather at College Hall the night before their first midterm to participate in a collective and cathartic scream. The event, organized by the first-year class board, allows students to relieve their stress while enjoying snacks and music. And if you know nothing about economics, don’t worry — students do not need to be enrolled in ECON 0100 to join in on the fun.

NSO evening gala NSO’s signature evening party has historically been held at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, but has shifted locations this year to the National Constitution Center to commemorate the nation’s 250th anniversary. On Aug. 22 from 6:30 to 9 p.m., the Class of 2030 will gather at the Constitution Center for dinner, desserts, and dancing, featuring interactive exhibits, live performances, and historical reenactments. Red and blue casual attire is encouraged. Buses will leave campus from Spruce Street between 37th and 38th streets at the Upper Quad Gate, and Walnut Street between 33rd and 34th streets outside Hill College House. Convocation Each year, Penn welcomes its incoming class of first-year and transfer students at Convocation, where they’ll hear from faculty speakers and learn Penn’s official song, “The Red and Blue.” A tradition dating back to 1894, Convocation is the culmination of New Student Orientation for firstyear students and marks their official welcome to the Penn community. This year, Convocation will be held at 7 p.m., Aug. 24 at Franklin Field, the night before classes begin. Student Activities Fair Penn organizes a student activities fair at the beginning of the fall and spring semesters to showcase the University’s nearly 300 clubs. This fall, the event will run from Aug. 27-29. During the fair, clubs table along Locust Walk and College Green. Each day highlights a different category of activities, ranging from arts and performance to preprofessional. Students will receive information on dates and participating clubs via email. On the evening Aug. 26, the Office of Fraternity and Sorority Life hosts a late-night fair where organizations associated with the Panhellenic Council, Interfraternity Council, and Intercultural Greek Council table on Locust. The Wharton Council also hosts its own club fair, showcasing over 50 undergraduate student groups affiliated with the school. Student Performing Arts Night At 7 p.m. on Aug. 27, over 50 dance, music, and theater groups will offer get-to-know-you performances at the Zellerbach Auditorium at the Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. Known as SPAN, the showcase is free, though students must reserve a ticket beforehand.

Homecoming and toast throwing Homecoming weekend will take place from Nov. 13-15, highlighted by Penn’s final football home game against Harvard on Nov. 14 at Franklin Field. The matchup falls during the 150th anniversary season of Penn football. Students will experience another tradition at the game: during the third quarter, Quakers throw toast onto the field while singing “Here’s a toast to dear old Penn.” The 50-year-old tradition began when Penn enforced a prohibition on alcohol at Franklin Field, preventing students from toasting to their alma mater with their drinks. Students found a creative workaround for the ban, bringing pieces of bread to literally “toast” the University. Light Up Locust Before the holidays, hundreds of Penn students leave their dorms to watch as lights illuminate Locust at the annual Light Up Locust event. The celebration, which usually takes place the week before fall semester finals, is coordinated by class boards in partnership with Penn’s Division of Facilities and Real Estate Services. Students often enjoy a live DJ with free cookies, hot cocoa, tumblers, sunglasses, tote bags, and more. Spring Fling Spring Fling is an annual celebration that occurs in April. The event, organized by Penn’s Social Planning and Events Committee, features a themed daytime festival with free music, activities, student performances, and local food, and a nighttime concert at Penn Park starring a high-profile artist. Spring Fling has run since 1973 and has previously brought names like Chance the Rapper, Metro Boomin, and Tiesto to campus. Last year, rapper Flo Rida headlined the concert with singer and actress Bea Miller as the opening act. The Penn Relay Carnival Each April, Franklin Field hosts the annual Penn Relays, drawing more than 15,000 participants to compete in over 300 events. The three-day event — the largest and oldest track and field competition in the United States — attracts thousands of university and high school athletes. Usain Bolt, Jesse Owens, and Wilma Rudolph have all raced at the Penn Relays.

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Museums, parks, cafes: Exploring University City Just blocks from Penn, there are countless destinations to visit, and endless foods to try JAMES WAN Senior Reporter

Incoming Penn students have much more at their fingertips than the offerings located directly on campus. Once they step outside of the “Penn bubble,” University City has a number of businesses, parks, and restaurants to explore. While a wide array of transportation options along the edges of the University makes a trip across the Schuylkill River into Center City appealing, don’t overlook what neighboring West Philadelphia has to offer. Just blocks from Penn, there are countless destinations to visit and tastes to try. Recreational activities The University is surrounded by a year-round selection of cultural, artistic, and nature-oriented experiences. The Penn Museum, featuring archaeological and anthropological exhibits, is free for students to access with their PennCard. Some of the museum’s notable offerings include ancient Egyptian artifacts, collections from the Middle East, outdoor green spaces, and a library. At Penn Live Arts, audiences enjoy performances by dance troupes, vocalists, orchestras, and more. Tickets cost just $10 for students, making international displays of artistry accessible on Locust Walk. Within the Institute of Contemporary Art — which offers free admission to everyone — you can view installations that center on “collaboration, experimentation, and learning.” The institute will reopen with several new exhibitions on Sept. 26.

Just outside the Penn Bookstore, a farmers’ market runs every Wednesday at 36th and Walnut streets — where you can buy produce, baked goods, and plants using your Dining Dollars or other forms of payment. Looking to spend more time outdoors? West Philadelphia boasts multiple parks and green spaces. Clark Park is a key community center with a playground, basketball court, and picnic areas. As the space undergoes renovations, Penn students are encouraged to engage with the neighborhood through volunteer opportunities and visits to its Saturday farmers’ market. Nearby lies the Woodlands, a National Historic Landmark District featuring a cemetery and expansive green space. The cemetery includes the Thomas W. Evans Funerary Obelisk, which is the United States’ tallest funerary monument. On campus, students can visit Penn Park’s sports fields and recreational facilities, as well as the nearby Penn Ice Rink, where PennCard holders can access public skating for just $8. The James G. Kaskey Memorial Park is a convenient botanical excursion that sits behind the Quad and hosts the BioPond with multiple park benches and colorful fall foliage. Those looking to explore nature farther west should consider a trip to Cobbs Creek Park along the edge of West Philadelphia. SEPTA travel options include the L — formerly known as the Market-Frankford Line — and the 21 bus, which runs westbound on Walnut Street and eastbound on Chestnut Street.

Food and drink From Mediterranean offerings at Renata’s Kitchen to Thai food at Pattaya, restaurants around Penn offer cuisines from around the world in a range of settings. Students walking around campus are sure to notice the varied food truck scene as well. Featuring choices such as breakfast fare, Asian fusion, and halal options, these establishments serve a variety of cuisines with prices that are typically lower than many brick-andmortar restaurants. GIANT Heirloom Market at 34th and Chestnut streets and ACME at 40th and Walnut streets are helpful on-campus grocery options for those who prefer to cook their own meals. Wawa, the convenience store chain of Philadelphia fame, is open 24 hours a day at two locations — one near the Quad and the other by Kings Court English College House. And when looking for health products or household items, two CVS locations along Walnut Street come in handy. For many students, “coffee chats” become a core part of the Penn experience. You can select from a diverse set of cafes — including Starbucks, Pret a Manger, Accenture Café, Café West, Joe’s Café, and the student-run Williams Cafe — all on campus. There’s far more to see, however, beyond 1920 Commons and Huntsman Hall. Other cafes close to campus include ELIXR Coffee, Haraz Coffee House, the Board and Brew, and the soonto-open Blank Street. Or consider going out farther

west to options such as Manakeesh Cafe, ReAnimator Coffee, Knockbox Cafe, or Milkcrate Cafe. Each spot has its own specialty, whether it’s the type of coffee — Yemeni, Lebanese, Ethiopian, Greek — or its environment — from cozy couches, outdoor tables, or even a vast collection of board games. There are plenty of locations that serve other drinks, too, such as Karak Cha House for chai lovers and a smoothie cart near Van Pelt Library that provides made-to-order options. Bubble tea enthusiasts can visit Molly Tea, Gong Cha, LULU Cafe, or Hue Boba Cafe. If you’re craving a different sweet treat, there is no shortage of dessert options. Popular destinations include the recently opened Mango Mango Dessert, Ben & Jerry’s, Kiwi Yogurt, and Van Leeuwen Ice Cream.

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Penn’s financial footprint spans all seven continents — including Antarctica In 2024, the University’s ventures outside of the United States accounted for well over $10 billion in spending ISHA CHITIRALA News Editor

While Penn’s four undergraduate and 12 graduate schools might all be located in West Philadelphia, the University’s reach extends around the globe. In 2024, Penn’s financial activities spanned all seven continents, including Antarctica. Altogether, the University’s ventures outside of the United States accounted for well over $10 billion in spending. According to tax disclosures reviewed by The Daily Pennsylvanian, Penn disclosed spending in all 10 regions designated by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service: Antarctica, Central America and the Caribbean, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe, Middle East and North Africa, North America, Russia, South America, South Asia, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Excluding investments, Penn spent $54.4 million abroad in 2024. While grants varied widely in size, the median expenditure was just under $148,000. The University’s smallest disbursement was $500 to Antarctica for “grantmaking.” Penn’s two largest grants, $6.2 and $8.2 million expenditures in the European region, were both attributed to “program services.” Program services was Penn’s most prevalent spending category on the whole, accounting for 58 of the 95 total disclosed expenditures. According to the tax filing, the category included areas such as clinical trials, study abroad, education and training, and field research. In 2024, the University operated four offices outside of the United States: one in Europe, one in the Middle

East and North Africa, and two in Sub-Saharan Africa. In total, Penn reported 444 employees, agents, and independent contractors working outside of the United States. Europe, which under IRS designations also includes Iceland and Greenland, made up nearly half of Penn’s

non-investment spending worldwide, totaling over $25 million. Though most of that went toward program services, the University also spent over $5.3 million to “send agents to seminar” and roughly $26,000 to “conduct board meetings.”

East Asia and the Pacific — a region spanning everywhere from China and Japan to Australia and New Zealand — drew the second-largest share of non-investment spending at just over $10 million, again led by program services. An overwhelming share of Penn’s overseas spending came in the form of investments. The University reported investments in just five out of 10 total regions: Central America and the Caribbean, East Asia and the Pacific, Europe, North America, and Sub-Saharan Africa. Despite not comprising a significant share of Penn’s non-investment spending, Central America and the Caribbean absorbed the vast majority of the University’s international investments, totaling more than $8 billion. Europe ranked a distant second, at roughly $1.7 billion. Outside of its latest tax reports, Penn has also built out a handful of hubs beyond its Philadelphia campus. Penn Washington, based in the nation’s capital, works to “create trust, collaboration, and effective partnership” between the University and federal, state, and local governments. The Wharton School also operates a West Coast outpost in San Francisco, which relocated to a standalone building last year. Since 2015, Penn has helped operate the Penn Wharton China Center in Beijing, which provides “on-the-ground support for programs and collaborations between Penn’s 12 schools and many academic, government, and business partners throughout China.”

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Here’s what y Penn this

LAVANY Senior R

Campus construction Renovations continued across campus this summer, as new projects began while older ones came to a close. With the completion of construction at Fisher Hassenfeld College House, the Quad will be fully functional for incoming first years for the first time since the 2022-23 academic year. Prior to these updates, which were initially proposed in 2018, the Quad had not been renovated since 2002. Construction in the three college houses spanned 520,000 square feet and cost $188.7 million. Penn also began a multi-phase renovation of 1920 Commons that is expected to conclude by January 2029. The updated building will feature over 200 more seats, an expanded Gourmet Grocer, a new coffee shop, group study pods, elevators, and a locker-based food pick-up system. The first phase of construction, which began in June and will continue until fall 2027, involves the demolition of a current greenhouse adjacent to the lower level of Commons and the addition of a new entrance. The dining hall, Gourmet Grocer, and Starbucks will remain open while the addition is under construction. Platt Student Performing Arts Center is additionally expected to open in January 2027. The building, located near Hill College House and Lauder College House, aims to increase space availability for Penn’s student performing arts groups and was initially announced in 2021. The University is also moving forward with plans to construct a new Physical Sciences Building at 33rd and Walnut streets — where David Rittenhouse Laboratory is currently located. Expected to begin in 2028 and conclude in 2031, the project will cost $520 million and will involve the demolition of much of DRL.

KENNY CHEN | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

CATHERINE FAN | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Open expression Following months of debate regarding Penn’s campus speech policies, Provost John Jackson Jr. announced in June that the University would delay finalizing its revised Guidelines on Open Expression. The final draft — which was initially due in September — will now tentatively be presented at University Council on Nov. 18. The extension means that the 2024 temporary standards for campus demonstrations, which bypassed conventional procedures for revising the guidelines, will remain in effect for longer than previously anticipated. Also in June, Penn’s Faculty Senate released a statement that categorized the current draft as “misaligned” with University values. The Faculty Senate Executive Committee called for a return of authority to the Committee on Open Expression and for the Provost’s Office to release the 2025 recommendations from the Task Force on Open Expression. “The content of the proposed guidelines would undermine Penn’s operations and chill speech,” SEC wrote, citing restrictions on event registration, “spontaneous assemblies,” and social media posts. Several student groups also voiced concerns, taking to social media to share statements criticizing the draft guidelines.

CHENYAO LIU | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

EBUNOLUWA ADESIDA | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

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NEWS 1 5

you missed at s summer

YA MANI Reporter

New civil rights center In June, Penn announced the creation of a new Center for Civil Rights, which consolidated the Office of Equal Opportunity Programs, the Office of the Associate Vice President for Equity and Title IX, and the Office of Religious and Ethnic Interests under a single administrative structure. The center is led by Vice President of Human Resources Felicia Washington, who will “serve as special advisor to the president on civil rights issues,” according to the announcement. Washington previously told The Da ily Pennsylvanian that the center’s mission is “to continue showing care for our community by making it easier for the community to understand how to access resources” and “report concerns that they have” — ultimately

strengthening “the prevention and education efforts that are already going on throughout the University.” The creation of the center capped a series of measures taken by the University in response to pressures from the federal government. The Trump adm in ist ration has with held funding from Penn and other universities, repeatedly pursued legal action over alleged civil rights violations. The new structure also followed individuals accusing OREI of violating academic freedom last year in its investigations of antisemitism accusations.

CHENYAO LIU | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

CONNIE ZHAO | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Penn in the legal spotlight A monthslong legal battle that galvanized many groups across campus came to a close in July, when Penn reached an agreement with the United States Equal Employment Opportunity Commission stipulating that the federal agency would not enforce its subpoena seeking lists of Jewish employees. In exchange, the University agreed to drop its appeal of an April district court ruling, in which a judge had ruled in EEOC’s favor. Additionally, per the agreement, Penn will not attempt to vacate that ruling. The resolution came about a year after the federal agency filed its initial subpoena for information on Jewish employees at Penn. Penn students and faculty expressed relief and optimism toward the agreement, noting how the campus community rallied behind a common cause in conversations with the DP. While the resolution means Penn will not have to provide any of the information demanded by the agency, some legal questions still remain.

In particular, the resolution only applies to the University, not the Penn-affiliated intervenors — who had filed a separate appeal with a unique case number. Earlier this month, the intervenors filed a motion to vacate with the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit. If granted, the motion would essentially erase the earlier ruling from the record, meaning that it would have no legal effect should the EEOC take similar action at Penn. The summer also brought a major Supreme Court decision on Title IX — nearly a year after Penn settled with the federal government over the law. At the end of June, the Court ruled that states could ban transgender athletes from participating in women’s and girls’ sports. Penn previously came under federal scrutiny after allowing 2022 College graduate and transgender swimmer Lia Thomas to compete on the women’s swimming and diving team during the 2021-22 season. Penn professors told the DP that while the decision may have limited immediate effects on campus, it could spark broader conversations about equality and transgender rights.

ETHAN YOUNG | DP FILE PHOTO

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

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The ARCH enters fifth year as hub for Penn cultural groups Many students find their home away from home at one of the cultural centers housed in the building ANANYKA KARTHIK Senior Reporter

KENNY CHEN | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

The ARCH building on Aug. 15.

It’s been nearly four years since Penn reopened the doors of its Arts, Research, and Culture House. The late-Gothic revival home, which once hosted a pair of restaurants, stands proudly overlooking Locust Walk. Inside, many students find their home away from home at Penn’s cultural centers, including Makuu: The Black Cultural Center, La Casa Latina, the Pan-Asian American Community House, and Natives at Penn. Its September 2022 reopening marked the first phase of a renovation project that expanded cultural centers previously housed in the ARCH basement into additional space throughout the building. “Four years later, it’s become a place where all Penn students can find a sense of belonging and take part in programs that bring people together,” a University Life spokesperson said in a statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian. “The reopening of the ARCH was an important moment because it reflected years of student advocacy for more space and visibility for Penn’s cultural communities.” Before the 2022 reopening, Makuu, La Casa Latina, and PAACH were housed exclusively in the ARCH basement. In May 2022, however, Penn’s 7B coalition reached an agreement with the University to expand cultural center space throughout the building, dedicating the ARCH itself to Penn’s diverse student body. The renovations added study rooms, social spaces, and offices for cultural centers and student groups. Later updates added new furniture and decor, a resource library, a prayer, meditation, a

reflection space, and a dedicated space for Natives at Penn. Penn also began offering additional University services in the ARCH after the reopening. In 2023, Student Health and Counseling reopened its “Let’s Talk” program in the building. Penn Violence Prevention, the Weingarten Center, and Career Services used the space to offer programming. By August 2024, renovations were complete and all four floors of the ARCH were available for student organization and cultural center use. Inside the ARCH, students can take advantage of the community-building events and support that the cultural centers offer throughout the school year. Makuu provides resources and programming for Penn’s Black community, while La Casa Latina hosts programs focused on Latino and Hispanic culture and community. PAACH offers programming and advising focused on Penn’s Asian and Pacific Islander communities. The ARCH is one of several locations on campus offering Penn’s cultural and affinity resources. Other cultural resource centers include the LGBT Center, Penn Women’s Center, and the Greenfield Intercultural Center. “Looking ahead, we want the ARCH to continue growing as a hub for programming and collaboration while enriching the student experience across Penn,” the University Life spokesperson wrote. “As a home for Makuu, Casa Latina, PAACH, and Natives at Penn, the ARCH remains a place where students can thrive.”

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What living in a battleground state means for Penn students

Coming Soon

Between the midterms and the 2028 presidential race, Pennsylvania voters will influence the country’s political landscape ARTI JAIN Senior Reporter

As the United States approaches the midterm elections this November, Penn students can expect to see political flyers, on-campus tabling efforts, and community members campaigning on Locust Walk. Between the election this fall and a presidential race in two years, Pennsylvanians will have the power to influence the country’s political landscape. As candidates look to court voters, here’s what Penn students can expect when casting their ballots at school. This November, State Rep. Chris Rabb (D-200) is the Democratic nominee to represent Pennsylvania’s third congressional district, while Gov. Josh Shapiro is seeking re-election to the state’s highest office. The outcomes of both upcoming elections will help set the stage for the 2028 presidential election — where Pennsylvania is likely to be a key battleground state again. Rabb secured the Democratic nomination to represent Penn’s district this May, after handily defeating the opposition in a three-way race against Penn professor Ala Stanford and 1999 University of Pennsylvania Carey Law School graduate State Sen. Sharif Street (D-3). Because Rabb is running uncontested, he is almost certain to take the House seat this November. “I certainly think that it was surprising both that Rabb won and particularly the magnitude of his victory,” political science professor Daniel Hopkins told The Daily Pennsylvanian in May after the progressive candidate’s decisive primary win. Rabb, who graduated from Penn in 2006 with a master’s in organizational dynamics, is a member of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America. Following the election, a Penn Democrats spokesperson wrote to the DP that the race was a “significant indicator of the political mood” within the Democratic Party. Meanwhile, Shapiro is aiming to fend off Pennsylvania State Treasurer Stacy Garrity, the Republican challenger in the state’s gubernatorial election. Shapiro’s re-election bid, which he launched in January, comes as he is widely rumored to run for president in 2028. This January, Shapiro said that his policy goals for a second term in office included raising the

minimum wage, protecting reproductive freedom, and increasing clean energy production. Over the last few years, Shapiro’s administration has increased its influence on Penn’s campus — including through helping shape the University’s response to incidents of campus antisemitism. In fall 2023, Shapiro invoked a long-unused University statute that allows the governor of Pennsylvania to appoint a nonvoting observer to the University Board of Trustees. He chose 1982 College graduate Robert Fox, whom he also appointed as a nonvoting member on the University Task Force on Antisemitism. Documents showed that Shapiro and Fox pushed for the firing of one University professor and the public condemnation of another. The two embraced an expansive definition of “antisemitic speech,” and intervened in Penn’s 2024 election for the chair of the Board of Trustees. Pennsylvania was also a decisive factor in the last general election. 1968 Wharton graduate Donald Trump’s victory in Pennsylvania came after his campaign and former Vice President Kamala Harris made concerted efforts to campaign across the state. At the time, the Brookings Institution described Pennsylvania as “the presidential election’s most important state.” The state led Trump to his victory in 2016 and former Penn professor and President Joe Biden to his win four years later. Both of Penn’s largest student partisan political organizations — Penn Democrats and College Republicans — noted increased participation and membership as the 2024 election approached. Both groups hosted various events throughout the election cycle, including debate watch parties, tabling sessions, and discussions with political figures. On election day, Penn’s four primary polling locations saw a 450% increase in in-person voting relative to the 2020 election. The Penn community voted overwhelmingly for Harris, who won 81.6% of the in-person votes cast at on-campus polling locations. Since then, Penn students have continued to display high levels of political engagement. Despite being an off-year election, turnout last year approached a record high and amounted to nearly half of the votes cast in 2024.

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ADULTHOOD, from page 9 Legal services As students begin handling responsibilities such as housing, employment, and finances, unexpected legal issues can arise. The Undergraduate Assembly offers free support to members of the Penn community through its Legal Services program. College and Wharton junior Khalil ElBechir, who serves as community engagement and sustainability director of the UA, told the DP that “pro bono legal consultations happen almost on a weekly basis” to answer “any legal questions that new adults or young adults don’t know how to respond to.” Students can receive a free 30-minute, inperson consultation with the UA’s attorney partner. The service is intended to provide students with advice on minor legal concerns or serve as a starting point for addressing more complex legal matters. Qualifying concerns can include “landlord and housing issues, domestic or interpersonal disputes, and business-related matters and intellectual property concerns.” Appointments can be booked through the UA website by emailing the UA Legal Services team with a summary of their legal situation and general availability, although students are limited to one consultation per issue. Health resources Wellness at Penn offers a multitude of initiatives designed to build connection and community amongst students, including group therapy and workshops, peer support, and recovery communities. Services range from primary care and sports medicine to individual and group

Claudia Cohen Hall on July 10.

therapy. Appointments can be scheduled by calling 215-746-9355. “There is nothing too big or too small when it comes to making an appointment at Student Health and Counseling,” Mental Health Intervention & Programming Specialist at Wellness at Penn Alaina Spiegel wrote to the DP. The organization hosts self-paced programs such as “be aware,” which highlights signs of distress and offers guidance toward Penn resources; “Refresh,” with a focus on sleep hygiene; and “Vibe,” which offers sex education. Peer Wellness Coaching is also available to help students adjust to life on campus, manage their time, and prioritize their wellbeing. “It is so important to think about your physical and mental health proactively,” Spiegel added. “It is much better to reach out for help early than to wait until things get worse.” Spiegel offered a word of advice to incoming students, emphasizing that there is “no perfect way to navigate young adulthood.” “You will have successes and struggles along the way, and that is okay,” she wrote. “A big part of college is learning about yourself and finding a team of support that works for you.” Penn Medicine operates two emergency rooms in West Philadelphia: one at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania at 34th and Spruce streets, and another at Penn Presbyterian Medical Center at 38th and Powelton streets. Penn’s student-run Medical Emergency Response Team also works with Penn’s Division of Public Safety and the Philadelphia Fire Department to offer pre-hospital emergency medicine treatment. MERT operates 24/7 on weekends and from 7 p.m. until 5 a.m. on weekdays and is staffed by Penn students who are EMT-certified. MERT can be reached at 215-573-3333.

KATHRYN YE | STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

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TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

MUST-KNOWS, from page 2 Many Penn student organizations — particularly Wharton-affiliated groups — are better known by their acronyms. WUCC is the Wharton Undergraduate Consulting Club, WUFC is the Wharton Undergraduate Finance Club, and WITG is the Wharton Investment and Trading Group, a few of the more competitive clubs on campus. Last year, Wharton banned multiple rounds of interviews for these and similar pre-professional clubs as part of an effort to reduce stress during recruitment. 20. What are IB and consulting? Investment banking, commonly shortened to IB, and consulting are two career paths pursued by many Penn graduates. Among the Class of 2025, 20.4% entered investment banking roles, and 12.2% entered the consulting industry. Recruiting for junior-year internships in both industries can begin during sophomore year, and firms often recruit Penn students through campus events and informal conversations known as “coffee chats.” 21. How do I join greek life? Recruitment for Penn’s fraternities and sororities takes place during the spring semester. Students must have a cumulative GPA of at least 2.50 and register before winter break to be eligible to

FELLOWS, from page 7 “It’s really something that brings people together,” Mathijssen said. “You can actually give more depth and explain more about the science behind it, and also the history and the culture.” Music professor and anthropologist Carol Ann Muller, who has been the faculty director at Riepe College House since 2022, emphasized the importance of food as a “component of sociability” that builds relationships and teaches “reciprocity.” “To give and to share is actually a really important social principle,” Muller, who bakes cookies for her residents every week, said. The Penn melting pot Several faculty residents reflected on the importance of cultural exchange in their houses, encouraging students to take advantage of Penn’s diverse student body. “Part of the academic experience is to meet people you wouldn’t normally meet, to learn something of where they come from, how their lives have been,” Muller said. She described the University’s diversity as one of Penn’s “greatest strengths.” As a “man of cinema,” Gentili described the view of Locust Walk from the 38th Street bridge as his “favorite shot.” From that vantage point — on his daily commute from Harrison to Fisher-Bennett — Gentili looks out on a “human river of people” from all over the world, speaking various languages, each headed to their own destination. But despite these differences, Gentili said they all have something in common: “belonging to Penn and to the future.”

join a registered greek organization. 22. What are Castle, Owls, and Theos? Several Penn fraternities and off-campus organizations are commonly known by nicknames. Castle refers to Psi Upsilon, one of Penn’s oldest fraternities. The Owl Society and Theos are off-campus fraternities that are not officially recognized by Penn. Other fraternity nicknames include Fiji for Phi Gamma Delta, Elmo for the co-ed St. Elmo Club of Philadelphia, and Hall for St. Anthony Hall. 23. What does SABS mean? “SABS” stands for “see and be seen” and is used by students to describe a favorite Penn pastime, spending time sitting in high-traffic campus spaces where they are likely to run into other students. Common SABS spots include the tables on Locust Walk outside of Pret a Manger and the ARCH. 24. What is Sidechat? Sidechat is an anonymous social media platform designed for college communities. At Penn, students use it for campus humor and discussions as well as to share information about classes, student organizations, events, parties, and local recommendations. 25. What is Penn Marriage Pact? Penn’s Marriage Pact is an online matchmaking service that operates at colleges across the country, including Penn. Students answer a questionnaire and are paired with another Penn student through an algorithm. Laia Mogas-Soldevila, who serves as director at DumoLab Research and assistant professor of architecture at the Stuart Weitzman School of Design, brought almost 10 years of prior experience in on-campus housing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology when she became a fellow at Lauder College House. When Mogas-Soldevila joined Penn’s faculty during the pandemic, she and her family were unfamiliar with Philadelphia, so living on campus was their “first option,” she said. “The College Houses are such a tight community where you start knowing people and you start understanding how the University thinks on a global level — because the undergrads know everything,” Mogas-Soldevila said. “I thought: ‘It’s a great opportunity for me to understand Penn and Philadelphia.’” Hart also told the DP that she’s hoping to learn more about the “huge range” of “diverse life experiences and cultures and backgrounds” that make up Penn’s community through her new role as a fellow. ‘A home away from home’ Many faculty residents live on campus with their families. Partners, children, and pets often become familiar faces to students. Alicia Risner-Bauman has been a faculty fellow at Ware College House for five years, in addition to her roles as associate director of the Care Center for Persons with Disabilities and associate professor at Penn Dental Medicine. While she and her husband spend some weekends at their home in southern New York, Risner-Bauman lives with her son and her dog in the Quadrangle during the workweek. “If you are a faculty fellow, your entire family can live with you. That’s part of the idea, is to have that family environment, so students have that home-away-from-home feeling,” Risner-Bauman

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Penn’s main Marriage Pact round typically takes place in October. In 2025, 4,935 students, comprising more than 45% of Penn’s undergraduate population, participated in the program. 26. What Penn traditions should I know? The Econ Scream is one of the first traditions many first years encounter. The night before the first ECON 0100 midterm, students gather outside College Hall to scream at midnight. During Homecoming, students throw pieces of toast onto Franklin Field during the third quarter of the football game, a tradition known as the “Penn Toast.” Spring brings Penn’s Social Planning and Events Committee’s annual Spring Fling concert and Hey Day, when juniors march down Locust Walk wearing red shirts, carrying canes, and biting into red hats to mark their transition to seniors. 27. What athletic events should I know about? Penn is a Division I school competing in the Ivy League with 33 varsity teams. Football games are held at Franklin Field, including the annual Homecoming game. Basketball is played at the Palestra, which is celebrating its 100th anniversary and is nicknamed the “Cathedral of College Basketball.” In the spring, Franklin Field hosts the Penn Relay Carnival, the oldest and largest track-and-field competition in the United States. Past competitors have included Jesse Owens, Wilma Rudolph, and Usain Bolt. 28. What does BYO mean? said. “They see that faculty are real people with families.” Mogas-Soldevila, who lives with her husband and their two young children in Lauder, explained that faculty fellows are important to students because they “demonstrate family” and give “warmth” to campus living. Sometimes, fellows’ kids become “little cousins” to undergraduate residents. While fellows present themselves as research and academic support they also offer students the opportunity to be around “adults that are not professors,” Mogas-Soldevila added. “We take off our professor hats,” she said. “I think that’s what the fellows offer the most.” Muller frequently invites residents into her Riepe apartment to play the piano and keyboard and share home-cooked meals. For students, she emphasized the importance of knowing that a professor “cares about you in that way.” “Professors are human beings too, and we can open up new worlds to students through knowledge sharing,” Muller added. Meeting students where they are As faculty residents in the Quad, Muller and Risner-Bauman are “very cognizant” that firstyear students have unique needs as they arrive on campus. From approaching professors to discuss a bad grade to asking long-term questions about studying abroad, Muller told the DP that the faculty in the Quad are “trying to create a place where you can have a conversation about the academic culture of Penn.” But in a time of transition, Risner-Bauman added that fellows serve an important second purpose: emotional support. “We want to be that touch person that they come to when they have questions, that they come to when they just need a break,” Risner-Bauman said. “We’re there to help them. We’re there to give them advice.” For fellows in multi-year housing, having residents in different stages of their Penn experience creates a different role. Gentili emphasized the need to be “more selective and more attentive” to upperclassmen than to “freshmen that really are thirsty and hungered for activity.” “Sometimes they are not very involved with [house activities] because they are too busy in terms of their circle of friends, their studies, and the

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BYO — bring your own — restaurants are a staple of Philadelphia dining, allowing customers to bring their own alcoholic beverages, a popular option among Penn student clubs and organizations. Some frequently visited spots include Pattaya Thai Cuisine on campus, Ambrosia Ristorante in Fitler Square, and Ken’s Seafood Restaurant, which offers both Chinese food and karaoke in Chinatown. 29. How do I get around Philadelphia? SEPTA connects campus with Center City and other parts of Philadelphia through trolley, subway, bus, and regional rail routes. Trolley stations are located along the western edge of campus, while the Market-Frankford Line can be accessed at 34th and Market streets. Rittenhouse Square is also about a 25-minute walk from campus. Farther east are destinations including Reading Terminal Market, Independence Hall, the Liberty Bell, the National Constitution Center, and Old City. 30. How do I join clubs? Penn has hundreds of student organizations covering interests from performing arts and cultural groups to community service and pre-professional activities. The Student Activities Council hosts an activities fair on College Green near the beginning of the fall and spring semesters, and the Wharton Council holds a separate fair for Wharton-affiliated groups. Recruitment varies by organization. Some clubs are open to anyone, while others require written applications, interviews, or auditions. Penn Clubs maintains an online directory of organizations and also serves as an application platform for many of them. future after college,” Gentili said. Upperclassmen are typically “more interested in themselves” — in their friends, studies, and post-grad plans — than activities at the residential houses, Gentili said. With this sentiment, he said the fellows “measure our intervention, our help, our solidarity with” older students according to “their demand.” Mogas-Soldevila, who has been a fellow at Lauder while the house was both multi-year and first-year-only housing, said that she’s “happy” to have a more varied population in the house for the upcoming year. Younger residents “benefit from going to an event and suddenly being able to talk to a fourth-year student” who can offer them advice about courses and clubs, she added. Mathijssen empathized with incoming students entering an unfamiliar environment. Though born and raised in the Netherlands, he attended university and graduate school in the United Kingdom, where he initially “didn’t know anybody.” He recalled joining several residential and student leadership committees at University College London and Oxford University, which helped familiarize him with those new environments and create community among his peers. For Mathijssen, it was “quite natural” to bring those personal experiences as a foreign student to his role as a fellow. Mathijssen encouraged his new residents to, like him, take advantage of provided programming and consider taking on a leadership role in the future. He recommended that students “just come along to the first couple of events and see what it’s like.” Students could also join a steering committee to propose and plan their own activities, which he described as a “natural path” to getting more involved after arriving at a college house. “If you really like it, then often people transition to become an RA later, and then they can actually help the next generation of students coming in,” Mathijssen said. For house fellows and faculty directors, working with students is an opportunity to connect with and give back to the Penn community. Nearly two decades after he first moved into Harrison, the “young and promising” students he interacts with are a key part of what keeps Gentili living at Penn. “To contribute — as a faculty, administrator, fellow — to the growth of this generation or generations that were in the past is a great joy and pleasure,” Gentili said.

Theme: I need to get ready for class... Instructions: To play Threads, search the grid for hidden words related to the provided theme. Each letter can only be used exactly once. Each game includes a “spangram,” which is a challenge word that connects two sides of the board and hints at the remaining words in the puzzle. This is not your ordinary word search: letters may be found horizontally, vertically, and diagonally for a single word! Play hundreds of more DP puzzles created at www.thedp.com/section/crosswords. Editor: Nira Goyal

THIS IS GOING TO BE A LONG TRIP ACROSS

29 Milk’s favorite cookies? 1 Odysseus’s favorite man-eater? 32 Delhi wrap 33 Discusses 7 Odysseus’s favorite shepherd? 36 More evil 39 Wells of the Civil 14 Parkinson’s Rights Movement symptom 40 Ctrl-___-Del 15 Certain teas 41 Tricks 16 Heat up in advance, as an oven 42 Mrs. in Paris 17 “The lady doth 43 Administrations 45 Fred of “SNL” ___ too much, 47 Naughty kid’s methinks” 18 Famous horror gift? franchise featuring 48 Alexander the ___ elaborate traps 49 Key above Shift designed to kill 51 Hotel room people souvenir, perhaps? 19 Odysseus’s 52 “I’m all ___!” favorite kind of 56 50-50 wager trip? 60 Recipe measure 21 Lhasa ___ 61 Vet’s favorite 23 Beginning to image to take at “requisite” or work? “approval” 65 He’s a pain in the 24 Drinks from a neck? straw

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67 Where visitors kiss the Blarney Stone upside down to get the “gift of the gab” 68 “Can’t talk, gotta run!” 69 Odysseus’s favorite islander? 70 Like some nuts

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M I L L I B L A B B R A S A V O I D Y E L L L A C Y C A R N E S O S O OME N E ND G AME ON T O P I C D A E ME A L D I D S T MA T OD E L L A J S O P R ANO L I S A S B L O C E I G H T NO L A T ON K A D I S O B E Y E D I S L A S Y E S A R N I E HOOD G U M 25 Utilize A R I G A T O F U R I O S A 26 Eases CON J S U L U A N D E S 27 Krispy ___, C A S A A C E S I F N O T doughnut T R E Y T H E E L OONA

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Play this puzzle and hundreds more created by the DP at www.thedp.com/section/crosswords. Author: Nira Goyal

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Sports

Five matchups Quaker fans won’t want to miss Coaching turnovers and new rosters, rematches and new milestones bring exciting games for Penn fans EMILIE CHI Sports Editor

As Penn welcomes a new school year, University athletes are gearing up for a new season. Coaching turnovers and new rosters, rematches and new milestones will create exciting matchups for Quakers fans. Here are five can’t-miss games for Penn Athletics fans. Oct. 10: Road to redemption — men’s soccer On the heels of back-to-back seasons that ended just short of the Ivy League championship match, Penn men’s soccer enters this fall with unfinished business. The 2022 Ivy League champions fell in the semifinals in the past two seasons, including a loss to Cornell last year that ended Penn’s hopes for a title. The Red and Blue will get a chance at redemption come Oct. 10, facing Cornell again in a rematch that could spark another championship run. Oct. 12-14: Overseas trip — men’s and women’s golf In October, Penn golf will compete at one of the most prestigious golf courses in the world, St. Andrews Links Collegiate in Scotland, for the first time in program history. Referred to as the “home of golf,” it is one of the most influential and notoriously difficult courses. Penn will compete against Texas, Washington, and University of St. Andrews in three rounds of nationally televised gameplay through the Golf Channel.

Nov. 14: Homecoming — football Each of Penn’s last two Homecoming games, while thrilling, ended in overtime heartbreaks for the Quakers. Despite career-high performances from 2026 Wharton graduate Liam O’Brien and 2026 College graduate Jared Richardson, a late field goal gave the Crimson a last-minute edge over the Quakers. This year, with roster changes and a new head coach at the helm, the defending Ivy League champion Crimson will face a completely new team on home turf. December: The Big 5 Classic — men’s and women’s basketball In December, men’s and women’s basketball will face off against Philadelphia rivals in the biggest local tournament of the year. Last year, the men’s team fell short of the title after losing to Villanova 90-63 in the championship game, while the women secured fifth place in the tournament. Feb. 20: The big 100 — men’s basketball In 1927, Penn beat Yale 26-25 in the first-ever collegiate basketball game played at the Palestra. In February, the Quakers will again face the Bulldogs during the Palestra’s 100th anniversary season. The contest is all the more exciting after Penn bested Yale, 88-84, in overtime in last year’s Ivy League Tournament championship game. The upset sent the Quakers to their first March Madness appearance since 2018.

Penn Athletics tightens spending amid shrinking budget, gift decline

KENNY CHEN | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

Men’s basketball celebrates a victory against Yale on March 15.

Penn budgeted $83.8 million for Recreation and Intercollegiate Athletics in fiscal year 2027, down nearly 10% from the FY26 forecast of $92.6 million. The Division of Recreation and Intercollegiate Athletics oversees all varsity, club, and intramural sports teams at Penn, as well as campus recreation programs and athletic facilities. The decrease in overall revenue is “primarily due to the loss of a major track and field partnership, uncertainty regarding DRIA’s income-generating areas, and tapering off in pledge payments for large capital projects,” according to the University’s most recent operating budget. The FY27 budget projects the department’s first operating deficit since FY24, with expenditures expected to exceed revenues and transfers. While the department’s funding comes from a variety of streams, its largest revenue source is the University’s nearly $26 million subvention, followed by about $16 million in gifts. A request for comment was left with Penn Athletics and Penn Budget Planning & Analysis. Included in the budget is also a 5% cut in staff, representing 10 full-time employees, which the document references as the “consolidation of financial and administrative activities across a variety of areas.” The budget clarifies that the cuts were also made with regard to “minimizing the impact on student-facing services.” DRIA has also used natural attrition as “an opportunity to reorganize responsibilities,” while cancelling “underutilized” software subscriptions and revisiting terms with vendors. The document notes that containing expense growth in team travel “is a priority,” but remains “challenging.” The budget includes “much-needed” improvements

to the Hollenback Center locker rooms, which are used by Penn’s baseball, field hockey, and men’s and women’s soccer teams. It also funds preparations for the Pottruck-Reina Wrestling Center, which “should advance” toward beginning construction “in early 2027.” “Allocated cost and space charges will increase by 4.8% in FY2027 and capital transaction costs will decrease by 26% with the completion of multiple facility projects,“ the document reads. Even with the projected deficit, total expenditures are expected to decrease 6.4% from the FY26 forecast, though not enough to keep pace with the decline in revenue. Compensation is also set to decrease by 7% because of “tighter” temporary staff budgets, reduced staff, and the end of Penn men’s basketball coach transition payments. Current expenses, however, are projected to increase by 2%, mainly because of travel for varsity teams, while expense credits are also expected to rise by 2% because of the Campus Recreation/HR employee membership program. The budget also funds Penn’s club sport teams. In February, the Undergraduate Assembly unanimously passed a resolution out of concern for the University’s lacking financial support for club sports. According to UA President Musab Chummun, the resolution will “increase funding straight from DRIA/DRIA-fundraising efforts” toward the Sports Club Council. “Sports funding is always a big priority for us,” Chummun wrote to The Daily Pennsylvanian. “We were quite happy working with DRIA as a result of the club sports resolution and I’m sure our continued collaboration will help ensure club sports get the funding they deserve.”

Assistant coaches

coaching staff over the summer. Byrd is now the third NCAA All-American on the wrestling coaching staff, in addition to coach Valenti and assistant coach Lennox Wolak. A four-time All-American for Illinois, Byrd claimed the NCAA title in the 133-pound weight class in 2025. Byrd joins Valenti and the coaching staff to improve a wrestling program that finished third out of six at the Ivy League championships last season.

as the assistant coach for Princeton’s women’s squash team. Last season, Penn faced Princeton in both the Ivy League championship and the CSA National Team Championships. Princeton won the conference, but Penn claimed the national title for the first time in more than 25 years. Williams helped the Tigers secure the No. 1 seed in CSA team rankings last season, but he’ll be donning the Red and Blue for the 2027 season.

Lucas Byrd — wrestling Penn wrestling head coach Matt Valenti added NCAA national champion Lucas Byrd to his

Graeme Williams — women’s squash Graeme Williams will join Penn’s squash program as an assistant coach. He previously served

Madison Carter — women’s lacrosse In July, Penn women’s lacrosse head coach Karin Brower announced Madison Carter would

join the program as an assistant coach. Carter played lacrosse for Penn State, helping her team advance to back-to-back NCAA Final Four appearances in 2016 and 2017. Since then, Carter has served as an assistant coach for lacrosse at Mercer and Clemson, where she helped kickstart the lacrosse program. Carter has most recently served on UConn’s staff as an assistant coach, helping lead the team to three straight Big East tournament appearances. Following an 8-8 record in the 2025-26 season — Penn’s worst since 2022 — and the program’s third straight 5-2 conference record, Carter looks to elevate Penn’s program.

The Division of Recreation and Intercollegiate Athletics is expected to spend more than it makes in fiscal year 2027 LUKE PETERSEN Sports Reporter

Franklin Field on April 15.

COACHES, from back page rowing program failed to qualify for the NCAA championships for the first time in five years at the end of last season.

ATHLETES, from back page Freshman quarterback Miles Teodecki is breaking records before he even moves in. Teodecki garnered national attention in January when he flipped his commitment from Kansas State to Penn. In doing so, he became the highest-ranked recruit of the modern era and the only top-1,000 signee for the Quakers in the last decade. Although junior quarterback Karson SiqueirosLasky locked down the starting position during spring play, Teodecki will be a threat on the gridiron as soon as he steps on campus. During Teodecki’s two years as a high school starter, the Austin native recorded 5,755 passing yards with an average 68.3% pass completion rate. Orly Sedransk — women’s lacrosse Sophomore goalie Orly Sedransk spent her summer training for the World Lacrosse Women’s Championships, where she featured for Israel’s national team. Israel topped its group and made it to the semifinals undefeated, ultimately finishing third overall — its best-ever finish at a world championship. Sedransk came away from the tournament with a bronze medal and international experience under her belt, playing in goal in all six of Israel’s matches and making 19 saves for a 42.2% save percentage. Sedransk has also thrived in the cage at Penn. In both of her seasons with the Quakers, she was named Ivy League Goalkeeper of the Year, selected first team All-Ivy, and received a USA Lacrosse honorable mention All-America recognition. Last season, she saved 45.2% of shots faced and recorded 10 or more saves in 13 of 16 games. Salman Khalil — men’s squash Senior Salman Khalil has been a force on the dominant Penn men’s squash team throughout his three seasons at Penn. In his freshman year, Khalil went 7-3 in competition and 3-0 during the CSA National Collegiate Team Championships, helping the Quakers clinch a national title. It was only a taste of what was to come, as the Egypt native played an undefeated sophomore season. He won the CSA National Individual Championships, was named Ivy League Player of the

ABHIRAM JUVVADI | DP FILE PHOTO

Year, and led the team to back-to-back national titles. As Penn men’s squash looks to return to national glory in his senior season, success will undoubtedly run through the three-time CSA first team All-American. TJ Power — men’s basketball Senior forward TJ Power joined a select number of Penn athletes who achieved national fame when he dropped 44 points in the 2026 Ivy Madness final, tying the tournament record for most points scored set by Harmoni Turner in 2025. While pundits speculated about Power’s fourth transfer in four years following the Quakers’ unexpected March Madness run, the Shrewsbury, Mass., native ultimately chose to stay with the Quakers for his senior season. Last year, Power earned unanimous first team All-Ivy honors and first team All-Big 5 honors after leading the Quakers with 492 points on the season, 229 rebounds, and 79 made three-pointers. In addition, Power was second on the team in assists, steals and blocked shots. Power’s versatility on both ends of the court made him an easy choice as a finalist for CollegeInsider. com’s Riley Wallace Award as the most impactful transfer in Division I men’s basketball during the 2025-26 season. He looks to lead the Quakers back to the Ivy Madness final to defend the tournament title on home turf. Watson Nguyen — men’s swimming and diving Junior breaststroke specialist Watson Nguyen beat out an Olympic gold medalist to claim his first national title in the 50-meter breaststroke at July’s 2026 United States Swimming National Championships. It’s the second long-course national title in program history, and Nguyen’s in good company with 2026 Wharton and Engineering graduate Matt Fallon, who holds the American record in the 200-meter breaststroke. During the collegiate season, Nguyen took the Ivy League by storm, winning conference titles in both the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke. Due to the NCAA’s new qualification system, Nguyen automatically punched his ticket for the NCAA Championships by swimming under the NCAA Division I standard en route to the title. He ultimately finished 26th in the 200-yard breaststroke and 28th in the 100-yard breaststroke.

PALESTRA, from back page ACC tournament title. The Palestra will also host the battle of Pennsylvania on Nov. 8, a showdown between the Pitt Panthers and the Penn State Nittany Lions in the 150th matchup between the two Power 4 programs. On Thanksgiving weekend, the fifth annual Cathedral Classic tournament will take place at the Palestra. In its first four years of existence, the

men’s basketball tournament was a round-robin tournament that took place over the course of three days. This year, the format has shifted to include a fifth team and feature two days of doubleheaders. And in March, to cap off the festivities, the Palestra will host the Ivy Madness tournament for the first time in nine years. As the Palestra enters its second century, it continues to be a place where competition is celebrated, a spirit perhaps best captured by the words adorning the stadium walls: “To win the game is great. To play the game is greater. But to love the game is greatest of all.”

COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

The Palestra in 1927.

SPORTS

THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA • FOUNDED 1885 VOL. CXLII

PHILADELPHIA, TUESDAY, AUGUST 18, 2026

NO. 17

Cathedral of College Basketball celebrates 100 years Since its opening in 1927, the Palestra has become one of the most storied basketball venues in the country JAVIER ST. REMY Sports Associate

ANDY MEI | SENIOR DESIGNER

Meet Penn’s must-know student-athletes ELLIE CLARK AND KAIA FEICHTINGER-ERHART Deputy Sports Editors

From world champions to national stars, here are 12 of the best student-athletes repping the Red and Blue. Cross Wasilewski — wrestling Junior Cross Wasilewski just keeps getting better. In his freshman season, the Parsippany, N.J. native went 24-5 and 5-0 in the Ivy League en route to a conference championship win in the 149-pound weight class. He made his first NCAA championships appearance in 2025 off of an at-large bid. This year he finished seventh in the nation in the 149 weight class with AllAmerican honors. Besides a stellar performance at nationals, he also improved his record to 29-5 on the season and picked up wins at the Journeymen Classic and the Keystone Classic. Wasilewski is on the rise, and he has two more seasons at Penn ahead of him. Esha Velaga — women’s tennis Senior Esha Velaga earned Ivy League Player of the Year honors as a freshman. And over the past three years, Velaga captured unanimous first team All-Ivy singles honors each year. Her consistency has garnered national recognition as Velaga entered the 2025-26 season ranked 78th by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association, the highest player in the Ivy League. As a freshman, Velaga became the first in Quakers history to qualify for the NCAA doubles and singles championships in the same season. In 2026, Velaga made it back to the national stage for the NCAA singles championships after winning the ITA Northeast Regional. Jessica Oji – women’s track and field Sophomore thrower Jessica Oji isn’t just a two-time Ivy League champion — she’s a world champion. Oji claimed her first global title at the World Athletics U20 Championships in August after putting the shot 18.08 meters. She was the only person in the field to surpass the 18-meter mark and the first Nigerian to win a field event at the World U20 Championships. Oji

also earned a silver medal for Nigeria, the country’s first medal in two decades, at the 2026 Commonwealth Games. During the collegiate season, Oji set the African record at the Ivy League Heptagonal Indoor Championships with an 18.50-meter lob, the 29th-best throw in the world this year. She walked away with first team All-American honors twice after a seventhplace finish at the NCAA Indoor Championships and a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Outdoor Championships. Jordan Barrow — gymnastics 2026 Gymnastics East Conference Gymnast of the Year and senior Jordan Barrow is ready for her final hurrah. With the vault, bars, and beam specialist on the roster, the Quakers were GEC regular season champions in each of the last three seasons. From her freshman year, Barrow was a force in the vault, but she has steadily improved her performances on bars and beam. The past two seasons, she was named first team All-GEC in all three events, and she also added a GEC title in the beam to her resume in 2025. This year, her third consecutive Ivy Classic win in the vault made her the first Ivy League gymnast to achieve that feat since 1982. Coming off of her 2026 NCAA regionals qualification in the vault, Barrow will look to uphold Penn’s GEC dominance in her last season. Joseph ‘Tiago’ Socarras — men’s track and field Sophomore mid-distance specialist Joseph “Tiago” Socarras knows that he’s fast. He was confident enough in his abilities to open his outdoor season at the Ivy League Heptagonal Outdoor Championships, taking the 800-meter title in an outdoor personal best of 1:47.00. Even though Socarras didn’t make it back to the national stage during the outdoor season, he was beyond dominant indoors. In his 800-meter debut for the Red

and Blue, Socarras took down USATF indoor silver medalist Sean Dolan. He was undefeated in the 800m run until the NCAA Indoor Championships, where he finished fourth in the nation. Malak Khafagy — women’s squash In her two seasons at Penn, senior Malak Khafagy has collected just about any trophy there is in collegiate squash. Playing at Penn’s top spot ever she joined the team, Khafagy led Penn women’s squash to its second-ever Collegiate Squash Association national team championship in March. Khafagy has a 27-5 career record for the Quakers. And in each of her seasons, she won Ivy League Player of the Year, earned first team All-Ivy honors, and was named to the first team CSA All-America. One of the only awards missing from her college squash resume is an individual national title. Regardless of whether she achieves the feat, Khafagy has already written herself into Penn squash history. Mataya Gayle — women’s basketball Penn women’s basketball’s offense runs through senior guard Mataya Gayle. Gayle has been one of the most reliable players for the Quakers since she arrived at Penn and has only improved her efficiency since a stellar freshman campaign earned her Ivy League Rookie of the Year. The Woodstock, Ga. native is one of the best facilitators in the Ivy League, averaging a conference-high and personal-best 4.5 assists per game last season. She was also fifth in the conference in steals, and one of three Red and Blue players to average more than 10 points per game. After the team placed fifth in the league for the 2025-26 season, Gayle will look to lead the Quakers back to the Ivy Madness tournament in her senior season.

Your voice echoes as you enter the arena. Murals recounting the stories of revered basketball legends greet you. The bleachers extend right to the edge of the hardwood, leaving no boundary between you and the titans that take the court. Since its first game on New Year’s Day in 1927, the Palestra has risen to the heights of basketball royalty. 1982 Wharton graduate Fran McCaffery said returning to the Palestra as the Penn men’s basketball coach was his proudest moment. When women’s basketball coach Mike McLaughlin held the key to the building in his palm for the first time, he hoped the feeling would never get old. Former Villanova coach Jay Wright has said there is simply no place like it. And Fran Dunphy, the godfather of Philadelphia basketball, deemed the feeling of standing inside the packed stadium indescribable. When it opened nearly a century ago, William Bates, a Greek studies professor at Penn, named the arena after the rectangular enclosure where ancient Greek athletes competed. The fourth-oldest active Division I college basketball stadium has carried that lofty heritage since, becoming one of the most storied venues in the country — and the mecca for Philadelphia college hoops. There is perhaps no better representation of that reality than the arena’s role in the creation of the Big 5 tournament. Starting in the 1955-56 season, the Palestra hosted every game of a mid-season basketball tournament among five Philadelphia-area universities: La Salle, Villanova, Temple, Saint Joseph’s, and Penn. The schools competed in a round-robin tournament for the chance to be crowned Big 5 champions. In the first 30 years of the tournament’s existence, all games took place at the Palestra. While Big 5 games are no longer exclusively held at the Palestra, the arena still pays respect to the legendary tournament. Today, each partition of the arena’s front lobby is dedicated to an original member of the Big 5, with miniature exhibits showcasing some of the biggest moments of the respective rival programs. More than just Philadelphia basketball, the Palestra serves as a record of the collegiate sport’s entire history. To date, it has hosted more visiting teams than any other arena in the country. After hosting the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament Eastern Regionals for the first time in 1939, the arena became a consistent venue for March Madness tournament games, hosting 48 games over the next 45 years. But the arena is not limited to just one sport. The nearly 9,000-seat arena serves as the home court for Penn basketball, wrestling, volleyball, and gymnastics. The Palestra held its first-ever Penn wrestling match in January 1927, and, in 1990, Penn women’s volleyball made their debut at the Palestra.

Miles Teodecki — football See ATHLETES, page 19

New faces to lead three Penn teams Football, sprint football, and women’s rowing have new head coaches at their helms this fall HANNAH CHANG Sports Editor

As Penn welcomes a new school year, the Quakers are welcoming a new season. Some teams are looking to maintain last year’s momentum as they head into the fall, and others are looking to kick off with a clean slate — starting with the coaching staff. Here are the new head coaches and a few of the assistant coaches Penn’s teams have added during the offseason: Head coaches

From left: DuPont, Santos, and Nase. SEND STORY IDEAS TO DPSPORTS@THEDP.COM

Rick Santos — football Rick Santos was named the new head coach of Penn football at the end of 2025, following the resignation of longtime head coach Ray Priore. Santos previously served as the University of New Hampshire’s head coach, where he led the Wildcats to three FCS playoff appearances in four years. Penn football finished 6-4 in the 2025-26 season. With the Red and Blue losing star quarterback Liam O’Brien, wide receiver Jared Richardson, and special teams player Julien “Juice” Stokes to graduation, Santos is looking

COURTESY OF UNIVERSITY ARCHIVES

The Palestra and Hutchinson Gymnasium under construction in 1928.

Tyler Nase — women’s rowing Following the resignation of former women’s rowing head coach Bill Manning, former Olympian Tyler Nase took the job on July 20. Nase rowed collegiately at Princeton, where he helped its first varsity boat win bronze in the 2010 Eastern Sprints and an Intercollegiate Rowing Association Championship title. Following graduation, Nase rowed for the United States men’s national team at the 2013 World Cup and in the 2016 Olympics. Since then, he served as an assistant coach for Penn men’s lightweight rowing program until 2022, when he moved to Ithaca as head coach for the Cornell men’s lightweight rowing program. Now, he returns to Philadelphia after the women’s

While the historic hardwood is used primarily for college contests, many of its grandest moments have extended beyond the confines of university athletics. In January 1968, the Palestra hosted the FIBA Intercontinental Cup, an international basketball tournament run by basketball’s global governing body. The Palestra has witnessed some of high school basketball’s most iconic moments, including the PIAA State Semifinals of 1996, when a Kobe Bryant-led Lower Merion High School squad took on Chester High School. In a contest stamped into Philadelphia history, 17-year-old Bryant led his team to victory, posting a 39-point performance despite a broken nose. Bryant wasn’t the only NBA legend to foreshadow his greatness in Penn’s basketball arena. Nearly 24 years before signing with the Philadelphia 76ers in free agency, multiple-time champion LeBron James had already made his mark on the Philadelphia basketball scene. In December of 2002, the Palestra hosted the marquee high school showcase event, the Scholastic Play-By-Play Classics, at which St. Vincent-St. Mary Catholic High School, led by 17-year-old James, took the victory over the defending Public League Champion, Strawberry Mansion High School. Now, as the “Cathedral of College Basketball” celebrates 100 years, Penn Athletics has planned a full slate of commemorative events. On Sept. 11, Penn State women’s volleyball will play its first match at the Palestra since 1985. It will take on its fellow Power 4 conference heavyweight Stanford Cardinal, who claimed the 2025

See COACHES, page 19

See PALESTRA, page 19

to reshape the program to capture the Ivy League championship title, which Penn last won in 2016. Jon Dupont — sprint football After 19 seasons as an assistant coach for Penn football, Jon Dupont will now serve as sprint football’s head coach. While serving as a Penn football assistant coach, Dupont helped the team win five Ivy League championships and recruited 2018 Wharton graduate, NFL wide receiver, and three-time Super Bowl champion Justin Watson. Penn sprint football finished 2-6 in the 2025 season, and Dupont looks to make the historic anchor program competitive once again.

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