February 25, 2021

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021 VOL. CXXXVII NO. 6

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More than 250 Campus Compact violations filed this semester 52% of reports that resulted in University intervention resulted in disciplinary sanctions SARIKA RAU Staff Reporter

Student parties place police officers at risk KYLIE COOPER

Three masked Penn Police officers stand outside the Penn Police headquarters at 4040 Chestnut St.

Penn Police officers often encounter students who are maskless and inebriated when responding to in-person gatherings BRANDON BRODWATER Staff Reporter

As students continue to host in-person gatherings in off- and on-campus locations, Penn Police Department officers responding to parties are voicing concerns over contracting the virus while on the job.

Penn Police officers told The Daily Pennsylvanian that when they respond to in-person gatherings, students often answer the door maskless and inebriated.

Despite taking numerous safety precautions including consistently using masks, face shields, gloves, antibacterial spray, and individual patrol cars, officers said they are still worried about potentially contracting the virus and transmitting it to family members at home due to these COVID-19 safety violations.

For Penn Police Captain Gary Williams, working night shifts means risking his safety when interacting with students breaking COVID-19 safety guidelines.

Williams, who has worked for Penn Police for 14 years,

said these conditions lead not only to a “difficult time at the door” for responding officers, but also pose serious health risks regarding the spread of COVID-19 within Penn and the larger Philadelphia community.

“The number of parties is down, as well as their size,” Williams said. “Yet, they’re still happening, and when we respond, we see no social distancing, no masks, and alcohol use.”

Vice President of Public Safety and Penn Police Superintendent Maureen Rush said that though there has been a decrease in parties over the fall 2020 and spring 2021 semesters, student gatherings are still occurring at a concerning rate — often without abiding by COVID19 safety guidelines.

A “completely disproportionate” number of positive COVID-19 cases on campus has been linked to inperson social events held by fraternities and sororities,

Penn urges students to remain vigilant even as COVID-19 positivity rate reaches semester low

Chief Wellness Officer Benoit Dubé previously confirmed with the DP. “Our officers must be extremely careful. They have families; they have coworkers,” Rush said. “Partying right now is irresponsible not only for the responding police officers, but [also for] the rest of their and our communities.”

As first responders, Rush said that officers were given the option to participate in the first wave of vaccine distribution in December 2020 and confirmed that the majority of officers are fully vaccinated. Rush and Penn Police officers, however, noted that COVID-19 vaccines have not yet been proven to prevent vaccinated individuals from transmitting the virus if infected,

A total of 257 reports of students violating the University’s COVID-19 protocols have been submitted to Penn’s Campus Compact Review Panel since the beginning of the spring semester.

The Campus Compact Violation Data Dashboard, which will be updated monthly and was released on Friday, shows that 52% of reports that resulted in University intervention resulted in disciplinary sanctions, 33% in educational interventions, and 14% in campus restrictions.

The Campus Compact outlines COVID-19 guideline compliance expectations for students living on or off campus.

Campus restrictions include students who have been removed from campus housing, had their Penn Cards deactivated, or were restricted from campus activities. Removing students from campus housing is a process that involves Student Intervention Services as well as the student’s parents, Chief Wellness Officer Benoit Dubé wrote in an emailed statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian on Feb. 22.

Dubé added that though there were 257 total reports, not all reports led to disciplinary action.

Violations categorized as educational interventions led to an in-person meeting or phone call with the student or a meeting with student groups as a whole. For students who received disciplinary sanctions, they were suspended or referred to the Office of Student Conduct, their school advisor, or national headquarters for Greek-affiliated groups, according to the dashboard.

In meetings with Greek life members on Feb. 3, Associate Vice Provost for Student Affairs Tamara Greenfield King demanded that all members of fraternities in the Interfraternity Council, sororities in the Panhellenic Council, and identified off-campus organizations stop holding in-person socaial events. She added that OSC is handling a “significant amount of cases” linked to students attending in-person social events held by Greek organizations.

Any member of the Penn community can report an alleged violation of the Campus Compact to the panel for review via a form, after which the panel will determine whether or not it will address the violation directly or refer the violation to OSC for disciplinary review.

Penn remains at Campus Alert Level 2: Heightened Awareness on its four-level alert SEE VIOLATIONS PAGE 3

SEE OFFICERS PAGE 6

Pottruck reopens to all undergraduates

One student was hospitalized due to severe symptoms and two students tested positive for the B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant since arriving on campus this semester

Students will be required to wear a mask for the duration of their workout at Pottruck

JONAH CHARLTON Senior Reporter

JONAH CHARLTON, BRANDON PRIDE Senior Reporter, Sports Editor

Even after Penn’s undergraduate COVID-19 case count decreased by over 50% for the second straight week, University administrators urge students to remain vigilant in preventing the spread of COVID-19.

Undergraduates accounted for a total of 48 COVID-19 cases from Feb. 14 to Feb. 20, down from 104 the previous week. The weekly undergraduate positivity rate also decreased from 1.90% to 0.93% — making it the lowest weekly undergraduate positivity rate of the spring semester.

Chief Wellness Officer Benoit Dubé said the decreasing positivity rate reinforces the fact that most students are continuing to follow COVID19 public health guidelines.

He emphasized, however, that while the lowered positivity rate is encouraging, “we cannot rest on our laurels or throw caution to the wind,” particularly after a Penn student was hospitalized due to severe COVID-19 symptoms during the past two weeks, and at least two students have tested positive for the B.1.1.7 COVID-19 variant since arriving on campus for the spring semester.

The student who was hospitalized is not the first Penn student to be hospitalized due to COVID-19, as all previous hospitalizations have been preemptive in nature, Dubé said. The most recent hospitalization was the most serious and the first that resulted in a prolonged stay, according to Dubé, who added that the student is no longer in the hospital and has received the care they needed.

“The fact that this was a more serious hospitalization mirrors a trend we are seeing between the fall and the spring,” Dubé said. “Students are becoming sicker after contracting COVID19. They are showing more symptoms of greater intensity and for a longer duration.”

He emphasized that the virus affects everyone differently and that the hospitalization and presence of COVID-19 variants on campus should serve as reminders for students to be more vigilant.

After the University observed “worrisome trends” in the COVID-19 positivity rate — which had ballooned to 4.58% within the undergraduate population — just two weeks ago, Dubé explained on Feb. 9 that Penn would experience one of two scenarios: a continuation of the doubling of undergraduate cases or a plateau in the number of undergraduate cases.

The University ultimately experienced the latter of the two scenarios, remaining at Campus Alert Level Two: Heightened Awareness, which requires the Penn community to continue following public health guidelines under heightened vigilance.

Penn most recently administered 15,527 total COVID-19 tests between Feb. 14 and Feb. 20, with a total positive headcount of 79 cases and a total positivity rate of 0.64%. The available on-campus isolation capacity also increased to 91.1%, up from 70.3% during the week of Feb. 7 to Feb. 13.

“Both Biden and his critics ignore a painful reality: student loan debt is a problem both at Penn and Ivy League schools.” - DP Editorial Board PAGE 4

SEE COVID-19 PAGE 3

AJ Brodeur, former record-setter for Penn basketball, is now playing professionally in Iceland with Stjarnan PAGE 12

MIRA SHETTY

Pottruck Health and Fitness Center opened for student use starting on Feb. 24 with restrictions to follow COVID-19 guidelines.

After being shuttered for nearly one year, Penn’s Pottruck Health and Fitness Center will reopen some of its facilities to all undergraduate students on Feb. 24.

Pottruck began a reopening pilot program on Feb. 3 after the Quiet Period ended, with plans to potentially reopen to all students. Chief Wellness Officer Benoit Dubé told The Daily Pennsylvanian on Feb. 23 that the protocols taken during the pilot program “have been shown to work.”

The University announced the updated policy in an email to all undergraduate students on Tuesday morning, writing that students will be required to wear a mask for the duration of their workout. Students must also show a green PennOpen Pass prior

NEWS

STUDENTS IN TEXAS STRUGGLE TO COMPLETE PAGE 2 ASSIGNMENTS AMID WINTER STORM

to entering Pottruck and adhere to policies outlined in the Student Campus Compact.

Reservations will be available beginning Feb. 24 on the Campus Recreation Member Portal.

Students may make no more than one reservation per day and three reservations per week, and must select a specific exercise room to use for the duration of their 60-minute workout when reserving a time.

On weekdays, the earliest reservation time will begin at 9 a.m. and the latest will begin at 6 p.m.

In between reservation blocks, the rooms will be SEE POTTRUCK PAGE 3

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ONLINE MENTORSHIP PLATFORM CONNECTS FGLI PAGE 3 STUDENTS WITH PENN ALUMNI

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2 NEWS

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

Penn students in Texas struggle with virtual learning amid power outages and burst pipes Students expressed concern that the impacts of the winter storm will continue to devastate their communities — particularly in low-income areas — even after power has been restored SUKHMANI KAUR Contributing Reporter

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harton and Engineering junior Effie Guo was completing a problem set for ESE 501: “Networking - Theory and Fundamentals” from her home in Dallas when the lights in her room suddenly flickered, and her power went out in the early morning on Feb. 14.

After three days of completing assignments in freezing temperatures with no power, electricity finally returned on the evening of Feb. 17. A pipe burst shortly after, filling a bathroom and bedroom in her house with half an inch of murky water — forcing her to put her studies on hold yet again.

The winter storms across large parts of the Central and Southern United States have hit Texas and Oklahoma with high levels of snow and unusually cold temperatures, causing widespread flooding and power outages. More than 14 million Texans lost access to clean, safe water, and 4 million people lost electricity. Temperatures began to fall on Feb. 14, and much of the state was hit with rolling power outages early the next morning. There are currently over 6,000 households without power across the state.

Despite Penn inviting students back to campus this spring, some students decided to remain home for the semester. Over the past week, students living in Texas struggled to complete their assignments and midterms while enduring low temperatures and power outages.

College junior Brian Vu was looking forward to returning to campus on Feb. 15 after spending the past few months with his family in Austin, Texas.

On Feb. 14 his flight was canceled, and he no longer has concrete plans to return to Philadelphia because he wants to make sure his family’s living conditions are safe before he leaves.

During the three days he spent without power, Vu learned how to turn on the fireplace in his house to stay warm after the temperature dropped from 78 to 53 degrees inside and the snowfall increased.

He bundled himself in five layers of clothing to go

grocery shopping in the afternoon on Feb. 17.

“I went to the grocery store, and it was an apocalypse. It was like going through a maze, and the only source of light was your own dying phone’s flashlight,” Vu said. “It was very hard because we had to take pictures of all the barcodes [for items you wanted to purchase].”

On Feb. 15, College junior Emma Arsekin was writing a midterm essay for PSCI 217: “Russian Politics” that was due at midnight the next day.

When the lights flickered off in her Houston home at 2 a.m. she repeatedly refreshed the internet before realizing that the power went out. Arsekin emailed her professor from her phone, describing her situation and asking for an extension on the paper. Her power finally returned 62 hours later, and she submitted the essay on Feb. 18.

“It was difficult because my house had gone to 10 degrees that night, so [my family and I] camped out in the living room, but that meant I couldn’t get enough sleep,” Arsekin said.

Texas was hit particularly hard by power outages because the state’s electrical grid operates independently, as the state dodged federal regulation that is part of regional power grids, barring it from borrowing from local grids when there are outages.

Even though Texans knew the storm was coming, Engineering sophomore Janavi Chadha said they were ill-equipped to face the dire situation when it arrived. Chadha said that milk and other food items in her refrigerator began to spoil after two days with intermittent power, and it was difficult to buy more food, as the aisles in local Dallas grocery stores were barren.

“The shelves were empty, and it felt just like when the pandemic had started — when people kept buying toilet paper,” Chadha said. “The stores were running out of flour, sugar, and milk, and the basics.”

The storm only exacerbated issues for low-income families who had already been struggling

PHOTO FROM BRIAN VU

College junior Brian Vu lost power for three days, with the temperature in his house dropping from 78 to 53 degrees.

due to the economic fallout from COVID-19.

College junior Laura Dees, a first-generation, low-income student who is currently residing in Harnwell College House, received a text message from her brother showing a three-foot-long icicle that hung from the roof of their house in Bethany, Okla. for the first time on Feb. 18. She said her mother experienced the coldest day of her life with negative 22-degree windchills.

Dees said the storm posed a greater challenge for her family compared to others because of their low-income background.

“It’s really hard because we are a workingclass family, and my father doesn’t have a fixed income, so my dad was unable to work at all [during the storm], and they had to spend their extra money they saved to pay off some bills on space heaters,” Dees said. “Now all of their savings have been destroyed.”

Student Financial Services reached out to students from Texas, encouraging students to contact them if their family’s financial circumstances changed as a result of the storm.

College junior Calista Lopez, who is currently living in an off-campus apartment in Philadelphia, was constantly checking in with her immunocompromised mother who had trouble commuting to work from her old, poorly heated building in San Juan, Texas. Although her mother never lost power, Lopez still worried for her because she was working in the cold during the pandemic.

Chadha relied on her hotspot and the

generosity of her neighbors to finish her homework, traveling to the house of one of her neighbors who had power to charge her computer and join her Zoom classes.

Director of Student Life and Undergraduate Education for the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences Sonya Gwak emailed all students learning remotely from Texas on Feb. 18 to offer assistance and academic accommodations. Gwak told students to email or call her if they couldn’t access course material or attend virtual classes due to the storm so she could notify faculty members about absences and help students return to academic life.

Although Chadha faced the brunt of the problems from the storm from Feb. 15 to Feb. 17, she was grateful that Gwak reached out to her with a number to call and expressed concern over her well-being.

“I’m glad they reached out eventually,” Chadha said. “It was nice to know they cared about us.”

Guo, Vu, and Arsekin said they are also thankful for the support they received from professors and friends during the winter storm. Vu said his friends reached out to his professors on his behalf to secure him extensions on his assignments while he was without power.

“Overall [the storm] was a pain but my attitude was just ‘well what can you do?’” Arsekin said. “I was lucky to have a fireplace, bottled water, food, a car to charge my phone in, and super understanding professors, so it wasn’t nearly as bad as it could have been.”

THEDP.COM | THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN

NEWS 3

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

Students learning in isolation cope with warped sense of time, concentration issues MAX MESTER

Students who test positive must isolate for at least 10 days for both symptomatic and asymptomatic students.

While some reported minimal impact on their academic performance, many students experienced fatigue, struggles with time management, and stress as a result of confinement and the illness itself DELANEY PARKS Staff Reporter

After a recent spike in Penn’s COVID-19 cases, more students than ever were forced to learn while in quarantine and isolation. While some reported minimal impact on their academic performance, many students experienced fatigue, struggles with time management and concentration, and stress as a result of confinement and the illness itself.

During the week of Feb. 7 to Feb. 13, 463 students were in isolation with COVID-19, while 908 students were required to quarantine as a result of exposure to the virus. The University moves both symptomatic and asymptomatic students to Sansom Place West to isolate for at least 10 days, and students exposed to the virus — who are found through contact tracing — must selfquarantine in their rooms for 10 days.

During isolation, many students struggled with mental exhaustion and differentiating one day from the next — negatively impacting their motivation and organization to do schoolwork.

After College first year Morgan Zinn tested positive for COVID-19 on Feb. 3, he moved into Sansom Place West the following day and experienced difficulties with classes, homework, and accommodations due to harsh symptoms related to the virus and other sicknesses. He was released from the isolation housing on Feb. 8 — 10 days after his first reported symptoms.

Since he contracted mononucleosis, strep throat, and COVID-19 at the same time, Zinn said it was sometimes difficult to tell which symptoms were specific to COVID-19.

He added that the fatigue he experienced was so debilitating that he was unable to leave his bed for four days straight at one point, and he had to miss his classes for the period in which he was in isolation due

to fatigue, dry cough, and body aches, among other symptoms.

“I couldn’t move for four days,” Zinn said. “That was really rough — I got pretty behind in work because of all the sickness stuff, which was less than ideal. I was just constantly tired.”

Wharton first year Emma Segerman received the contact tracing call from Campus Health instructing her to move into Sansom Place West on Feb. 9, during a time window that conflicted with one of her classes.

While she said her professor was accommodating, she had to miss the class and ask for an extension.

Since Segerman said she was “99% asymptomatic,” this was the only instance she had to miss class or ask for an extension.

While in Sansom Place West, students reported difficulty concentrating within the four walls of the dorm.

Zinn said his perception of time suffered not only because of his illness, but also because of the isolation, explaining that his fatigue and sleep schedule resulted in abnormal circadian rhythms.

“Everything was one giant blur,” Zinn said. “It was hard being isolated and everything, and the days just kept blurring together over and over and over again.”

Segerman agreed that an altered sense of time in isolation impacted her learning, and described a period in which she completely lost track of time prior to a class after failing to determine whether it was morning or afternoon.

“I’m not going outside — like I have windows, but it’s just a view of the other Sansom buildings. So I’m not really seeing daylight changing, or people walking around,” Segerman said. “It’s like a casino,

because you don’t see the outside.”

She said that, while not being able to go outside makes concentrating on work much more difficult, she tries to improve her focus by going to the other side of her double room for a change in location.

Like Zinn, College senior Erico Solis, who had to quarantine in Lauder College House after his suitemate tested positive, said that lacking a change of scenery while confined to his room had a negative impact on his ability to focus. He said the source of the problem was having to use the same area for everything, which meant that schoolwork, sleep, and free time all “blurred” together without a clear distinction between areas of rest and work.

“Everything that I do to relax is in eyeshot actually; you don’t have that luxury of keeping everything away from you because it’s all right there,” Solis said. “Keeping yourself organized — keeping everything from just distracting you — it’s difficult.”

Engineering first year Vaishnavi Pachava, who is currently nearing the end of her second quarantine in Riepe College House as a result of contact tracing and two possible exposures, similarly said that the lack of variation in her room’s environment has been mentally exhausting.

“You get three things to see if you’re in your dorm room: your computer, your bed, and your window.

These are the three places you’re usually at, so you don’t get a lot of variety there,” she said.

Pachava said that it has been challenging to stay motivated to complete schoolwork because the breaks that she takes do not feel as rewarding. She said that she had been looking forward to the Engagement Day on Feb. 12, for example, before she had to go

into her second quarantine.

Now, Pachava said she uses trips to throw out her trash or wash her dishes as “pretty pathetic” breaks from schoolwork.

Other students in isolation and quarantine also reported issues with concentrating on class assignments due to COVID-19-related stress and a lack of structure and routine.

For Megan Li, a Wharton first year and a member of The Daily Pennsylvanian’s podcast staff, stressing about the possibility of contracting the virus from her roommate, who tested positive on Feb. 5, led her to seek deadline extensions for her writing seminar assignments while in quarantine.

She added that she was extremely stressed about getting COVID-19 after reading about its potential long-term effects, including chronic fatigue and neurological health complications. Potential symptoms and the idea of getting sick, she said, were all she could think about, distracting her from her classes and homework.

“I couldn’t concentrate for long periods of time. I would go back to [thinking], ‘Hmm, I’m developing a little bit of a headache. I know a migraine is a lesserknown symptom,’” Li said. “It was like, ‘Am I giving myself placebo symptoms? Or do I actually feel sick?’”

Pachava, on the other hand, found she was better able to concentrate on her class assignments due to limited distractions, although she found that hyperfocus on her studies to ultimately be detrimental to her social life.

“Either you do your work, or you don’t do your work.

There’s really nothing else,” Pachava said. “[But] even though you can concentrate better, you’re just not as happy.”

Online mentorship platform connects FGLI students with Penn alumni

Valerie De Cruz said. Alumni who want to volunteer their time and resources can sign up on the website and must be approved by a staffer at the GIC before interacting with students.

Penn FLASH was first proposed by FGLI students at summits held by Penn First who felt they lacked mentorship opportunities, De Cruz said.

“FGLI students identified the need to have mentors that they can reach out to who [are] supportive of their journey — who understand some of the unique challenges that a FGLI student might have,” De Cruz said.

1991 College and Wharton graduate Cindy Rentala was one of the first alumni to be involved in the Penn FLASH project as a partner, De Cruz said. An immigrant who “chased the American Dream,” Rentala said that FGLI resources at Penn were almost nonexistent when she was a student .

“When I was at Penn, FGLI was not even a term that anyone talked about,” she said. “I felt the imposter syndrome, as well as not understanding the cultural norms — not knowing the resources to seek out and [how to] ask for help.”

After graduating from Penn, Rentala spent several years in financial services and accounting before returning to Penn for her MBA. She now primarily works in financial technology that develops systems for payment over the internet, such as how Uber and Lyft pay their drivers.

As a mentor, Rentala said she hopes to be the resource for students that she did not have when she was at Penn.

She said students usually reach out to her because of a post she made or to ask about her experience in financial technology. Most of the mentoring consists of hosting video conferences to have one-on-one conversations, where she gets to know the student and their specific circumstances, Rentala said.

Alumni are also able to post internship and job opportunities for FGLI students on the platform, and through the Penn FLASH Projects feature, students and alumni can

collaborate on specific mini-projects that help students get professional experience, such as coordinating a marketing campaign or coding a website.

The GIC wanted to create a comfortable and personal nature of connecting with alumni on the platform, De Cruz said, adding that she wanted to help students avoid “the LinkedIn experience, where you’re tailoring your email and reaching out to 10 people and only two are responding.”

Some students felt that the tools on the platform, such as a customizable template message, helped them feel more

“I just sent her a cold message on Penn FLASH. I used the template pretty much, and then kind of personalized it,” he said. “I said that I noticed that she had consulting and data science in her background, and I thought it would be cool if we connected.”

Because of their shared interest in data science and consulting, Clark reached out to Shen to schedule a video conference. Though it was only supposed to be 30 minutes, Clark said that they ended up speaking for over an hour and a half. Shen connected Clark to summer internships and data science resources, and they remain in touch through emails and LinkedIn, Clark said.

Clark said that, while he was aware of other networking platforms, he had used Penn FLASH the most thus far and said that it was useful and accessible. He added that Penn FLASH’s features make it easier to find people with similar interests than other networking websites.

“I know that on LinkedIn, you just kind of have to search people and, after a while, it kind of gets hard to find people who might be interested in talking to you,” he said.

“I really appreciated the fact that [Penn FLASH] made it so that you’re not necessarily trying to sell yourself as much. It’s more about trying to learn about the mentor.”

Shen joined Penn FLASH because she understood what it was like to not have access to connections coming from an immigrant background.

“That kind of informal knowledge is so important to creating accessibility, and also creating inclusion,” she said. “I think it’s also really, really important to build that bridge starting from undergrad.”

She said that her background in consulting made apparent the importance of networking and connections, leading her to volunteer her resources and time to help students on Penn FLASH. “Cultural capital is not something that is currently democratically shared,” Shen said. “You can’t access it unless people voluntarily give it up, and so I feel a really strong obligation to do that.”

Hundreds of students have used Penn FLASH to seek career advice and resources MARY TUYETNHI TRAN Staff Reporter

An alumni mentorship program for first-generation, low-income Penn students has helped connect hundreds of students with alumni to share career advice and resources.

Penn FLASH is an online platform through which FGLI students can connect with alumni mentors based on factors including their major, career prospects, and location. Through the website, students can reach out to alumni to ask for advice or collaborate on mini-projects. Launched as a pilot program in spring 2019 by the Greenfield Intercultural Center, Vice Provost for University Life, and the Office of Penn First Plus Alumni, the program has grown from about 25 students and 45 alumni at its inception to 384 students and 448 alumni participants, FGLI Program Director Toyce Holmes said.

Many alumni mentors were recruited through Penn Alumni Relations and Career Services. While many alumni mentors identify as FGLI, non-FGLI alumni have also joined the platform to support students, GIC Director

POTTRUCK FRONT PAGE

closed for 30 minutes for crew members to sanitize all equipment.

Beginning Feb. 24, only the first-floor cardio room, secondf loor weight room, and second-f loor multi-purpose room will be open. Minimal occupancy restrooms will be open, while the locker rooms will remain closed.

Reopening dates for other Pottruck facilities — including the Sheerr Pool, the Gimbel basketball courts, and the third and fourth floors — will be announced soon, according to the email.

Dubé said that over the past two weeks, Penn has piloted the Pottruck protocols with an increasing number of students among a number of different populations. He added that the University had previously hoped to open Pottruck in December, but was unable to after Philadelphia instituted a Safer at Home restriction.

“This plan has always been envisioned for the community,” Dubé said. “When we were unable to open in December, it was disappointing, so we’re very excited to be reopening Pottruck now.”

Pottruck is the most recent in a growing list of Penn student recreation facilities that have reopened, including Franklin Field, Rockwell Gymnasium, and Penn Park. Penn athletes also received clearance to begin practicing formally — even after the spring conference season was canceled on Feb. 18.

Director of Campus Health Ashlee Halbritter said she hopes that the reopening of Pottruck can serve to buoy the Penn community’s spirits amid the pandemic.

“We have worked so hard for so many months to get Pottruck open for students for endorphins, a little bit of normalcy, and because we all believe that physical exercise is so important not just physically, but also mentally,” Halbritter said. “Pottruck reopening is a huge deal, and these moments of success are to be celebrated.”

“When I was at Penn, FGLI was not even a term that anyone talked about,” 1991 College and Wharton graduate and Penn FLASH mentor Cindy Rentala said. “I felt the imposter syndrome, as well as not understanding the cultural norms — not knowing the resources to seek out and [how to] ask for help.”

comfortable reaching out to alumni. College sophomore Jaydin Clark said that the introductory modules, which give students a personalized template to send to alumni, was helpful to him in reaching out to 2010 College graduate Julia Shen for advice about financial consulting this semester.

COVID-19 FRONT PAGE

VIOLATIONS FRONT PAGE

system, which guides the University’s policies depending on the severity of the pandemic in the area.

The University sent a message to the Penn community on Feb. 5 threatening a shift to Alert Level Three: Safer at Home.

Dubé told the DP on Feb. 16 that the worrisome trends previously noticed “were not sustained, and there is no need to impose new restrictions this week.”

Penn administered 16,743 total COVID-19 tests between Feb. 7 and Feb. 13, with a total positive headcount of 139 cases and an overall positivity rate of 1.07%.

ANA GLASSMAN

Penn’s undergraduate COVID-19 case count decreased from 1.90% to 0.93% — the lowest weekly undergraduate positivity rate of the spring semester.

Director of Campus Health Ashlee Halbritter said the majority of students continue to correctly follow public health guidelines of mask wearing, hand washing, social distancing, and participating in regular COVID-19 testing.

While the University has been able to reopen some campus facilities such as Pottruck Health and Fitness Center after observing lower positivity rates, Halbritter emphasized the gravity of the nation’s climbing death toll, with the United States recently surpassing a total of 500,000 deaths due to COVID-19.

“The amount of life lost is so staggering and unlike anything we have ever seen,” she said. “It’s just a lot. We [at Penn] remain so committed to getting Penn reopen for the students, but it is worth pausing to remember where we are and what has happened and is continuing to happen.”

MAX MESTER

Though a total of 257 reports have been filed, not all reports led to disciplinary action.

4 OPINION

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

OPINION Wharton must amplify the intersectional voices of BIPOC students

THURSDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2021 VOL. CXXXVII, NO. 6 137th Year of Publication DANE GREISIGER President ASHLEY AHN Executive Editor HADRIANA LOWENKRON DP Editor-in-Chief ISABEL LIANG Design Editor CONOR MURRAY News Editor PIA SINGH News Editor HANNAH GROSS Assignments Editor BRITTANY DARROW Copy Editor KYLIE COOPER Photo Editor ALFREDO PRATICÒ Opinion Editor SUNNY JANG Audience Engagement Editor BRANDON PRIDE Sports Editor LOCHLAHN MARCH Sports Editor SOPHIE HUANG Video Editor QIANA ARTIS Podcast Editor

Surayya’s Spice and Everything Nice | Business in the 21st century must accept students for who they are — ­ not force them to conform

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harton has made immense progress in working to address the needs of their minority student population.

Whether it’s through the founding of the Wharton Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion Group, Wharton’s first undergraduate diversity, equity, and inclusion group, or in the increasing community forums designed for voicing authentic cultural issues, great strides have been made. However, more can be done. With the perpetual racism and genderdiscrimination attributed to corporate spaces, the voices of Black, indigenous, and people of color students need to be magnified at this moment in time. While steps have been taken to increase equity, we must move into authentic and intersectional inclusion. When unpacking our history, authenticity’s role in belonging, and my personal experiences, we can understand the need for intersectional and underrepresented voices to be amplified in business spaces.

Wharton, like many other predominantly white institutions, was created for white men. When Joseph Wharton founded the school in the 1800s, many women and people of color were not allowed to obtain an education. The historical precedent of the business world is one of an “old boy’s club,” a homogenous firm where everyone looks, dresses, and acts the same. For a long time, corporate spaces excelled at keeping underrepresented minorities out. If a person of color was an employee, it was assumed that they were the “help,” not a junior banker or an associate consultant. Women were expected to be the wives of powerful men, not powerful themselves.

This historical context is important because it still impacts how we interact with the business or corporate spaces.

Women of color still largely feel as if we exist on the “outside” of the business world. Factors such as “professionalism” and “leadership” are still based on a Eurocentric and masculine ideal. In an Ivy League business setting, this can lead to some women of color feeling as if they don’t belong

or measure up. It becomes increasingly hard to nurture both of your identities, especially in an environment that wasn’t created for you or the people who share them.

Authenticity is paramount to belonging. Wharton’s students and faculty must collectively work towards more intersectional inclusion. I’m not just Black or a woman or a college student, I’m all of these things. My education should allow me to further integrate all parts of my identity. While we may think of diversity as a group of disparate social factors, true diversity comes in layers. Intersectionality, a term coined by scholar Kimberlé Crenshaw, represents how multiple layering identities impact one’s sociological experience. Considering deeper factors such as “misogynoir,” it becomes clear that my intersectionality has impacted my educational experience.

There are general issues that all women face, and then there are specific issues that women of color face. Balancing my Blackness with my emerging womanhood can be an uphill battle. If I’m too outspoken in class, I might be seen as angry. I’ve been warned that my passionate persona might be off-putting to peers. Discounting my natural tendencies, I am still expected to “shrink’’ myself to accommodate others. For some, I’m too bubbly. My ferocious laughter and joyful spirit are just too happy for a Black woman. Stereotype threat became my reality, as I’ve constantly walked the line between what’s acceptable for a leader versus a leader who is a Black woman.

These issues become increasingly magnified when I think of the many concrete experiences that engender them.

I can recall being told my speech was “aggressive” in an interview and that I was “too loud” by a peer. I’ve been discouraged from standing out when working on teams, and repeatedly told to “step back.” I’ve become very accustomed to receiving slightly racialized and gendered feedback.

Some people say their “art is their activism.” I always say

that my life is my activism. Through my firm commitment to authenticity, in spaces where it isn’t welcomed, I hold space for those with similar struggles. However, Wharton can accomplish and do much more for their various students with intersectional identities, than I can.

In light of my experience, Wharton can dig further into the rich narratives and perspectives of their students. Despite our economic-driven obsession with rationality, we are subjective human beings, driven by emotion and not objectivity. Nothing rivals the feeling of being accepted for all that you are. By increasing the intersectional programming within Wharton, such as specialized events intended to cultivate positive professional identities in women of color, and championing intersectional narratives in business, the tide can turn. My story doesn’t have to be a repeated occurrence.

I have faith that things can and will get better.

However, they are dependent on Wharton’s willingness to lean into more lasting and deeper change. These changes can be as small as pioneering more targeted experiences for women of color in business, or as immense as actively hiring more minority women professors. They can include continually educating men or male-identifying students, letting them know that allyship is important. Communicating to stand with women of color, not mansplain away their contributions or exacerbate broader societal feelings of invisibility or erasure.

In a business-educational world where an average person is a white man in a navy blue suit, authentic representation matters for the Black woman who would rather wear a pink one.

SURAYYA WALTERS is a Wharton junior concentrating in marketing from New Rochelle, N.Y. Her email address is surayyaw@wharton.upenn.edu.

ALESSANDRA PINTADO-URBANC Business Manager

What’s next? Racial justice, Penn, and you

PETER CHEN Technology Manager JASPER HUANG Analytics Manager GREG FERREY Marketing Manager EMILY CHEN Product Lab Manager ERIC HOANG Consulting Manager

THIS ISSUE ALANA KELLY DP Design Editor ALICE HEYEH 34st Design Editor QUINN ROBINSON Deputy Design Editor NATHAN ADLER Design Associate TYLER KLIEM Design Associate MAX MESTER News Photo Editor ANA GLASSMAN Opinion Photo Editor SAMANTHA TURNER Sports Photo Editor JONAH CHARLTON Deputy News Editor NICKY BELGRAD Associate Sports Editor

Guest Column | This Black History Month, take time to blueprint what the world could be

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ast year around this time, Makuu: The Black Cultural Center, was in the midst of hosting a series of brunches for each of the four undergraduate classes at Penn. This was part of our strategy for creating a more intimate and intentional spring semester open house experience by speaking with each class about concerns that would be of interest to them — balancing their first Penn spring, getting ready for graduation and life after college, networking on and off campus, revisiting purpose and passion. Little did we know that our world would shift so much in the days to come, with Penn adding a second week of spring break in March before moving to a virtual campus to close out the year.

We also had no idea that the spring and summer would introduce us to names like Ahmaud Arbery, Breonna Taylor, and George Floyd, and that the nation would erupt in waves of protest unlike anything we’ve seen in recent times. Ideas such as abolishing policing and prisons, instituting meaningful anti-racist measures, and seriously engaging in reparation strategies moved from the margins to the mainstream. But just a few months later, former President Donald Trump received the second highest number of popular votes in history, with a portion of his supporters going as far as to violently occupy the nation’s capitol to demonstrate their dissatisfaction.

As we close out the 2021 edition of Black History Month, I often find myself far too drained by all of the uncertainty in our day-to-day world to think about issues like white angst and racial injustice, but I know that we must press

forward. For a few years now, perhaps since the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, I’ve continually asked myself what does it mean for me — a Black man, a Black father, a director of a Black cultural center — to press forward if the broader communities and institutions that I operate within do not express any tangible awareness about the structural mechanisms that sustain inequities, or lack the fortitude to push with me. Will I always be moving the wrong way on the great American escalator, which privileges the few under the guise of freedom for all? How do we change the systems that normalize this social toxicity?

What’s become clearer to me as I’ve lived and learned is that people care about what’s in it for them. Racial injustice, or more specifically anti-Blackness, is not simply a Black issue. It’s a human issue. This sentiment fueled the summer’s discontent. When we fail to adequately invest in all of us, we weaken our collective potential, and we destroy lives and possibilities in the process. White supremacist ideologies have historically restricted what a “true American” collective can look like. Pressing forward requires us to tear through these barriers and critique the fragile psyches that rely on the suppression of “others” who do not look like them. The American Dream should not be framed as an individualistic and divisive battle over smaller portions of pie. It’s a collaborative endeavor to imagine and enjoy a world that has more than it needs. This shouldn’t be too difficult to see, but it does in fact take the courage to look.

We have a unique opportunity at Penn to bring together people from varied backgrounds — undergraduate and

graduate students from all over the globe, campus and community partners, exceptional faculty in virtually every field, and a massive alumni base — and access a plethora of ideas and resources that can quite literally reshape life trajectories.

I hope that each of us reading these words keeps this in mind as we move through the remaining unknowns surrounding COVID-19 and the restoration of physical gatherings. Take this time to engage in meaningful research and exploration to blueprint what the world could be. This is what you came to Penn to do, on some level. The student activities and internship possibilities may not be accessible now in the ways that we would want, so, if you are able, channel that energy in other directions. Ask the tough questions and take a long and hard look at the answers. Then make a plan for us to do things differently.

If the summer of 2020 taught me nothing else, it’s that we get to decide what’s next. It certainly won’t be easy, but this is the work. I’m looking forward to engaging you all virtually at Makuu for as long as we need, and in person when it becomes safe again to do so. We want to hear about your visions for the future, and work with you to make it so.

BRIAN PETERSON is the director of Makuu: The Black Cultural Center. He is a 1993 Engineering graduate and received his doctorate in 2013 from the Graduate School of Education. His email is peterson@upenn.edu.

AGATHA ADVINCULA Deputy Opinion Editor

Let’s talk about the other global crisis: sustainability

VARUN SARASWATHULA Deputy Opinion Editor VALERIE WANG Deputy Opinion Editor NINA WEI Deputy Copy Editor SARIKA RAU Deputy Copy Editor CAROLINE DONNELLY-MORAN Deputy Copy Editor AVA DOVE Deputy Copy Editor EDWARD CHO Copy Associate

Caroline’s Queries | In the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, Penn has neglected its commitment to a green campus

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t’s expected that some parts of the college experience are going to be different when you arrive on campus in the middle of a pandemic. Instead of running across campus to lectures, I’ve been racing to COVID-19 testing sites with my PennCard in one hand and a loading OpenPass in the other.

Instead of being social at parties and club meetings, I have a schedule jam-packed with Zooms. And instead of eating communally in buffet-style dining halls, I shuffle into Hill College House, grab a pre-packaged meal, and dine in my dorm during an online lecture.

Changes in lifestyle are expected in a pandemic, but these changes are often coming with environmental costs that Penn is neglecting to address. Penn has implemented various initiatives in Penn Sustainability and Penn Dining, but neither organization could provide any data demonstrating that these initiatives had substantial impact.

When I got to campus last month, one of my first tasks was getting accustomed to Philadelphia’s single-stream recycling system. I expected it to be a breeze compared to back home, where my family sorts recycling into three bins, plus compost.

Unfortunately, I soon discovered that at Penn many of the

dining containers that we used either could not be recycled, or it was unclear if they could be. In a week’s worth of dining hall trips, I could rinse and recycle a few plastic fruit cups and clamshell containers, but not much else. The paper containers that we eat pizza or fries in cannot be recycled if stained with food, so the bottom halves get tossed in the trash. In Philadelphia, plastic bags, utensils, and takeout containers also cannot be recycled, as they can damage recycling equipment.

I was temporarily relieved when I realized that the black plastic takeout containers that I had been recycling for weeks were composed of type five plastics, which Philadelphia recycles. Then, I learned that black plastic often ends up in landfills anyway, and that more than half of Philadelphia’s recycling goes to an incinerator.

Were my frantic Google searches on what was and wasn’t recyclable pointless? Did I spend hours washing my plastic containers and sorting my trash for nothing? As I contemplated these questions, two thoughts came to mind: First, that it is always better to reduce and reuse than to recycle. If we could reuse the containers we eat out of, like we did before the pandemic, the question of whether or not

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EMILY XU

Philadelphia even recycles becomes less relevant to Penn’s sustainability commitment. Penn Dining has tried to encourage reuse by providing students with reusable cloth bags, and has restarted the Green2Go program, where students can request a reusable container at select locations and bring it back to be washed.

Second, and perhaps more importantly: how many Penn students are going to actively seek out resources to recycle when it is considerably easier to just chuck everything into a trash bin? Whether I’m on Locust Walk or walking the halls of my college house, one glance at overflowing trash cans shows just how ineffective Penn’s initiatives have been. I haven’t seen any Green2Go containers in the dining halls, and though we can request to not have disposable utensils in our online food orders, I’ve yet to see any of those requests honored.

I reached out to Penn Sustainability and received an overview of the initiatives that they and Penn Dining have implemented. They offered the following takeaway message: “skip the disposable silverware, bring your blue reusable bag to the dining hall, and utilize Green2Go reusable clamshells.”

Penn Sustainability emphasized that they have thousands of followers on their social media accounts, and encouraged readers of The Daily Pennsylvanian to follow their pages on Instagram and Facebook, as well as @greenpenn on Twitter.

Social media posts are better than nothing, but it’s clear that few engage with them. Over 2,000 people follow their Instagram account, yet only a few dozen of them like their posts. If so few students commit to the “slacktivism” of liking a post, then how many students are actually recycling?

In the sustainability crisis, Penn as a whole can no longer rely on passive actions, like posting to social media or sending the occasional email, to get the job done. Especially as it remains unclear whether Philadelphia actually recycles, Penn’s best course of action may be ditching plastics and paper bags altogether. The devastating effects of our wasteful habits may be less visible than a global pandemic, but we must nonetheless avoid them at all costs.

CAROLINE MAGDOLEN is a College and Engineering first year studying systems engineering and environmental science from New York, N.Y. Her email address is magdolen@sas.upenn.edu.

THEDP.COM | THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN

Phila. schools are reopening. Penn should provide testing.

Urooba Unplugged | The differences between Penn and the School District’s reopening plans are stark — Penn must use its resources to test students and staff

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lthough mere blocks from campus, the inner politics of the Philadelphia public school system can feel worlds apart from the consciousness of Penn students. This January, while thousands of students returned to Penn’s campus, public schools in the city remained closed. Now, despite safety concerns from parents and teachers, schools are phased to reopen in early March.

There is ongoing debate about whether reopening is the safest path forward. However, if reopening occurs as scheduled, the plan should include the frequent testing of both students and staff. At the bare minimum, they should be tested as frequently and quickly as Penn students are. This is a tall task for an overwhelmed school district, so Penn must be willing to provide support and funding for such a complex and costly operation.

The district’s existing reopening plan is considerably less protective than Penn’s. The current plan has only promised five weeks of testing for 20% of the hybrid student population at each school, and weekly testing for staff. While the city, in collaboration with the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, set up vaccination sites for teachers, these actions are not enough to ensure the safety of students and staff in the meantime.

Penn, the largest private landowner in the city, has the means and the obligation to provide comprehensive COVID-19 testing to the students and staff returning to Philly schools. While the district’s students and staff have limited access to testing, Penn’s complex Spring return-to-campus plan provides its students with twice a week testing with results within 48 hours, and access to quarantine housing and contact tracing.

The Philadelphia Federation of Teachers, which represents most of the city’s teachers, has criticized the city for its inadequate testing strategy and building ventilation. The district’s insufficient plan for reopening is more alarming considering the city’s long history of failures in school safety, where school buildings have been found to be overrun with lead, mold, and asbestos. The school district is already financially overwhelmed by these historic infrastructural problems, making the economic cost of COVID-19 safety measures all the more difficult without Penn’s support.

No family should have to put their lives at risk for their children to receive an education, especially when an institution like Penn, with a $14.9 billion endowment, exists blocks away. Although the decision to participate in hybrid learning is optional, for many parents who work long hours and can’t afford child care, it may be a necessity.

When thousands of students returned to campus this semester, abounding incidents of partying, in-person Greek life events, and general failure of students to adhere to COVID-19 guidelines led to a substantial increase in positivity rates. Still, the University demonstrated its capability to provide testing and contact tracing for thousands of students. With these strategies, the University has almost certainly prevented numerous outbreaks, undoubtedly contributing to the decreasing positivity rates in recent weeks. The city’s residents, and those returning to school, have no such option.

The ability of universities to assist communities during the pandemic is not a novel or unfathomable idea. In fact, the University of California, Davis, made headlines for its efforts to protect its entire neighboring city from coronavirus. U.C. Davis, considerably less wealthy than Penn, has invested in biweekly testing with overnight results for all 69,500 people in the city. They created a comprehensive plan, which included training graduate students to help with contact tracing, and provided isolation and quarantine housing to those exposed to the virus. The program has caught more than 850 potential outbreaks.

While Davis, Calif. — U.C. Davis’ neighboring city — is much smaller than Philadelphia, the population of those engaged with the Philadelphia public school system is a manageably-sized group to support. Especially considering that only 9,000 students, or just one third of the Philadelphia school district population, have opted to return to in-person instruction.

Still, some may ask, why should Penn pay for a city problem? The first, and perhaps most obvious, answer would be that with over half a million dead from the pandemic, organizations with the means to provide support should. Second, Penn is indebted to Philadelphia. Although Penn is the largest landowner in the city, it has no legal obligation to pay property taxes — taxes that would directly support the School District. Earlier this year, Penn took a small step towards righting this wrong when it pledged $100 million over a decade to the district. However, that commitment is only a quarter of what the University would owe.

In the donation announcement, President Gutmann stated that “nothing is more important than the health and welfare of our children.” There is no more immediate threat to the health and safety of the city’s children than COVID-19.

Even in uncertain times, one thing has remained certain: those with the resources to protect themselves from this virus have been able to. Penn, with its best intentions, has provided students with more testing resources than most of the country has access to. The disparity between Penn’s testing plan and the district’s testing plan makes clear the historic problems with our nation’s economic, political, and healthcare systems. But we cannot fix all of these problems in time for the school’s reopening. In a global pandemic, there is a need for urgency. Penn, in your year of community engagement, it’s time to act.

UROOBA ABID is a College senior studying international relations from Long Island, N.Y. Her email address is uabid@sas. upenn.edu.

OPINION 5

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

EDITORIAL

President Biden, don’t forget student debt at Ivies

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ast Thursday, former Penn Presidential Professor of Practice and President of the United States Joe Biden participated in a CNN town hall. During the event, Biden was asked how he would make student debt forgiveness happen. In response, the 46th president stated that debt forgiveness should be limited to $10,000 per student, specifically arguing that it made little sense to forgive student loans held by students who went to schools such as Penn.

In response, many news outlets and columnists have pointed out that just 0.3% of federal student borrowers are Ivy League students, and that the majority of them come from affluent backgrounds. As such, the logical conclusion is that students at Ivy League schools need minimal debt relief, if they receive any at all. While this argument correctly notes that most student loan borrowers do not attend Ivy League schools, and thus that shouldn’t be a factor in student loan policy, both Biden and his critics ignore a painful reality; student loan debt is a problem both at Penn and Ivy League schools. Any student debt plan must therefore address the crisis that all students, including those at Ivies, face.

In theory, debt should not be a problem for Penn students. According to the University website, “no loans [are] included in students’ financial aid awards,” and many students can and do graduate debt free. However, a sizable minority do not; 32%

of 2015 Penn graduates, for example, took out student loans, resulting in an average of $18,900 in federal and nonfederal student loan debt. Even if Biden’s $10,000 proposal applied to Ivy League students, it would still leave many with thousands of dollars of debt.

Penn is not the only Ivy with a student debt problem. At Cornell, 41% of students graduate with student debt. At Harvard, the richest school in the country by endowment, 23% of students graduate with debt. Multiple Ivy League alumni have come forward to share their individual stories in light of Biden’s comments, noting how Ivy League graduates who take out student debt often find it difficult to find well-paying jobs due to structural inequalities, as well as the extreme lengths many have to go to in order to pay off such debt.

These facts perpetuate structural inequalities deeply rooted in Ivy League admissions, and can fuel the perception that Ivy League schools are unaffordable. Ivy League schools often have steep sticker prices; Penn, for instance, requires a tuition payment of $53,166 on top of housing, dining, and other expenses. Although each Ivy typically offers no-loan packages to families making less than $60,000 per year, students are often forced to take other loans for a number of reasons, such as paying for everyday expenses and meeting other costs. Thus, many qualified students do not

apply to Ivy League schools because they believe them to be unaffordable. This results in a continued lack of socioeconomic diversity at many Ivy League schools, including Penn.

The Ivy League is an easy scapegoat for many.

Critics often assume that all students at an Ivy League school are privileged or soon to be so, and as a result not require any assistance. However, the reality is the complete opposite: student debt is a real issue at these eight schools, and policymakers ought to pay attention.

SHARON LEE

Stop losing faith Lexi’s Take | The case for keeping an open mind about religion

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rowing up as a practicing Catholic, my faith never seemed to be in conflict with my identity as an aspiring biologist who understood evolution or as an American who believed our separation of church and state was one of our most important values. As I’ve gotten older, I’ve come to learn that my religious identity will always make people question my appreciation for science and the secular state. I think back to the shock of one of my close friends when he found out that I considered myself religious (despite the cross that I’ve worn around my neck for our whole friendship), he replied with “I thought you were a woman of science.”

While this may seem ridiculous, to anyone paying attention to the news it shouldn’t be all that far-fetched.

Think back to September 2020 during Supreme Court Justice Amy Coney Barrett’s confirmation hearings, and the assumptions about the way her Catholic faith would impact her decision making. Sen. Diane Feinstein (D-Calif.) questioned Barrett’s abilities, upon her nomination to the appellate court in 2017, now infamously known for saying, “the dogma lives loudly within you.”

The stigma and wariness of religious people is not new, nor is it isolated to Christians or even conservatives. Progressive House Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.), a practicing Muslim, has faced extensive prejudice about her faith. The first amendment protects our “freedom of religion,” however this right has devolved into “freedom from religion” that has made people fearful of those who practice their religions, a reality that has become very poignant to me in taking a religious studies course this semester.

It corresponds quite directly to an overwhelming decrease in religious affiliation and engagement amongst the American public. In 1951, approximately 1% of the population identified as having “no religion,” a number that has since increased to 20% in 2020. Concurrently, we’ve seen a decline in the marriage rate from around 86% in 1970 to around 33% in 2019 and a similar decline in mental health among other things which may be loosely correlated to a loss in religion. So is this degradation of faith in a country with “In God, We Trust” embolden on its currency, a good thing?

Our age group is overwhelmingly more irreligious than our parents, with one in four people ages 18-22 claiming to have “no faith.” Depression is equally most prevalent among ages 18-24, a rate which has increased in the last 20 years. These statistics made me curious

TYLER KLIEM

about the religious climate at Penn, a secular university with limited religious ties particularly when compared to its peer institutions as well as ranked number one in the most depressed student body.

According to the Office of the Chaplain, approximately one-third of Penn students are involved in religious groups on campus in some capacity. As I surveyed members of various different organizations including Penn Hillel, Penn Cru, Penn Muslim Students’ Association, and Penn Hindu and Jain Association, I was moved by how positive the collective experience was.

For some of us, religion is reminiscent of family, identity, and culture. While this can for some make faith obligatory, it can also provide a feeling of comfort, especially in a new place. College first year Lilah Katz, who is involved in Penn Hillel, expressed how her on-campus involvement actually enriched what she understood about Judaism growing up, saying, “Being a part of Hillel helped me learn more about the range of my religious community and the beauty of the diversity of my faith.”

I found a similar response from another College first year and The Daily Pennsylvanian staffer Ibrahim El-Morsy, who, despite being a practicing Muslim and member of Penn MSA was motivated to join Cru, a Penn Christian fellowship group which he describes to have enhanced his spirituality and sense of community on campus. He explained, “Just the question ‘Can I pray for you for anything?’ is so significant. Not ‘how are

you? And saying I’m fine’ but actually being honest and meaning it and feeling like people can help you.”

Upon my arrival at Penn, I similarly got involved in the Newman Center, participating in their freshman retreat and joining my very first bible study this semester.

Whether or not I holistically subscribed to its doctrine, my faith has always provided me with the security and stability to endure through new and difficult experiences.

Don’t be mistaken, I’m not deaf to the very complicated pasts of world religions. I understand the complexity of subscribing to an institution that has a long and grey history. However, through my own experience, I can attest to the importance of not judging people based on their faith.

Steve Kocher, senior associate chaplain and director of Spiritual and Religious Life Center at Penn said on the value of religion on campus, “In that sort of space [college] we think that religious and spiritual communities can provide important reflective space to help keep things in perspective, with people who care about you.”

Particularly in light of the events of the last year, we could all use a place for reflection, appreciation, community, and hope. If people find strength and support from their religion, you shouldn’t knock it until you try it.

LEXI BOCCUZZI is a College first year studying philosophy, politics, and economics from Stamford, Ct. Her email is abb628@sas. upenn.edu.

Penn’s pre-professional culture is the enemy of passion Outspoken on Occasion | We have to accept that happiness is not always found on a straight path to achievement

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n a recent Penn in Washington event, Ariana Berengaut, a former State Department speechwriter, quoted a remarkable statistic: nearly half of Penn graduates work in finance and consulting. Given that figure, Berengaut said she was happy whenever she convinced a Penn student to work in public service. With Wharton’s reputation and the number of pre-med, pre-law, or pre-[insert any other profession] students at Penn, it’s certainly not shocking, but it begs the question of whether Penn students are too absorbed in a pre-professional culture, and if it inhibits the fostering of true passion.

I came to Penn as pre-med and pre-law, unsure if I would continue with either, but it was difficult not to be “pre” something. The admissions process for schools like Penn makes it seem like applicants who know exactly what they want to do (and have the extracurriculars and awards to match) have the best shot at getting in, which can be a difficult-to-escape pigeonhole. As a member of pre-med group chats, I found myself stressing over the perfect schedule and balancing the required STEM courses with the humanities classes I wanted to take. Stressed about whether or not I was “on track,” I arranged unnecessary meetings with pre-health advisors. I simultaneously felt committed and restrained.

But there’s also a small community at Penn that counters this thinking. “Grit Lab,” or PSYC 005, is a course focused on growing both passion and perseverance in academic and professional life, and is taught by professor and public intellectual Angela Duckworth.

Unlike some of my classmates familiar with professor Duckworth’s research, I enrolled in the course on a whim, finding myself at a crossroads in terms of what I wanted to do with my life. Grounded in discussion

and hearing from real-life paragons of grit (like Neil deGrasse Tyson), I learned more in the first five weeks of Grit Lab than I would have ever imagined.

Perhaps the most insightful part of the course has been learning about what makes successful people in life successful. After a few weeks of meeting some of these individuals and reading about more of them in Duckworth’s book “Grit,” a pattern becomes increasingly clear: those at the forefront of their respective industries have been gritty enough to sustain themselves toward a superordinate goal. And behind each goal, regardless of field, is the motivation to improve the lives of others.

For example, take Duckworth herself. She graduated college with a degree in neuroscience, founded a summer program for low-income Boston youth, worked in consulting, taught in public schools, and then got a doctorate in psychology. If you asked Duckworth, she would say that all of these seemingly incoherent experiences were crucial to her discovery of her purpose-driven passion in life: using “psychological science to help kids thrive.”

Finding this purpose led to her success, made possible her academic career, and inspired the Character Lab, which provides research-based advice for parents and teachers. This lesson on the importance of altruism in professional development, I believe, is crucial to all college students; they must learn sooner rather than later to achieve success that is long-lasting, soul-fulfilling, and most importantly, in service of others.

Grit Lab should not be an exception but part of the norm when it comes to a liberal arts education. Yes, sectors and foundational approaches are great, but the cultivation of passion is even greater. A college education

should not be seen as simply a means to a career with high earnings or a stepping-stone to graduate school. It should also be a time for students to learn about themselves as individuals through the joys and challenges of young adulthood. Why should that process of self-exploration be limited to the social and functional aspects of life? And even if (or when) that process isn’t complete by the time we leave Penn, we should at least be equipped with the perseverance to go about continuing that journey of self-exploration elsewhere. This process captures the essence of what Penn announces as its goal for a liberal arts education: discovery.

If Penn truly wants to be a part of educating individuals who go on to make real change in the world, the research is clear; they have to be doing what they love in life. And while that may very well be finance or medicine, the process of self-exploration and growth that is part of a course like Grit Lab should be considered a necessity for a college education. In the context of my own life, Grit Lab has shown me that either a career in medicine or law can allow me to feel fulfilled later in life because of their orientations towards service, and while it might take time to find out which of those paths is right for me, that’s alright. Like all good things, cultivating purpose-driven passion takes time.

The teaching of grit, passion, and perseverance is key to our collective futures — the world, quite literally, depends on it.

ALEX EAPEN is a College first year from Elkridge, Md. His email is aeapen@sas. upenn.edu.

6 NEWS

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

OFFICERS FRONT PAGE

emphasizing the continued practice of masking and social distancing to keep officers and students alike safe.

Penn Police Lieutenant Joseph Ferdman, a 25-year veteran of the force who is currently working the 3 p.m. to 1 a.m. night shift, said he is concerned about his co-workers who chose not to get vaccinated and about bringing the virus back home to his family.

“We’re human beings like everyone else,” Ferdman said. “We don’t want to bring [COVID-19] back to our families and back to other officers.”

Williams and Ferdman said that partygoers are often uncooperative due to a combination of alcohol consumption and fear of repercussion.

There have even been instances where students will leave the house or apartment vacant when an officer arrives to avoid any punishment, Ferdman said.

“They’re putting the health and safety of a bunch of people at risk, including themselves and officers,” Williams said.

Rush said that the Department of Public Safety most commonly receives reports of student parties from the managers of apartment buildings and complexes, who typically give multiple warnings for the gatherings to be shut down after which they call Penn Police. The fact that student parties continue after managers’ warnings is “absolutely outrageous,” Rush said.

If students are not following safety guidelines, officers follow protocol of maintaining adequate distance and requesting that the individual and everyone else in the building first put on a mask before conducting their call.

“If we boil it down to the actual interaction here, someone may have been drinking and likely forgot their mask, [and] they aren’t usually greeting the officer with a smile. There may be some loud voice exchanges or shouting, both of which increase the chance for transmission,” Dubé said.

After ensuring people are masked, officers identify the owner of the house or apartment and take down their information, which is then passed onto Penn’s Compact Review Panel to determine the appropriate repercussions.

Possible punishments for violating the Student Campus Compact range from campus restrictions, such as PennCard deactivation or removal from student housing, to disciplinary sanctions, including suspension or referral to the Office of Student Conduct among other resources, to educational interventions such as an in-person meeting or phone call.

A total of 257 reports of students violating the University’s COVID19 protocols has been submitted to the Campus Compact Review Panel since the beginning of the spring semester, but not all reports have resulted in disciplinary action.

Rush, along with members of the Penn Police, insisted that student partying must come to an end in order to prevent the spread of COVID19 on campus.

“This is no time to be having a party,” Rush said. “Regarding [COVID-19] transmission and the safety of the campus, having a gathering of 10, 15, [or] 25 people is playing Russian roulette.”

Penn Police officers expressed that members of the University community must work together to overcome the pandemic.

“It’s a difficult set of circumstances. We look forward to a time where [COVID-19] is not here, and students have the ability to socialize,” Williams said. “But for now, you need to follow the guidelines. This is not the time for casual partying.”

University administrators also urged students to follow public health guidelines and make conscious decisions that will not adversely affect surrounding communities.

“The risks are real. When Penn decided to reopen, it reopened with an understanding both from faculty, staff, and administrators — but also from students — that Penn is part of a larger community,” Director of Campus Health Ashlee Halbritter said. “What you do matters because it impacts everyone around you.”

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

Penn’s in-person Class of 2020 commencement remains in limbo Brown University and Princeton University will no longer hold in-person ceremonies for the Class of 2020 after postponing them due to the pandemic TYLER HARRIS Staff Reporter

SON NGUYEN

University spokesperson Stephen MacCarthy wrote in an email to The Daily Pennsylvanian that “no final decision has been made at this time.”

With some peer institutions canceling or modifying spring commencement ceremony plans due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Penn has not made any decisions to scrap its current plans.

Penn is set to hold separate in-person commencement ceremonies for both the Class of 2020 and Class of 2021 in May after the original May 2020 ceremony was postponed in response to the COVID-19 outbreak.

However, several other universities — including Brown University and Princeton University — have recently canceled their plans to hold an in-person ceremony for the Class of 2020 this spring.

Brown announced on Jan. 21 that the University will move forward with an in-person ceremony for the Class of 2021, but no longer plans to have an in-person commencement for the Class of 2020, citing public health concerns as new, more transmissible variants of COVID-19 spread. Brown also announced families and guests will not be able to attend the Class of 2021 commencement in-person.

Princeton canceled its postponed ceremony for the Class of 2020 on Feb. 1, stating that “inviting alumni back to campus from around the world is not prudent or possible.” Princeton has not yet announced its Class of 2021 commencement ceremony plans.

It is not yet known whether Penn’s upcoming commencement ceremonies will face a similar fate. University spokesperson Stephen MacCarthy wrote in an email to The Daily Pennsylvanian that “no final decision has been made at this time.”

Penn held a virtual commencement ceremony for the Class of 2020 last spring, featuring remarks from Penn President Amy Gutmann and commencement speaker Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie. The ceremony included performances from the University of Pennsylvania Marching Band, as well as graduating students from the Penn A Capella Council, with a surprise appearance from 1999 College graduate John Legend.

Some members of Penn’s Class of 2021 remain hopeful that the University will commit to its plans for an in-person ceremony for their graduating class in the spring.

College senior Rachel Perlstein said that although she would

understand if Penn chooses to hold the ceremony remotely, she thinks there are many different ways that the University can safely hold an in-person commencement ceremony, including limiting the number of guests.

Wharton senior Jake Milner said that, as the semester progresses, he hopes that Penn will have enough testing capacity to hold an in-person ceremony in some form.

“I definitely think the most likely thing is that families won’t be included at all which, of course, is disappointing, but in the grand scheme of things, given everything that has happened in the past year or so, I think even being able to get something in person and live stream it would be really great if we can pull it off safely,” Milner said.

College senior and Undergraduate Assembly President Mercedes Owens also said she is hopeful for some sort of in-person commencement ceremony because it will be particularly meaningful for first-generation, low-income students.

“I would be happy if we are able to have a ceremony that is limited to students if that means we are able to safely distance and celebrate this huge achievement in person. The ceremony is especially meaningful for FGLI students, and I would love to be able to share in that collective joy in May,” Owens wrote in an email to the DP. College senior Kassidy Houston said that, while she would ideally like to walk across the commencement stage with her classmates this spring, she ultimately hopes that the ceremony will be held remotely for safety purposes.

“In my most idealistic mindset, I’m hopeful that there will be something [in person], but I know in reality that it is probably going to be remote,” Houston said. “And I do hope that it is remote, thinking about safety, because I personally wouldn’t be comfortable with gathering in a large setting if I didn’t know that the majority of those people were vaccinated.”

Penn’s commencement website states that details about commencement logistics will be confirmed as soon as possible.

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

NEWS 7

8 NEWS

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

After a month on campus, first years are grateful for social life but worried about COVID-19 Some first years cite difficulties forming new friendships while adhering to COVID-19 safety guidelines

BRANDON ANAYA Staff Reporter

NICHOLAS FERNANDEZ

A

fter returning to campus for a spring semester markedly different than any other in Penn’s history, first-year students appreciate the opportunity to socialize with others, but remain worried about how their peers are handling the COVID-19 pandemic.

Over 3,000 undergraduate students moved into on-campus housing in early January — including many first years who had not yet experienced campus life in Philadelphia. Although classes are still being held virtually in spring 2021, first years reported that the ability to meet others in person for the first time and create study groups has been crucial in easing the transition to college life from an isolating first semester at home.

Not all students have had a smooth transition, however, as they learn to balance social distancing guidelines and forming new friendships.

Nursing first year Deborah Olatunji, who has lived on campus in Rodin College House since the fall semester, said she worried that having first years on campus would create an expectation to be around many other people, which she saw reflected in the number of COVID-19 cases on campus.

Cases increased from 114 to 242 among undergraduates between Jan. 31 and Feb. 6, which brought the undergraduate positivity rate to 4.52% that week. After doubling for two straight weeks, however, the average positivity rate for all undergraduate students from Feb. 7 to Feb. 13 decreased from 4.52% to 1.84% — a trend that Chief Wellness Officer Benoit Dubé said should still serve as a reminder for students to be more vigilant rather than less. “[First-year students] don’t have any real sense of what a college

experience is supposed to look like to begin with. And when you throw COVID-19 into the mix, and an administration that doesn’t know how to communicate well, it’s just a recipe for disaster,” Olatunji said.

Students in isolation have previously reported inadequate resources and

“[First-year students] don’t have any real sense of what a college experience is supposed to look like to begin with. And when you throw COVID-19 into the mix, and an administration that doesn’t know how to communicate well, it’s just a recipe for disaster,” Nursing first year Deborah Olatunji said.

unclear communication from the University regarding how to receive meals and what to do if they became symptomatic.

Engineering first year Vaishnavi Pachava felt a sense of isolation last

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THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM semester while taking classes from her home country of India, where she stayed awake most nights until 3 a.m. to attend virtual classes. Since moving into the Quad this spring, she has appreciated not only being in the physical environment of Penn’s campus, but also being in the same time zone as other students.

Pachava said that having to quarantine twice in her Riepe College House room has drained her mental health, and noted how many people are now meeting others in person instead of connecting virtually, which makes it difficult for students in quarantine to feel included in campus social life.

College first year Rylee Saunders Jackson, who was originally assigned to live in Riepe, switched into Rodin because she did not feel comfortable sharing a bathroom with other people. She said she enjoys the independence of living in a suite in Rodin, especially being able to cook as an alternative to going to the dining halls.

First-year students living on campus are required to be on a dining plan, and the University has increased the number of dining options from three in the fall to nine this spring to accommodate the increased number of students living on campus.

Other first years report that their peers have been too relaxed with following Student Campus Compact guidelines.

College first year Michael Nolan, who lives in Fisher-Hassenfeld College House, said that he has seen other first years break COVID-19 safety guidelines by sneaking in other students, faking PennOpen Passes, and breaking social distancing guidelines.

Because of this, Nolan said that he has tried to limit his social interaction, adding that it has been challenging finding people with whom he clicks, but who also share the same values regarding following COVID-19 safety precautions. He said that he does not want to hang out with the wrong people and end up in quarantine because of others’ recklessness.

A “completely disproportionate” number of positive COVID-19 cases on campus has been linked to fraternities and sororities, and Dubé previously confirmed to The Daily Pennsylvanian that the University is aware of some students who have violated COVID-19 guidelines, both within college houses and off campus.

Similarly, College first year Joy Olatunde, who is living in Harrison College House, said that her social interaction has been limited to seeing people she met virtually last semester due to concerns about safety. She said that, although she has been stressed with online school, she likes being able to go on walks with friends — something that was impossible last semester due to students being at home.

Several others said that, although they anticipated a different Penn experience when they applied, they have been able to make the most out of this semester.

College first year Marielle Kang said that she has had to be much more conscious of her time when figuring out how to balance classes, extracurriculars, and her social life. Though she said it can be easy to get stuck in one’s dorm, she appreciates being able to explore campus and getting to know other people.

“When we heard about the news that we weren’t going to go to school [in the fall], I was really disappointed. But I think that when I reflect back on it, it was good for me. And I feel like I came to campus a lot more prepared for what’s to come because of that period,” Kang said.

While Saunders Jackson has managed to make a tight-knit group of friends, she said there is little campus spirit due to the pandemic, noticing a major split between those who are staying cautious and those who are breaking the Student Campus Compact.

“It’s a little disheartening to know that you can be doing all the work that you can to be safe, but that [doing so] doesn’t stop anyone else from doing anything else,” Saunders Jackson said.

She also said that she would like Penn to offer resources to aid virtual learning, such as extending the spring semester deadline of the pass/fail grading policy, which was implemented in response to the academic challenges presented by the pandemic, according to University leadership.

Although the academic year has been challenging for students, both at home and on campus, students agreed that they have gained a greater appreciation for what they have experienced so far.

“Even though it’s not the college experience that I expected,” Kang said.

“I’d say that it’s an experience that’s worth having.”

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THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

NEWS 9

10 SPORTS

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

THE DAILY PENNSYLVANIAN | THEDP.COM

ALL IN THE

FAMILY Tim Dolan trains under father Steve Dolan for Penn track and cross country SPORTS | The younger Dolan notched eight top-10 finishes for indoor track his first year

most other parents, Steve Dolan welcomed the unique opportunity of being able to witness his son develop not only in his sport but also within the Penn community.

“I feel fortunate,” Steve Dolan said. “I do enjoy seeing him, so I get to see him regularly when it comes down to practice.”

With his father’s guidance, Tim Dolan totaled eight top-10 finishes on the indoor track and four top-10 placements outdoors in his first year on the team. Tim Dolan’s influences on his own father were significant as well, even before he arrived at Penn as a student and athlete on his team.

“I hope I’m a better coach, because I’ve seen it through not just a coach’s eyes, but a parent’s eyes, and I think that was Tim Dolan’s influence on how I coach,” Steve Dolan said.

For Steve Dolan, being involved with his son’s athletic journey wasn’t anything new to him.

“He was always at my games as a kid,” Tim Dolan said.

“I think it was sixth grade — he coached my travel basketball team, and that was my first time ever having him as my coach.”

Despite his father’s involvement in track and field, Tim Dolan never felt pressured into pursuing running. He enjoyed playing a handful of different sports since childhood, including baseball, basketball, and soccer.

Tim Dolan’s choice to switch from soccer to distance running in high school was wholly his own. He followed his passion into the sport, and his choice proved fruitful as he grew into one of the top runners in the state.

“I was never really pressured into it. In fact, my parents were actually a little surprised that I made the switch so abruptly,” Tim Dolan said.

Steve Dolan recognized that exposure to a variety of sports and having fun was more important than pressuring his sons into following in his footsteps.

“I think sports are a lot of fun for kids,” Steve Dolan said.

“My wife was also a college track and field and cross country runner, and the two of us didn’t want to sort of push them towards track and field and cross country. We wanted to expose them to all different activities, and they evolved towards it on their own.”

Competing under the close guidance of his father, Tim Dolan has had the opportunity to closely observe and understand Steve Dolan’s methods in coaching. He describes Steve Dolan’s attention as a father as very similar to how he treats the athletes on the team.

“I would actually say one of the more impressive things that he does is he gives everyone the same form of attention,” Tim Dolan said. “He notices everything the same about everyone. He’s known me for the last 21 years, but he notices things about everyone else too.”

Steve Dolan echoes Tim Dolan’s thoughts as well.

“Tim loves being a part of the team and training with the team and is a very good teammate. And at practice, he’s just one of the guys,” Steve Dolan said. “I don’t push him differently at practice than everybody else.”

Although his sons’ athletic careers so far have been reflective of his own, Steve Dolan does not expect them both to follow him into a

ESTHER LIM Sports Associate

When distance runner Tim Dolan hit the track at Franklin Field as a Quaker for the first time, he carried with him the experience and tenacity he had developed over his distinguished high school running career.

Dolan was an All-American runner who led his team to a third-place finish at the New Jersey Meet of Champions, and graduated high school as the captain of his cross country team before finally arriving at Penn.

The Ewing, N.J. native was already familiar with Franklin Field before he ever learned that Penn would become his next home.

“He has come to the Penn Relays ever since he was a kid,” Steve Dolan, Tim Dolan’s father and director of Penn track and field and cross country, said. “Every year, it was almost like a holiday weekend for us. He would come to Penn Relays on Friday and watch the races, and cheer for the teams that I was working with.”

Tim Dolan’s final high school season holds one of his most special memories of the Relays — not as a supporter in the stands, but as runner on the tracks below. In his final season at Hopewell Valley High School in 2018, he competed in the distance medley relay. Tim Dolan ran the 800-meter leg and handed off the baton to his younger brother, Sean Dolan, whose winning finish helped seal off a new Penn Relays record that remains unbroken.

Tim Dolan arrived at Penn well-acquainted with the hard work required to accomplish his goals, and he would finally be running under the coaching of his own father.

Before Penn, Steve Dolan coached for eight years at Princeton, mentoring players to 21 All-American awards and overseeing 32 Ivy League individual champions. Steve Dolan coached Donn Cabral to an eighth-place finish in steeplechase at the 2012 London Olympics before bringing his experience to a new era in running for the Red and Blue.

Tim Dolan arrived in his father’s seventh season of coaching at Penn, making his freshman experience of moving away from home for college quite unusual.

“I was definitely further away from home than I had ever been. But at the same time, I had in the back of my head that I would still be seeing at least one of my parents nearly every day of the week,” Tim Dolan said. “I think I saw them about two or three days after I got to campus at our first practice.”

Sending his child off to college in a different way from

CHASE SUTTON

Track coach Steve Dolan has numerous accomplishments under his belt, and a few years ago was able to add coaching his son at Penn to his resume.

career of coaching. Instead, he looks forward to seeing what other paths they will explore.

“I hope that they’ll keep their eyes open to all the possibilities and all the things they could do in their life,” Steve Dolan said. “And if you’d asked me in college, what would I be doing, you know, now, 30 years later, I never would have guessed that I’d be coaching college track and field. So I hope they also find their passion and find their way in whatever they pursue after college.”

He feels particularly proud of how Tim Dolan has come to embrace the communities he’s found at Penn.

“I know that he’s in a great place,” Steve Dolan said. “The people he surrounds himself on the team are high character and highly motivated, and really just a special group of young people. And it’s kind of neat for me to see my own son in that environment, and all the people that he surrounds himself with.”

In the moments of his active schedule when academics and athletics permit, Tim Dolan especially enjoys the company of friends and being outdoors.

“I enjoy spending time with friends and I enjoy watching sports,” Tim Dolan said. “I also like to do things, whether it be at home, like going out to get something to eat with friends, or maybe going on a hike here or there; just spending time outside.”

Tim Dolan is currently studying philosophy, politics and economics with a concentration in choice ­­­ and behavior in the College, and, as his father hopes, is staying open-minded about his future after graduation.

Steve Dolan has mentored Olympians and NCAA champions, and has led Penn track and field and cross country to its current era of nationwide achievement and beyond. But Tim Dolan’s career at Penn so far proves that Steve Dolan’s most honorable achievements lie much closer to home — his The New York Times Syndication Sales Corporation family.

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CHASE SUTTON

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GHANNADI | RANKING THE TOP FIVE COACHES IN PENN HISTORY

SPORTS | A Philadelphia basketball legend tops the list

SPORTS 11

THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 25, 2021

George Munger George Munger grew up as a star football player. A Philadelphia native, he attended Penn and played halfback from 1930 to 1932. After graduating in 1933, he started coaching football at Episcopal Academy, his high school alma mater.

Three years later, Munger was hired at Penn as a freshman football coach. His two-year stint in this role translated to his hiring as the head coach for the varisty program.

During his 16-year reign, Munger held an 82-42-10 record. Although the majority of his career was before the formal creation of the Ivy League, his Quaker teams won or tied nine unofficial Ivy titles. In addition to his incredible winning success, Munger is credited as being a coach in one of Penn’s best football eras. His teams regularly sold out Franklin Field and Penn had the highest average attendance in the country.

Munger was one of the most successful coaches in, arguably, the most electrifying era of Penn football and surely is in the top ranks of all-time Penn coaches.

Al Bagnoli

DUSTIN GHANNADI Sports Reporter

Looking at Penn sports throughout history, there have been numerous fantastic coaches. From those who had short tenures to those with decades-long reigns, Penn has been privileged to have strong leaders at the helm of its teams. Although judging coaching success is subjective and involves numerous factors, here is my ranking of the top five coaches in

Al Bagnoli is undoubtedly one of the top coaches in Penn history. A Central Connecticut State alumnus, he has been a football coach for all of his professional career. After working as a graduate assistant at the University of Albany, he joined the full-time staff as a defensive coordinator. He was then hired by Union College in 1978, becoming head coach in 1982 at the age of 29.

His strong record at Union put Bagnoli on Penn’s radar. In 1992, he joined Penn as head coach, where he started arguably the most successful reign of any Ivy League football coach. Bagnoli’s coaching created an era of Penn dominance, illustrated by his nine outright Ivy League championships.

Bagnoli was a coach that turned Penn back into a dominant football force.

Betty J. Costanza Betty Costanza is the mother of women’s cross country and track and field at Penn. Starting her coaching job in 1976, she facilitated an explosive growth and expansion of both programs. Her commitment is illustrated in her incredibly long tenure, as Costanza was the only head coach of the programs from 1976 until her retirement in 2002.

Although she basically built a program from the ground up, Costanza enjoyed enormous success. In 26 years, her teams won 11 Ivy League championships, 10 Big 5 championships, and seven heptagonal championships. In addition to guiding many athletes to individual heptagonal championships, she also coached the program’s first Olympian, Joan PhengLaOr. Overall, Costanza deserves incredible recognition and surely deserves to be named as one of Penn’s best all-time coaches.

Karin Corbett Karin Corbett has been a shining star at Penn. Before 2000, Penn women’s lacrosse was struggling. With the program winning only one game the year before she came in, Corbett hit the ground running. In a complete turn-around, she rebuilt the program into a national powerhouse. Her 233 wins since her start is evidence of this transformation.

Corbett has propelled the Red and Blue to become perennial Ivy-League and national contenders. In her 21 seasons at the helm, she has won 11 Ivy League titles. In addition, she has guided her teams to 13 consecutive trips to the NCAA Tournament.

Overall, Corbett is truly a Penn icon and one of the most gifted coaches in collegiate sports.

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If you are interested please call Stacey Secreto in the Oral Surgery & Pharmacology Research Unit at 215-746-8871 or 484-354-4442

MICHAEL CHIEN

Fran Dunphy Fran Dunphy tops this list as the most successful and prolific coach in Penn history. Also a Philadelphia native, he was an excellent basketball player, primarily as a guard at La Salle University. Although he didn’t receive much playing time in his first two seasons, he averaged 18.7 points per game in his third season on a nearly undefeated Explorer team.

After graduating, Dunphy immediately looked to coaching, first at the United States Military Academy. After bouncing around between various jobs both at the preparatory and collegiate levels, he was hired at La Salle as an assistant. In 1988, Dunphy left La Salle to take an assistant coaching role at Penn, which ultimately led to him being named head coach the following year.

At Penn, Dunphy recorded 310 wins, the most by any Penn coach. In his seventeen seasons leading the Red and Blue, he won ten Ivy League championships. He also led numerous ranked teams, notably his No. 21 ranked 199495 squad, who heartbreakingly lost in overtime to Alabama in the first round of the NCAA Tournament. Dunphy will always be revered as someone who immortalized Penn’s basketball program.

Penn has had a number of great coaches throughout its rich history. Although this list is not comprehensive, it is a good look at some of the figures who defined Penn’s athletic legacy.

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Penn’s

WILD AND WACKY Tradition of Rowbottoms: FROM ORIGIN

TO DEMISE

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For the early- to mid- 1900s, “Yea, Rowbottom!” meant that chaos was about to break out on Penn’s campus.

SPORTS | The last Rowbottom occurred in 1980 MATTHEW FRANK Sports Associate

When people refer to the “good old days,” they usually refer to something that’s a bit more hardcore and dangerous. Well, those traits are steeped in the legacy of one of Penn’s oldest traditions, the Rowbottom.

From the early 1910s until the late 1970s, the cry of “Yea, Rowbottom!” meant that chaos was underway, causing mass mayhem in the process. Students would do a number of objectionable things in the process, such as throw objects at windows, jump on vehicles, and even commit arson. Rowbottoms would happen most commonly around Penn sporting events such as football, basketball, and crew, as well as when warm weather arrived after a long period of cold weather.

The origin of Rowbottoms has been disputed over the years, but all roads tie back to Joseph T. Rowbottom, who was a student at Penn in the year 1910. Holly Rowbottom, his granddaughter, attempted to set the record straight in 1973.

“The true story, as passed on to me by my father, is this: There was this classmate of my grandfather who lived in a room across the quadrangle,” Holly Rowbottom wrote in a letter to the Pennsylvania Gazette. “For some reason or other, this fellow never got his assignments straight. And, with a light usually on in Rowbottom’s room to all hours, he knew where he could get his information without fail. He would throw up his window and yell across the Quad those now-famous words: ‘Yea Rowbottom!’”

What followed the benign interactions between Rowbottom and his classmate only pushed further what Rowbottoms became. After it became somewhat of a trend, Penn’s football team called for Rowbottom after a team banquet, waking up everyone in the dorms in the process. In response, the angry, woken-up students began to toss the items they had in their dorms, such as garbage cans, pitchers, and anything else they could get their hands on. When this occurred, it marked the first ever Rowbottom.

The occurrences of Rowbottoms persisted, but it took 18 years for the next documented Rowbottom to take place. On March 20, 1928, Penn men’s basketball defeated Princeton to become Intercollegiate League Champions, which prompted Penn students to riot once the game had ended and the police had left.

“A crowd of about 1,000 students set fire to trolley wires, pulled trolley poles from overhead wires, and lit bonfires in front of Psi Upsilon Fraternity,” Penn University Archives & Record Center wrote. “When firemen arrived, different groups of students carried off the fire hose, made away with a large red Philadelphia Rapid Transit automobile trailer, and changed the

workings of the ‘automatic traffic semaphore.’ Seventeen students were arrested on a charge of inciting a riot.”

After that Rowbottom and another two months later, the event occurred more than once almost every year until 1971. What ensued during a Rowbottom truly cannot be understated: windows would get smashed, cars would get overturned, and in the 1940s, panty raids became a staple of an average Rowbottom.

In small doses, the police were able to handle the situation, but when a Rowbottom became exceedingly large, they would get overwhelmed and left without a way to maintain any semblance of order.

Typically, only a handful or, at most 20-30 students, would get arrested as a result of a Rowbottom, but sometimes they would get so large that hundreds of students would get arrested.

While arrests did occur, the charges would typically be quickly dropped. The most students that got arrested after a Rowbottom was 300, which happened in 1930.

Around this time, Penn began to adjust its policy on Rowbottoms and what its role was as the university they happened under.

“In the first decades of Rowbottoms, the University administration’s role was to show up at the police station to get charges dropped and to bail out students,” Penn University Archives & Record Center wrote. “But starting in the 1930s, as Rowbottoms escalated, the University began to be more concerned about both the damage and the University’s reputation. The University administration began publicly to express regrets and to apologize for the actions of students, and then to form investigative committees after each major incident of student rioting.”

The condemnation of Rowbottoms by Penn progressed to the point that, in 1940, Provost Thomas S. Gates declared a ban on the practice. Despite this, Rowbottoms continued to happen until the 1970s.

In 1971, the last documented Rowbottom until 1977 occurred, which happened to be the first female-led Rowbottom.

Two students managed to round up around 40 other women who stormed into the Quad at 12:30 a.m., where plenty of men appeared at McClelland Hall to greet them. It was broken up quickly, and it initiated a seeming moratorium on the practice.

Then, in 1977, the Academy Award for Best Picture was a contest between “Network” and the Philadelphia-based “Rocky.” After “Rocky” won the Oscar, around 1,500 students gathered in the lower courtyard of the Quad, where they proceeded to attack Hill College House and initiate a sit-in on Spruce Street.

After one final freshman Rowbottom in 1980, the practice was completely put to rest. Rowbottoms have since become a thing of the past, something that old alums might refer to in a wistful manner to remember a time much different than now.

Their impact on Penn’s campus culture at the time, though, was as massive as it was chaotic.

Basketball without borders: Alumnus AJ Brodeur continues his career in Iceland SPORTS | Brodeur now plays for Stjarnan after a stint in Germany KRISSY KOWALSKI Sports Reporter

CHASE SUTTON

2020 Penn graduate AJ Brodeur always knew that he wanted to play professionally, but his plan changed from playing domestically to playing in Iceland.

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Plans change. That is exactly what happened to former Penn basketball star AJ Brodeur.

The Northborough, Mass. native is one of the most wellknown Penn basketball stars of all time. Since his very first season donning the Red and Blue, he made an impact. As a freshman, he was just one of two players to start all 28 games, and averaged a team-high 30.9 minutes per contest.

He continued his success from his freshman year throughout his collegiate career, breaking into the record books on several occasions during his time with the Quakers. Brodeur finished his career ranking first all time in career points, blocked shots, field goals made, games played, and games started. On top of that, he came in second in field goal attempts, and third all time in rebounds and minutes played.

In his final season with the Red and Blue, Brodeur was again just one of two players to start in all 27 games played, and was named co-Ivy League Player of the Year. On March 10, Brodeur and the rest of the team were preparing for a matchup against Yale in Ivy Madness, when the tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Brodeur always knew he wanted to try and play professionally after college, but due to domestic issues with the pandemic, he took the opportunity to play overseas.

“I knew I wanted to try to play professionally after college to extend my career,” Brodeur said. “That combined with how

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hard the pandemic had been hitting the U.S. in particular, I knew that it would be a great opportunity to come over to Europe and play here.”

Brodeur started his journey with the Mitteldeutscher Basketball Club, playing in the Basketball Bundesliga league in Germany, and is now playing in Iceland with the Stjarnan men’s basketball team. The opportunity of playing in two different countries has allowed Brodeur to extend his career while learning about new cultures.

“The main goal I have with playing professionally here in Europe is to be able to continue playing basketball for as long as I want to,“ Brodeur said. “I want to experience different cultures of the world that I wouldn’t be able to encounter otherwise. I love the idea of being able to use basketball as a way to have these experiences, while also playing basketball as a job, and making some money while I’m at it. So far I’ve definitely had several of those experiences, as I’m currently in my second country of just this season. I started off in Germany and now I’ve been playing in Iceland.”

Although this has been a new experience for him, Brodeur has had a smooth transition to professional basketball, in part due to the skills he learned while playing for the Red and Blue.

“A big thing that I took with me from Penn was how to effectively manage my time. At Penn, between school life, basketball life, and social life, there was a lot on my plate,” Brodeur said.

“Now, a lot of my focus is on just basketball, which allows me to use the rest of my time to recover my body and do things that I want to do.”

While he might not be in University City anymore, Brodeur’s time as a Quaker will always be with him, and Penn fans will definitely be seeing more of him in the future.

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