2013
Penn Selected for Undergraduate STEM Education Initiative
The University of Pennsylvania has been named a project site for the Undergraduate STEM Education Initiative. Penn Arts and Sciences will play a major role in the multiyear, multimillion dollar project, which aims to improve the quality of education in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics.
SAS Students Awarded State Department Critical Language Scholarships
Nine students affiliated with the School of Arts and Sciences have won U.S. State Department 2013 Critical Language Scholarships to study languages during the summer:
Vanessa Ogle Awarded Kluge Fellowship
Assistant Professor of History Vanessa Ogle has been awarded a Kluge Fellowship for 2013-2014. Funded by the Kluge Center at the Library of Congress, up to ten fellowships are awarded yearly to scholars conducting research in the humanities and social sciences, especially those whose studies are interdisciplinary, cross-cultural, or multilingual.
Mark Allen Named Scientific Director of Penn’s Singh Center for Nanotechnology
Mark G. Allen has been named the inaugural scientific director of the Krishna P. Singh Center for Nanotechnology. The Singh Center, located on Walnut Street on the eastern edge of Penn's campus, will house state-of-the-art nanotechnology facilities that will enable researchers in the Penn community and the surrounding area to make critical advances in this growing field.
Daniel J. Mindiola Appointed Presidential Term Professor of Chemistry
Penn President Amy Gutmann and Provost Vincent Price announced today that Daniel J. Mindiola will be the fourth Presidential Term Professor at the University of Pennsylvania, effective August 1. Mindiola will be Presidential Term Professor of Chemistry in the School of Arts and Sciences.
Biology’s Dustin Brisson Receives Award for Investigators in Infectious Disease
Assistant Professor of Biology Dustin Brisson has been named a recipient of the 2013 Burroughs Wellcome Fund’s Investigators in the Pathogenesis of Infectious Disease award. These five-year awards provide $500,000 to support accomplished investigators at the assistant professor level in their studies of pathogenesis (the development of disease).
New Gift from Alumni Robert A. and Penny Grossman Fox Expands Fox Leadership Program at Penn
Thanks to a generous boost from its founders, the Fox Leadership Program at the University of Pennsylvania will be able to prepare even more students for lives of leadership and service.
Team Led by Randall Kamien Integrates Origami and Engineering
The quintessential piece of origami might be a decorative paper crane, but in the hands of an interdisciplinary University of Pennsylvania research team, it could lead to a drug-delivery device, an emergency shelter, or even a space station.
Levin College Deanship Honors Family's History
A family’s history with Penn—and of support for the liberal arts—will be honored with the naming of the Stephen A. Levin Dean of the College. Three generations of the Levin family have attended Penn: Stephen Levin, C’67; his father Leonard C. Levin, W’41; and his sons Eric, C’92, and Andrew, C’14.
Dinner and a Mission
“I wanted to reconnect,” says Gillian Meltzer Miniter, C’90, about how she first turned back to her alma mater. She had taught English and traveled in Europe for two years after graduation, then returned to the U.S. and was working as an analyst on Wall Street.
Perelman Gift Creates Center for Political Science and Economics
A gift of $25 million from Ronald O. Perelman, W’64, WG’66, will create the Ronald O. Perelman Center for Political Science and Economics, providing a new home for the Departments of Political Science and Economics in the School of Arts and Sciences.
Giving Across Generations
From a member of the Class of ‘49 to students right here on campus, a proud Penn family shows that when it comes to scholarships, generosity spans generations.
Dean Bushnell Honored With Professorship
Though her literary specialty is tragedy, Rebecca Bushnell’s tenure as Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences has been anything but, as she oversaw a transformative time for the School and the most successful campaign in its history. In recognition of her success, the SAS Overseers have created an academic chair in her honor, which she will hold after she steps down as Dean.
Marks Chair Will Cover Economic History
Edmund Burke’s axiom “Those who don’t know history are destined to repeat it” is as true for economists as anyone else—something Howard S. Marks, W’67, knows well. To assure that Penn undergraduates do not fall victim to this phenomenon, Marks, a University trustee, and his wife Nancy have established the Howard Marks Professorship in Economic History with a $3 million gift to the School of Arts and Sciences.
Expanding Energy Exploration
A $2 million gift from David Elliman, C’73, WG’77, and Dr. Andrea Branch through the BAWD Foundation will enable SAS to jumpstart its effort to attract three new faculty members to Penn. The funds will provide startup support for faculty specializing in ways to bring renewable energy sources to market.
Two from SAS Win Pulitzer Center International Student Reporting Fellowships
In a pilot partnership with Penn's African Studies Center, two students have been named 2013 Pulitzer Center International Student Reporting Fellows.
Rakesh Vohra, Latest Penn Integrates Knowledge Professor, Will Hold Dual Appointments in Economics and Engineering
Rakesh Vohra has been named the University of Pennsylvania’s 15th Penn Integrates Knowledge professor, effective August 1.
Penn Arts & Sciences Magazine: Eight Years in the Life of a School
Join us as we take a look back at Dean Rebecca Bushnell's many contributions to SAS.Under Bushnell's leadership, the School stabilized faculty size, built on interdisciplinary strengths, redefined the liberal arts curriculum and supported educational innovation.With Bushnell at the helm, the School weathered one of the worst financal recessions since the Great Depression, and recently announced its record-breaking $529 million Making History campaign result.
Stephanie McCurry Elected to Society of American Historians
Christopher H. Browne Distinguished Professor of History Stephanie McCurry has been elected to the Society of American Historians, one of the highest honors in the field. The Society is open to both academic historians and professional writers of American history. Membership, by invitation only, is limited to 250 authors and 14 publishers.
The Wail of the Voice!
In 1971 Penn faculty composer George Crumb wrote Vox Balaenae (Voice of the Whale) for three masked players: electric flute, electric cello, and amplified piano. The piece has become a classic of 20th century music. “The work was inspired by the singing of the humpback whale, a tape recording of which I had heard two or three years previously," says Crumb, a Pulitzer Prize winner and one of the most recognized composers of our time.
Penn Researchers Conclude Adults in Malawi are Living Longer, but with Disabilities
The number of adults living beyond age 45 in the sub-Saharan African country of Malawi is growing rapidly, but according to a study by Penn and Malawian researchers, many of these older men and women experience physical illnesses or disabilities that limit their capacity to function normally.
Video Archive of 2013 College Graduation Speakers
School of Arts and Sciences Class of 2013Sunday, May 12, 2013Student Speaker: Stephanie Lamb, C’13Guest Speaker: P. Roy Vagelos, C'50, HON'99; physician, businessman, and philanthropistRead more about the speakers here.
Two SAS Professors Named Simons Fellows
Fellowships from the Simons Foundation will let two Penn professors pursue their research full time in the coming year—and in a happy coincidence, part of that research will be conducted together.
Marija Drndić Makes Advance in Nanotech Gene Sequencing Technique
Finding more efficient ways to accurately sequence genes is a top research priority right now. Associate Professor of Physics and Astronomy Marija Drndić is developing a new method that promises to be efficient in both the actual sequencing and in the manufacturing and stability of the tools to do so.
Anthropology Professors Take Documentary to South Africa
Deborah Thomas, Professor of Anthropology, John L.
Tukufu Zuberi Curates Two Exhibitions in Philadelphia Museums
Tukufu Zuberi, Lasry Family Professor of Race Relations in the department of Sociology, is curating two major exhibitions in Philadelphia this year. On May 4th, “Tides of Freedom: African Presence on the Delaware River” opened at the Independence Seaport Museum in Penn’s Landing.
Michael Katz Elected to American Philosophical Society
Michael Katz, Walter H. Annenberg Professor of History and Research Associate in the Population Studies Center, has been elected to the American Philosophical Society (APS). The APS honors extraordinary accomplishments in the fields of Mathematical and Physical Sciences; Biological Sciences; Humanities; and Professions, Arts, and Affairs.
$1.3 Million from Mellon Foundation for Humanities and Urbanism Studies
The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation has awarded a $1.3 million grant to the University of Pennsylvania for a five-year innovative, collaborative project entitled Fulfilling and Livable Cities: Design, Urban Life and the Humanities. The Schools of Arts and Sciences, the School of Design, and the Penn Institute of Urban Research (IUR) will be the focus of program activity with participation spread throughout the University.
Warren Breckman Named a 2013 Fellow of the American Academy in Berlin
Professor of History Warren Breckman has been named a 2013 Fellow of the American Academy in Berlin. Breckman is a professor of modern European intellectual and cultural history. His books include Karl Marx, the Young Hegelians, and the Origins of Radical Social Theory: Dethroning the Self and European Romanticism: A Brief History with Documents.
Shelley L. Berger Elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Shelley L. Berger, Daniel S. Och University Professor and Professor of Biology, who holds dual appointments in the School of Arts and Sciences and the Perelman School of Medicine, is one of three Penn professors elected to the 2013 class of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
2013 Teaching Award Winners Announced
SAS Dean Rebecca Bushnell and Dennis DeTurck, Dean of the College, recently announced the recipients of the 2013 awards for distinguished teaching in the School of Arts and Sciences. The winners are being honored at a reception open to the University community on Thursday, April 25 at 4 p.m. in College Hall, room 200. Click here to see the full list of awardees.
Professor Behrman Leads Grand Challenges Canada Grant Project at Penn
Jere R. Behrman, the William R. Kenan, Jr.
Philippe Bourgois Awarded 2013 Guggenheim Fellowship
Philippe Bourgois has been named a 2013 John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellow.Selected from a field of over 3,000 applicants, Bourgois is among a group of 175 scholars, artists and scientists noted for their “prior achievement and exceptional promise” in the 89th annual competition in the United States and Canada.
Martha Farah Will Direct New Interdisciplinary Neuroscience Program
This fall, the University of Pennsylvania’s Center for Neuroscience and Society will partner with the School of Arts and Sciences to offer a first-of-its-kind program that aims to educate non-scientists about the workings of the brain.
Eve Troutt Powell to Serve as SAS Associate Dean for Graduate Studies
Rebecca Bushnell, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, and Steven Fluharty, SAS’s dean designate, have announced that Eve M. Troutt Powell, Professor of History and Africana Studies, will take over the post of Associate Dean for Graduate Studies effective July 1, 2013. In this role she will oversee the School's doctoral programs, which take place in 33 graduate groups and enroll approximately 1,400 students.
Virgil Percec Elected to Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences
Virgil Percec, P. Roy Vagelos Professor of Chemistry, has been appointed a foreign member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Engineering Sciences, the oldest academy of engineering sciences in the world. Foreign members are chosen based on their record of outstanding work for the benefit of society and efforts to build ties within Swedish research and business industries.
Justin McDaniel Awarded 2013 George McT. Kahin Book Prize on Southeast Asia
Justin McDaniel, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, was awarded the 2013 George McT. Kahin Book Prize on Southeast Asia by the Association for Asian Studies for his book, The Lovelorn Ghost and the Magical Monk: Practicing Buddhism in Modern Thailand.
College Announces 2013 Graduation Speakers
P. Roy Vagelos will speak at this year’s graduation ceremony for the University of Pennsylvania College of Arts and Sciences. As a physician, businessman, and philanthropist, Vagelos has made a global impact on health and science. The event, scheduled for Sunday, May 12 at 6:30 p.m. at Franklin Field, will also feature Stephanie Lamb, C’13, as the student speaker.
Penn Chemistry Breaks New Ground with HTE Lab Expansion
From what is affectionately referred to as “the pit”—the basement level of the Roy and Diana Vagelos Laboratories—top Penn chemistry professors and administrators, alongside their Merck and Co., Inc. collaborators, recently announced the expansion of their state of the art High Throughput Experimentation (HTE) laboratory.
Charles Yang's New Study Reveals That Young Children Understand Grammar but Chimps Don’t
A new study conducted by Charles Yang, Associate Professor of Linguistics in the School of Arts and Sciences and of Computer and Information Science in the School of Engineering and Applied Science, has shown that children as young as two understand basic grammar rules when they first learn to speak and are not simply imitating adults. The study was published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
SAS Dean Rebecca Bushnell to Be President of Shakespeare Association
Rebecca Bushnell, Dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, Thomas S. Gates, Jr. Professor, and Professor of English at the University of Pennsylvania, has been elected the vice-president of the Shakespeare Association of America (SAA). She will become president of the association next year.
Biology Team Discovers that Sugar Propels Plants to Adulthood
Based on experiments with the plant Arabidopsis thaliana, a team of researchers from the University of Pennsylvania Department of Biology has provided fresh insights into the role of sugar in “vegetative phase change,” the transition from the juvenile form of a plant to the adult plant.
Petersson to Receive 2013 Journal of Physical Organic Chemistry Award for Early Excellence
Assistant Professor of Chemistry E. James Petersson has won the 2013 Journal of Physical Organic Chemistry Award for Early Excellence in the Field of Physical Organic Chemistry. The award is given to an individual working in the field of physical organic chemistry who is less than six years into his or her first appointment.
Peter Holquist Awarded Cullman Center Fellowship
Associate Professor of History Peter Holquist has been named a 2013 fellow of New York Public Library's Dorothy and Lewis B. Cullman Center for Scholars and Writers.
Philippe Bourgois Awarded Collaborative Research Fellowship from American Council of Learned Societies
Philippe Bourgois, the Richard Perry University Professor of Anthropology and Family and Community Medicine, has received a 2013 Collaborative Research Fellowship from the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS).