News Archives

Ask Benny: Penn's Way donations get put to good use

Dear Benny,How much of my Penn’s Way donation actually goes to support the charities I choose, and how much goes to overhead? —Wants to Make Every Dollar Count Dear Green Eyeshade, Overhead is a necessary part of any operation. Charities call it the “administrative rate.” The Penn’s Way staff tell me that the United Way / Donor Choice administrative rate is 10.2 percent. That means that 89.8 cents of every dollar you give to United Way agencies goes to the charities of your choice.

“Keeping Up with the Joneses: Envy in American Consumer Society, 1890-1930”

A century ago many Americans condemned envy as a destructive emotion and a sin. Today few Americans expect criticism when they express envy, and some commentators maintain that the emotion drives the economy. This shift in attitude is Susan Matt’s central concern in “Keeping up with the Joneses: Envy in American Consumer Society, 1890-1930.”

Pleased to meet you, Sir

Word gamers achieve syzygy

SCRABBLE, the board game found in everyone’s living room, took on an obsessive dimension at a Nov. 14 reading at the Penn Bookstore. Stefan Fatsis (C’85), author of “Word Freak: Heartbreak, Triumph, Genius, and Obsession in the World of Competitive SCRABBLE Players,” spoke before about 30 people, some of whom were competitive SCRABBLE players of the sort described in his book.

Out of Africa

At the Oct. 24 dedication of the Center for Africana Studies, new Penn faculty member Michael Eric Dyson gave its new director, Professor of Sociology Tukufu Zuberi, an interesting sobriquet, calling him “the Barry White of academe.” What did he mean by that? “You’ll have to ask Michael,” Zuberi said. Since we weren’t able to do that in time for this article, we’ll offer our own guess.

The case of the nonexistent voters

Chicago isn’t the only place where dead people vote regularly. A recent survey of voter registration data conducted by the Fels Institute of Government revealed that more people are registered to vote than are of eligible voting age in two states and 241 counties nationwide. The survey was conducted as part of the project to develop the Fels Voting Index (FVI), a planned annual ranking of the 50 states based on the accuracy, accountability and accessibility of their voting systems.

Coming attractions

With a new movie theater—the Bridge: Cinema De Lux—on campus, we at the Current wondered what the Penn community would to like to see on the big screens. Would it be the latest Hollywood blockbuster? Or perhaps something more off the beaten track? Read on to find out. KEVIN S. ROUNSLEY Program Coordinator, Wharton Undergraduate Division “I would place a balance of mainstream and classical movies because there is no other venue in Philadelphia that offers this opportunity.”

A new learning hub on campus makes three

Penn will have a trinity of learning hubs when the Weiss Tech House opens its doors in January 2003. The Tech House, a new two-story glass-enclosed structure, will face Walnut Street as a part of the Graduate Research Wing of the Moore School and serve as the eastern anchor of the University’s hub system, which now includes the Kelly Writers House and Civic House. Similar to its literary and community service counterparts, the Tech House will act as a gathering place for students across campus who share an interest in all things technological.

Trio of scholars honored

Three Penn scholars—School of Nursing Dean Afaf Meleis, Director of the Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute Craig B. Thompson and Director of Medical Pathology John Q. Trojanowski—have been elected to the National Academies’ Institute of Medicine. Members are chosen for their contributions to health and medicine or to related fields, such as social and behavioral sciences, law, administration and economics.

Get a grip on stress and your career with HR’s help

Careers do a turnaround with these classes from Human Resources. For course locations and more information, call 215-898-3400 or visit www.hr.upenn.edu/learning. Registration required. John Kotter on Leading Change