PHILADELPHIA – A trio of University of Pennsylvania professors from the School of Arts and Sciences and a senior critic in Penn’s School of Design have been awarded the prestigious Guggenheim Fellowship.

The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation awarded 180 Fellowships to artists, scientists and scholars in the United States and Canada from a pool of nearly 3,000 applicants.

The new Penn Guggenheim Fellows and their research areas are:
• Susan Cotts Watkins, professor of sociology, navigating AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa.
• David J. Wallace, professor of English, literary history of Europe, 1348-1418.
• Anna Weesner, associate professor of music, music composition.
• Alexi Worth, artist and senior critic in PennDesign, painting.

The Foundation was established by former U.S. Sen. and Mrs. Simon Guggenheim as a memorial to their son who died in 1922. Fellowships have been awarded annually since 1925.

More information is available at www.gf.org/news-events/List-of-2009-Fellows-United-States-and-Canada/