Penn fourth-year Florence Onyiuke named a 2026 Rhodes Scholar
Onyiuke has been awarded a 2026 Rhodes Scholarship, which funds tuition and a living stipend for graduate study at the University of Oxford in England. She is among 32 American Rhodes Scholars and an expected 100 worldwide.
The Rhodes, established in 1902, is highly competitive and one of the most prestigious scholarships in the world. The scholarship funds tuition and a living stipend for two or three years of graduate study at Oxford and may allow funding in some instances for four years. At Oxford, Onyiuke plans to pursue a master’s degree in economic development with a focus on West Africa.
Onyiuke is pursuing an international studies and business degree in the Huntsman Program, a dual degree program in the Wharton School and the School of Arts & Sciences, as well as a minor in Spanish. Onyiuke’s interests include international economic development, international law, and immigration. Her senior thesis, based on research she conducted in Spain during a Penn Abroad semester last spring, explores the informal economy and socioeconomic mobility of West African street vendors in Barcelona. Onyiuke was a Frederick Douglass Global Fellow, a three-year Perry World House Student Fellow, a member of the Dean’s Advisory Board, and executive director of Black Wharton Consulting. She is also a Coca Cola Scholar, Ron Brown Scholar, and recipient of the Presidential Service and Educational Excellence Awards.
According to the Rhodes Trust, about 100 Rhodes Scholars will be selected worldwide this year. Onyiuke is among the 32 American Rhodes Scholars chosen to represent the United States. According to the Rhodes Trust, this year nearly 2,800 American students began the application process; 965 were endorsed by 264 different colleges and universities; and 238 applicants reached the final stage of the competition.
Novel plant-based approach to a better, cheaper GLP-1 delivery system
Research led by Penn Dental’s Henry Daniell investigates the use of a lettuce-based, plant-encapsulated delivery platform as a new oral delivery of two GLP-1 drugs previously approved by the FDA in injectable form.
No brain, no gain: Neuronal activity enhances benefits of exercise
Research led by Penn neuroscientist J. Nicholas Betley and collaborators finds that hypothalamic neurons are essential for translating physical exertion into endurance, potentially opening the door to exercise-mimicking therapies.
In honor of Valentine's Day, and as a way of fostering community in her Shakespeare in Love course, Becky Friedman took her students to the University Club for lunch one class period. They talked about the movie "Shakespeare in Love," as part of a broader conversation on how Shakespeare's works are adapted.
In Becky Friedman’s English course Shakespeare in Love, undergraduate students analyze language, genre, and adaptation in the Bard’s plays through the lens of love.
Beating the heat: Designing cooling for bodies in motion
Dorit Aviv, director of Weitzman’s Thermal Architecture Lab, studies how humans, technology, and design intersect, paving the way for the development of novel approaches to cooling people efficiently.
