Penn in the News

The political leanings of professors are much debated. While studies consistently show that faculty members, on average, lean left, there is no consensus on the meaning of these findings. New research on professors and their politics suggests that the imbalance in the political views of professors in much of the nation becomes a more significant imbalance because of one region: New England.

More than 200 former Pennsylvania State University football players sent a letter to the board of trustees and President Eric Barron on Tuesday asking that the large bronze statue of their beloved coach, Joe Paterno, be returned to campus. “We have been told during the last four-plus years that the board and administration are waiting for the appropriate time to repair the damage they created,” said Brian Masella, former tight end and punter for the Nittany Lions and a 1975 alumnus. “Now is the appropriate time.

Increasingly, colleges and universities are using predictive analytics to determine future outcomes for students in academic performance and engagement. But some wonder if the practice violates student privacy. A recent meeting at Stanford University sought to develop best practices, ethics around student data mining and how colleges could best use the information for mutual benefit with students. Some predictive analytics programs extend to high school recruitment and develop profiles about student potential based upon test scores, social media use and other factors.

College career centers are increasingly creating corporate partnership programs, providing access to students to company hiring departments in exchange for thousands of dollars. The partnerships include increased access to students, preferential treatment at career fairs and advertising on career center websites. Those in favor of the practice argue that the partnerships help ensure that students land fulfilling, high-paying jobs after graduation.

Ezekiel Emanuel of the Perelman School of Medicine and the Wharton School is quoted as the lead researcher on a study of physician-assisted suicide.

After his freshman year of college in South Carolina, Ronald Torres cried the whole way back to Camden. "I was like, man, I can't believe this is happening to me," the 20-year-old said. After two semesters spent worrying about his ill grandmother, distracting him from studies, Torres had also lost some of his financial aid, leaving him unable to return to South Carolina State University after finishing freshman year in 2015.

Jonah Berger of the Wharton School comments on results from a survey that included questions on participants intentions to vaccinate themselves and families.

Being a low-income student in college is difficult, but it’s likely to be even more difficult if you’re also a woman. Barbara Gault, executive director of the Institute for Women’s Policy Research, points out that female students are much more likely to be raising children and may even be caring for older relatives as well. Colleges’ schedules and services have long catered to traditional, childless students, she says, but they need to change to accommodate a new student population.

Philip Gerhman of the Perelman School of Medicine is quoted about cycles of sleeplessness following a difficult or stressful time.

Mounting student debt is not a new topic in the United States, but the government footing the bill is — and for former students of the now obsolete Corinthian Colleges Inc., a total of $171 million in student debt will be written off by the government. Corinthian, once one of the largest for-profit college chains, liquidated in bankruptcy in May 2015 one week after suddenly closing its doors. The schools shut down after claims that they were inflating statistics about graduates’ career success. Although Corinthian denied the allegations, its fate was sealed.