Penn in the News

Researchers are calling on the federal government to begin collecting information about LGBT students’ experiences at the nation’s schools, arguing that such data collection is necessary to protect against disproportionate rates of suspension and expulsion. “When we fail to ask questions about youths’ sexual orientation and gender identity, we fail to understand, support, and protect all students from discrimination in schools,” wrote a group of researchers in a brief paper published Sunday by Indiana University’s Equity Project.

Kathleen Hall Jamieson of the Annenberg Public Policy Center comments on the marketing strategies of the National Rifle Association.

When the idea of starting an honors college at Western Carolina University first came up, in the mid-1990s, it seemed like a big leap to many people on the regional public campus. Maybe too big a leap, given the university’s role in the state of expanding average citizens’ access to higher education. But to John W. Bardo, the chancellor at the time, the idea held too much promise to pass up.

A federal judge ruled that law-school graduates who file for bankruptcy protection can cancel the debt they racked up while studying for the bar exam, finding such loans are different from traditional federal student loans that are rarely canceled by bankruptcy. In an opinion filed Thursday, Judge Carla Craig of the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Brooklyn, N.Y., said bar-exam loan debt is “a product of an arm’s-length agreement on commercial terms” and doesn’t fall into the category of a student loan that sticks with a borrower who files for bankruptcy.

One by one, women stepped up to a chalkboard at the back of a Baylor University chapel and erased one of the lies they’d been told about rape: that if they’d been drinking, they had it coming; that the guy had a right to expect sex; that if they’d forgotten some details, their account couldn’t be true.

Seven years ago, Ronke A. Oke felt as if she no longer belonged in philosophy. For Ms. Oke, earning a master’s degree at the University of Memphis had been difficult, and she considered quitting the discipline and not going for her Ph.D. Her experience at Memphis stood in stark contrast to her undergraduate years at Spelman College, a historically black institution. At Spelman, Ms. Oke, who is black, could imagine herself as a philosopher. Most of her professors were black women. She was not yet aware of philosophy’s reputation as an old boys’ club.

David Casarett of the Perelman School of Medicine writes about why families shy away from photographing their dying relatives.

Angela Duckworth of the School of Arts & Sciences shares her opinion on how “grit” should not be tested and graded in schools.

Cynthia Otto of the School of Veterinary Medicine says, “More developing countries are incorporating detection dog teams into their national security plan.”

Thirteen female students accused a UC Berkeley sociology professor of unwanted sexual advances, including hugs and attempted kisses. One of them said he offered a higher grade if she would sleep with him; another said he wrote a negative letter of recommendation when she rebuffed his advances. University officials found Abdelbaki Hermassi responsible for sexual misconduct, suspended him without pay for one quarter and placed the findings in his personnel file. Outraged students found those sanctions inexcusably lenient and mobilized campuswide sit-ins and protests. The year was 1980.