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Graduate Students

African American in the ‘raceless’ Soviet Union
Person in glasses miles at the camera with green trees behind

African American in the ‘raceless’ Soviet Union

History Ph.D. candidate Kimberly St. Julian-Varnon’s work looks at how the African American experience in the Soviet Union shaped Black identity and how the presence of people of color shaped Soviet understandings of race.

Kristen de Groot

Pandemic preparedness, three years early
Students work at a table covered with paper, water bottles and markers.

Participants in the first PennDemic, which took place in 2018, lay out a timeline of the “outbreak.” Two additional simulations have since taken place, with one more scheduled for this coming fall.

Pandemic preparedness, three years early

In a Q&A, team members behind the outbreak simulation PennDemic discuss how the exercise, now in its fourth iteration, equipped an interdisciplinary group of grad students for COVID-19 and beyond.

Michele W. Berger

What won’t the infrastructure plan do? Repair our crumbling schools

What won’t the infrastructure plan do? Repair our crumbling schools

Nell Williams, a Ph.D. student in the Graduate School of Education, wrote an op-ed in support of the Biden administration’s infrastructure plan, which allocates funds to repair school buildings. “As the infrastructure plan undergoes further negotiation in the House and Senate, I urge policymakers note the gaping hole that was left when most U.S. schools went virtual last year,” she said.

Prism Fellow and reality TV star Dillon Patel
Dillon Patel seated and smiling behind a large television screen filming him.

Behind the scenes: Filming interviews for Bravo’s “Family Karma.” (Image: Courtesy of @dillonpatelme)

Prism Fellow and reality TV star Dillon Patel

Patel’s LGBTQ+ advocacy as a tech worker and former reality TV star has earned him the the distinction as Wharton’s second Prism Fellow, a scholarship to one MBA student who demonstrates leadership in support of the LGBTQ+ community.

From Wharton Stories

For early amphibians, a new lifestyle meant a new spine
Paleontologist in a lab with a sign saying "Dinosaurs" and fossil specimens in the background

Aja Carter and colleagues found that amphibian vertebrae acquired modifications as their habitat shifted from water to land and back. (Pre-pandemic photo)

For early amphibians, a new lifestyle meant a new spine

Moving from water to land and back again corresponded with distinct changes in animals’ spinal morphology, according to a new study led by paleontologist Aja Carter.

Katherine Unger Baillie

A link between childhood stress and early molars
A person standing on a stairwell, being photographed from above.

Allyson Mackey is an assistant professor in the Department of Psychology in the School of Arts & Sciences. She runs The Changing Brain Lab and is a researcher in MindCORE.

A link between childhood stress and early molars

Penn researchers discovered that children from lower-income backgrounds and those who go through greater adverse childhood experiences get their first permanent molars sooner.

Michele W. Berger

Celebrating the ‘incomparable’ Class of 2021
graduate close up with sunglasses and yellow color

Celebrating the ‘incomparable’ Class of 2021

Penn’s 265th Commencement honored students who are defined by their inspiring growth, unrivaled resilience, gracious appreciation, and undoubted ability to create a better future for us all.

Lauren Hertzler

A legacy of equine veterinary care
Older photo of equestrian on horse jumping over barrier that reads The Hampton Classic

Carlene Blunt, a longtime donor to Penn Vet who established the Csaba Vedlik Equine Scholarship in 1999, was named Horsewoman of the Year in 1972. (Image: Courtesy of Carlene Blunt)

A legacy of equine veterinary care

For more than two decades, the Csaba Vedlik Equine Scholarship has offered veterinary students an immersive summer experience.

Katherine Unger Baillie