September 10, 2014

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THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA | WEDNESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2014

PHOTO FEATURE

MEET THE MAYOR’S SCHOLARS

On September 9, 2014, University of Pennsylvania hosted an event for the Mayor’s Scholars. The event served to introduce fellow recipients of the honor to one another as well as to faculty, whom honorees can draw upon for support. The reception had several speakers, each introducing different communities present, including Glenn Bryan, representing the office of Penn President Amy Gutman, and Mayor of Philadelphia, Michael Nutter.

INSIDE NEWS A RECIPE FOR SUCCESS

SOPHIA WITTE Staff Writer

PA Secretary of Policy and Planning Donna Cooper, spoke about improving education in PA. Tuesday night.

ANTONI GIERCZAK /STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

In 2011, Holly Fetter joined Resource Generation after experiencing a conflicting sense of identity over her wealth. The apparent contradiction between her class background and political identity led Fetter to become involved with Resource Generation, a national nonprofit organization of wealthy young people who hope to create a more equitable distribution of resources and power. RG turns its ideology into practice by collectively donating to charities across the country. On Monday night, the Philadelphia chapter held a private meeting for prospective members. Kate Poole, one of the leaders of the local chapter, said that many of the 15 attendees identified as students from local colleges, including Penn. “The potential members wanted to learn more about how to leverage their resources for social justice, to talk more about issues of wealth and class and to find community,” Poole said. With 12 chapters across the country, RG is now looking to grow its membership base by targeting college students. Sarah Burgess, one of the leaders of the Philadelphia chapter, said that many college-aged people “start to question what it means to have wealth and deal with the possible guilt of not knowing what to do about it.” RG has begun reaching out to students at Brown University, Barnard College and Vassar College. Colleges are ideal places to center the organization, not only due to the concentration of ideological young people, Fetter said, but also because universities tend to be embedded in lowincome neighborhoods. “Universities like Penn that are next to these types of

ANTONI GIERCZAK /STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER

SEE RESOURCE GEN PAGE 6

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U. RANKINGS OVERRATED?

Penn drops in US News & World Report rankings, but experts say rankings matter less than people think. RANK

‘98

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1

HARVARD

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PRINCETON

3

YALE

4

COLUMBIA

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PENN

8 DARTMOUTH

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OPINION A RETURN TO MONOGAMY Why we should reconsider our propensity for hooking up PAGE 4

SPORTS TAKING THE NEXT STEP FOR SPRINT FOOTBALL

BACK PAGE

COLUMBIA AD TO STEP DOWN Leaving behind a mixed legacy, Columbia Athletic Director Dianne Murphy is set to resign after the academic year BACK PAGE

Task force targeted summer retail theft AlliedBarton guards were stationed outside of five campus retail locations JOE LI Staff Writer

Over the summer, store managers at American Apparel and Urban Outfitters finally had to worry a bit less about shoplifters. The Division of Public Safety established a retail theft task force to combat the typically high level of retail theft during summer months. There were five retails thefts in total this past summer, as opposed to 20 in 2013 and 13 in 2012, according to statistics from DPS. For the past few years, DPS had taken measures to fight against theft during the summer, but it devoted more resources to the effort this year. The retail theft task force was mainly made up of AlliedBarton guards standing in front of retail stores and Penn Police officers on patrol around the blocks near those stores. “Our world is about crime analysis every day,” Vice President of Public Safety Maureen Rush said. DPS conducted analysis on retail thefts in the past and chose five store locations to deploy guards: Blue Mercury and American Apparel, both near 36th and Walnut streets, Urban Outfitters on 36th and Sansom streets, and the two CVS stores, on 39th and Walnut and 34th and Walnut streets. The guards stood visibly at those locations from open to close, and they were required to sign in on a police patrol log kept by the store owner every day. Penn police officers on patrol also walked into the stores and signed the patrol log unannounced.

JEREMY BAMIDELE/CONTRIBUTING PHOTOGRAPHER

City politicians strike deal on pot decriminalization Possession of small amounts would lead to $25 fine, not arrest ESTHER YOON Staff Writer

In the near future, having a little bit of weed in your pocket while strolling the streets of Philadelphia will not make you a criminal. Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter, a 1979 Wharton graduate, confirmed Monday that he will sign a bill that will lessen penalties for possession of marijuana.

The bill would make possession of about an ounce of pot punishable only by a $25 fine, with the matter never entering the court system. Nutter and Councilperson Jim Kenney reached a compromise on the legislation — which Kenney first introduced in May — that calls for a separate offense for public use of the drug. While Nutter has previously criticized Philadelphia City Council’s efforts to decriminalize marijuana for neglecting larger issues such as jobs and education, he eventually agreed that the compromise “ends up

putting the city and our citizens in a much better place,” Nutter told CBS Philly. He added that decriminalizing marijuana possession was not the same as condoning its usage. The new bill will charge those caught using marijuana in public with a noncriminal summary offense and a $100 fine or up to nine hours of community service. Philadelphians caught possessing fewer than 30 grams will be issued a citation and fined $25. The offender will not face DP FILE PHOTO

SEE MARIJUANA PAGE 3

Despite U. obligations, Gutmann remains active with scholarly work Next book may be about bioethics, Gutmann says

Amy Gutmann and Dennis Thompson co-authored the book The Spirit of Compromise, which was published in May 2012.

KRISTEN GRABARZ Deputy News Editor

SEE THEFT PAGE 3

SEND STORY IDEAS TO NEWSTIP@THEDP.COM

Nonprofit helps rich students dole out wealth

DP FILE PHOTO/IMRAN CRONK

ONLINE AT THEDP.COM

Amy Gutmann puts her signature on more than just Penn paperwork. While rising to the top of the administration at two universities, Gutmann has published books on topics across the sphere of political science. This is in addition to a diverse collection of articles, book chapters and reports from the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues, which she chairs. While she doesn’t have any books in the works right now, she is interested in writing a book on bioethics, drawing on her work at

the commission. “The main themes of my corpus of works have been, I would say, the importance of deliberation and education and democracy,” Gutmann, who was also the provost at Princeton University before she came to Penn, said. “I’ve been very intrigued by how important it is for a democracy to flourish, that it have a strong system — and a diverse system — of education.” Her most recent book, “The Spirit of Compromise: Why Governing Demands It and Campaigning Undermines It,” was released in 2012. Written with Harvard professor Dennis Thompson, a frequent collaborator, the book assesses a dearth of compromise in the SEE GUTMANN PAGE 7

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September 10, 2014 by The Daily Pennsylvanian - Issuu