September 29, 2022

Inside the Encampment

Penn will lease The Radian for next three years, worrying current residents

Penn will shut down sections of the Quad over three years and begin leasing The Radian in August 2023

JASPER TAYLOR Staff Reporter

Penn is set to lease The Radian as supple mental student housing to facilitate renovations in the Quad over the next three years, a move that drew concern from current residents who are worried about rising rent rates and housing policy changes.

While the Quad is being renovated, the Uni versity will shut down college houses within the Quad over a period of three years to allow for safe construction, including the movement of large construction equipment. The lease is set to begin next fall semester in August 2023, ac cording to Barbara Lea-Kruger, director of com munications and external relations.

Riepe College House will be closed from May 2023 to May 2024, followed by Ware College House from May 2024 to May 2025, and last ly Fisher-Hassenfeld College House from May 2025 to May 2026. During this time, first-year students who would have lived in the Quad will instead be placed into one of Penn’s four-year college houses, particularly Gregory College House, Stouffer College House, and Lauder Col lege House.

To ensure that there are enough rooms for second, third, and fourth years, Penn will enter into a three-year lease with The Radian, an offcampus apartment complex, to house students from August 2023 to August 2026.

IMRAN SIDDIQUI Senior Reporter

Anyone who has walked by College Green in the past two weeks has likely noticed Fossil Free Penn’s colorful tents and banners strung up on trees. Be tween classes, students involved with FFP said that they have spent upwards of 12 hours at the encamp ment each day, with many sleeping in tents during the night.

Even after positioning tents to avoid nightly sprin klers and dealing with aggressive squirrels, these students said that they remain resolute in their be liefs and do not plan on leaving College Green until Penn meets their three demands: a public commit ment toward preserving the UC Townhomes, total

fossil fuel divestment, and pay PILOTs, or Payments in Lieu of Taxes, to Philadelphia public schools.

According to an email from University spokes person Ron Ozio, President Liz Magill, Interim Provost Beth Winkelstein, and Senior Executive Vice President Craig Carnaroli sent an email to FFP coordinators where they said that they “share [FFP’s] concerns regarding these three issues” and “the University has taken thoughtful and solutionfocused actions to address them consistent within our mission.”

The email from Magill, Winkelstein, and Carnar oli also said that administration would “welcome the opportunity to engage in a genuine dialogue,” and, in return, they requested that FFP honor its commit ment by ending the encampment on College Green.

The Daily Pennsylvanian spoke with FFP coor dinators to learn more about their requests of the University, the community they have built on Col lege Green, and their hopes for the future.

What are their demands?

College sophomore and FFP coordinator Eug Xu said that a common misconception about FFP’s protest is that the encampment’s demands are dis connected from or unrelated to each other.

FFP wants Penn to commit $5 million to $10 mil lion or land toward the purchase of the Townhomes as a low-income housing complex, publicly divest Penn’s direct and indirect holdings in fossil fuel companies, and pay 40% of foregone property taxes to support local public schools.

Xu said that both the City’s struggle to maintain affordable housing and the University’s refusal to pay PILOTs are fundamentally issues of climate jus tice, citing how heat waves and poor infrastructure shut down more than a hundred Philadelphia schools this summer.

“We know that it is important for Penn to take money out of fossil fuels, but we also know that it is

Students currently living in The Radian ex pressed confusion and concern about Penn’s plan to lease the apartment building.

Engineering junior Helena Zhang is currently living in a four-bedroom apartment suite with three roommates. She said that the group’s orig inal plan was to renew their lease at the end of the year, but Penn’s plan to lease The Radian could pose a financial barrier to current resi dents.

“If Penn is actually going to rent out The Ra dian, the price might go up from when we signed the lease, so one of our roommates might not be able to stay with us,” Zhang said.

Upperclass students will be able to select The Radian as a housing option this spring semester during the housing selection process. Housing in The Radian through Penn will cost $15,418 per academic year — the same as Penn’s current higher-cost housing option, according to Doug

SIERRA

Penn’s endowment saw a less than 1% return for the 2022 fiscal year ending June 30, posting an annual increase from $20.5 billion to $20.7 billion.

The $20.7 billion endowment return exceeded the composite benchmark return of -0.5% for the period.

Penn’s total endowment assets increased by $200.8 million over the 2022 fiscal year, reaching $20.7 bil lion as of June 30. Of this amount, approximately $16.1 billion supports the University and $4.6 bil lion supports the University of Pennsylvania Health System, according to the annual report from the Penn Office of Investments.

According to a report by Pensions and Invest ments, the significant decrease in return from the previous year reflects the “challenging market envi ronment for the period.” The Office of Investments credited the impact of financial gifts, investment re turns, spending distributions, and internal transfers with fueling the endowment’s growth.

Penn’s endowment includes over 7,400 individ ual endowment funds that benefit the University’s schools, centers, and health system. The majority of the endowment goes towards instruction, with stu dent aid, health care, and research following behind.

For the 2021 fiscal year, the endowment posted a record 41.1% return in a year of record high stock markets and gains in private equity. The Office of Investments cited “pandemic-driven needs and op portunities” as increasing the target endowment spending rate in the 2021 and 2022 fiscal years.

Penn’s endowment has consistently outperformed its composite benchmark for the past 20 years. The endowment has returned an annualized 11.9% and 11.1% over the past five and 10 years, respectively, according to the Office of Investments.

Among the 13 universities that Pensions and In vestments tracked in the 2022 fiscal year, the median return is -4.1%. Penn is one out of the five institutions tracked that posted non-negative returns for 2022.

In response to a request for comment, Associate Director for News Amanda Mott directed The Daily Pennsylvanian to a statement about the endowment from the Office of Investments.

“Penn’s endowment supports a wide range of purposes across the institution, with the significant majority of funds dedicated to student financial aid and instructional use,” the office wrote in a state ment.

73

sign letter opposing

efforts to discipline Convocation protestors

members, was sent to University administrators on Friday, detailing their support of student protest.

The faculty members opposed efforts by Penn ad ministrators to discipline two students accused of violating the University’s Guidelines on Open Ex pression and Code of Student Conduct, due to their alleged involvement in the demonstration that inter rupted Convocation.

Seventy-three Penn faculty members signed a letter in opposition to the University’s disciplinary action in response to students’ alleged involvement in disrupting Convocation, protesting the eviction of University City Townhomes residents.

The letter, from “deeply concerned” faculty

The students involved had told The Daily Penn sylvanian on Sept. 21 that the University is targeting them to stifle protest against the sale of the UC Townhomes, an affordable housing complex located

PHOTO BY JESSE ZHANG

Students in Fossil Free Penn at their College Green encampment on Sept. 28, 2022.

Student coordinators said that they do not plan to leave College Green until Penn meets their three demands

PHOTO BY SAVANNA COHEN

PHOTO BY ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL

MUNA

equally important for them to put their money back into the community,” Xu said. “The idea of PILOTs and the future of the UC Townhomes are matters of reinvestment.”

When do they plan to leave?

FFP coordinators told the DP that they do not plan on leaving College Green until their demands are fully met.

College first year and FFP coordinator Omar Elsakhawy said that FFP does not currently have plans to compromise on any of the demands. He said that all of the coordinators have already “sacri ficed so much,” and they are more than committed to wait the University out.

“We will continue to sit through storms, even snowstorms. We will sit through anything and ev erything until they divest,” Elsakhawy said. “The message I would give the administration is clear: We are not leaving. We are not budging until you do.”

Ozio previously wrote in a statement to the DP that the coordinators declined to meet with the Penn administration. In response, FFP published

a press release on Sept. 22 in which they detailed their communications with University administra tors.

In the press release, FFP coordinators ex plained that they would be open to meeting with administrators, but that FFP would not suspend the encampment in exchange for a potential meeting.

College junior and FFP coordinator Megha Neelapu described the encampment as a “bar gaining chip.” They said that after going through divestment proposals and hosting town halls, it has become apparent to FFP members that the best way to get the attention of administration is through col lective public action.

“Some people might ask, ‘Why don’t you just leave? And then you will get your meeting with administrators and maybe get what you want.’ But we have had so many meetings, and we have gone through all the formal channels. It has not led to anything,” Neelapu said. “We are not going to end our encampment until Penn publicly pledges to meet our demands because we have student power through this.”

What has the encampment experience been like?

FFP student coordinators, like Xu, stressed that the encampment has become their “home” over the past two weeks.

Every room in The Radian is a private room and includes full kitchens, washers, and dryers. The Radian currently includes 4 bed/2 bath, 4 bed/4 bath, 3 bed/2 bath, 2 bed/2 bath, and 1 bed/1 bath apartments. Apartments currently range in price from $1,369 to $2,545.

Previously disillusioned by mainstream climate activism due its individualistic nature, Xu said this experience offered them a lot of hope for the future of advocacy because of the community it fostered.

Last semester, FFP had camped on College Green for six days, demanding Penn divest from fossil fuels and support climate justice. Xu said FFP coordinators used the previous semester’s experience as a starting point to plan for this en campment over the summer.

College junior and FFP coordinator Sarah Ster inbach said that the people she has lived with at the encampment have become one of the tightest-knit communities she has had on campus. She said that everyone checks in with each other daily, making sure that they have been eating properly and taking necessary breaks.

“The best part is that there has been so much community and care,” Sterinbach said. “I’m going to have withdrawals whenever this ends.”

In addition to bonding with other coordinators, Neelapu said that the encampment has allowed her to create organic connections with other progres sive students and groups on campus.

Clubs across campus, ranging from Penn Stu dents Against the Occupation of Palestine to the University’s ultimate frisbee team, have hosted teach-ins and events in partnership with the en campment.

Neelapu said that professors have asked FFP co ordinators if they could teach their classes outside on College Green.

Overall, the coordinators said that students pass ing by College Green have reacted positively to the encampment. Sterinbach said that she has been happy to see how many people have been receptive to learning about the club’s demands, adding that some students have offered to bring food or send money for supplies.

Before the semester began, Elsakhawy said he did not expect to be camping in front of College Hall during his first month at Penn. After reading the Penn Disorientation Guide and seeing FFP’s encampment in person, Elsakhawy decided to do homework at the encampment one evening and loved the “diverse and inclusive community.”

Elsakhawy now serves as one of a dozen coor dinators spearheading the encampment’s strategy. He urges students to come by the encampment and “engage with [FFP’s] message.”

“[The encampment] makes Penn’s campus better,” Elsakhawy said. “A goal of the Univer sity is to ensure that students are cooperating with one another and that this school is an intercultural space where we can exchange ideas. The commons that we have created on College Green is the quint essential idea of this.”

Berger, executive director of business services.

“It will function as a three-year college house, such as the high rises, and there will be about 460 beds total,” Berger said. “The majority of the beds are in four-bedroom apartments.”

The decision to lease The Radian as student housing — which the Penn Board of Trustees voted on Sept. 22 to approve — has drawn con cern from some students about the future of their leases.

Students and individuals who are currently living in The Radian have the option to renew their lease, but they must go through Penn to do so, according to Lea-Kruger.

Zhang said that she and her roommates, as well as other Radian residents they know, are wondering how the renewal process will change now that Penn will lease the complex.

“We want to know, if Penn were to rent out The Radian, how the process will be,” Zhang said. “Do people who currently live in The Ra dian get priority to renew, or are we going to be thrown in the pool with everyone else?”

College junior Kyle Huang, who lives in a four-bedroom suite in The Radian, echoed Zhang’s sentiments. He added that he is con cerned about whether Penn will honor residents’ existing leases. Unlike on-campus residents, who must move out by the end of May, Huang’s lease with The Radian is set to expire in July.

“We’ve been told everybody in The Radian is a Penn student, either graduate or undergradu ate,” Berger said. He added that graduate stu dents currently living in The Radian will be able to obtain a lease in Sansom Place East, which is scheduled to reopen in the beginning of the 2023-2024 academic year.

Karu Kozuma, executive director of College Houses and Academic Services, shared that he is confident The Radian will still have the college house feeling and will include resident advisors, graduate associates, a house director, and faculty fellows.

“Even though the physical building is not a college house right now, the community will be come a college house,” Kozuma said.

Like other on-campus college houses, The Radian will have security portals and an infor mation center, and will be open to all Penn stu dents. A name for the new college house has yet to be decided.

This decision comes as the latest in a series of construction updates on campus. Penn will begin construction of a new shared-use office building in place of the McDonald’s at 40th and Walnut streets in either late December or early January 2023. Additionally, Penn recently an nounced that it will be building a new perform ing arts theater next to the Annenberg Center.

PHOTO BY JESSE ZHANG

The Radian on Sept. 22, 2022.

at 39th and Market streets.

“This is a shameful moment in institutional memory,” Krystal Strong, a former faculty member at the Graduate School of Education said. “[Penn] can’t say as an institution there is a value of civic en gagement, and then sanction students for expressing that in a way [the University doesn’t] like.”

The contents of the letter describe the faculty’s concerns over Penn’s violations of its Guidelines on Open Expression, which delineate the University’s policy on students’ freedom to protest and debate various views.

Faculty members — such as Akira Drake Rodri guez, an assistant professor of City and Regional Planning at the Weitzman School of Design — be lieve the University follows its policy on open expression selectively and targets Penn students who are prominent activists.

“It doesn’t feel like protections are uniformly ap plied across the University,” Rodriguez said. “That is concerning. This is a pattern [we] want to nip in the bud.”

Another signee, Germanic Languages and Lit eratures professor Simon Richter, has been a strong supporter of, and often an active participant in, direct protest for prominent issues on campus.

“I thought it was really important to make the ad ministration aware that faculty knew these students, cared about these students, supported their protest, and that we were watching,” he said.

On the other hand, some faculty members rec ognized colleagues’ concern for fear of University retaliation and backlash including negative influ ences on possible tenure, a permanent academic appointment. Strong said that there is fear among faculty of the possibility of being punished for speak ing against administration.

However, many faculty members consider them selves to have an essential role in the conversation between students and the University. They high lighted student organizers as a source of motivation to take action on social issues adjacent to campus, in cluding the sale of the UC Townhomes. Richter said he wanted to support the students and praised them for their “courage.”

“We make ourselves available to these discussions to show that we support them in ways beyond just writing a letter,” Rodriguez said.

The letter concludes with a plea to the University and the Center for Community Standards and Ac countability to drop the charges against the students. It also includes a call to the Penn community to “turn our attention to the issues they call upon us to address.” Some faculty said they see this as an oppor tunity for the University to strengthen its stance on freedom of speech and begin addressing its contribu tions to the displacement of Philadelphia residents in the West Philadelphia area.

“Penn has the opportunity to walk the walk in stead of talking the talk about its commitments to Philadelphia communities,” Strong said.

JONAH MILLER Senior

Penn is set to hold its annual three-day flu vaccine clinic, and will require all students to receive a flu vaccine for the second year in a row.

The flu clinic — which provides students, fac ulty, and staff with free vaccines — will open Sept. 28 and close Sept. 30. Community mem bers do not need to register for a time slot, and can walk in and present their PennCard to be vaccinated. The clinic will be hosted in Gimbel Gymnasium in the Pottruck Health and Fitness Center.

The flu clinic will be open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sept. 28 and 29, and will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sept. 30.

Associate Director of Public Health and Well being Rebecca Huxta said that getting the flu vaccine reduces the severity of symptoms. If stu dents get the flu, having received the vaccine can keep individuals out of the hospital.

“We’re already starting to see colds and upper respiratory infections circulating both on campus and in the Philadelphia area, so it’s an important public health tool to be able to get the flu vaccine that is required for all students,” Huxta said.

When students tap their PennCard at the flu clinic, the vaccine is automatically uploaded into students’ medical records. Huxta said it should save students the extra step of having to submit a separate immunization documentation and wait for approval.

In previous years, students have reported an efficient process at the flu clinic. Huxta said that community members are typically in and out the door within seven minutes.

Huxta said the vaccine clinic will also host volunteers from the Penn community and the School of Nursing in addition to staff from Well ness at Penn.

“We will have some Nursing students on site who will both be administering vaccines and also helping to prep all the vaccines in the clinical area,” Huxta said, adding that Nursing

School volunteers will receive time toward their community clinical hours.

Medical Director of Student Health and Coun seling Vanessa Stoloff said that due to the way COVID-19 has mutated, it is likely that the flu will impact students more negatively than COVID-19.

“The prediction is that it will be a robust flu season this year because there has been such a relaxation of masking,” Stoloff said. “The flu data from the Southern Hemisphere has shown an angry version this year.”

Stoloff said that data about each upcom ing flu season is collected from the Southern

Hemisphere, which encounters the virus earlier.

Penn’s booster clinic will mark the second time the University will use Gimbel Gymnasium as a vaccine clinic location this year. In January 2022, Penn held a COVID-19 booster clinic from Jan. 14 through Jan. 19. Last fall, the University also held its flu clinic at Gimbel, where nearly 14,000 community members were vaccinated.

Executive Director of Public Health and Well being Ashlee Halbritter previously told The Daily Pennsylvanian that the University chooses Gimbel as a location for vaccine clinics due to a history of success and its accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

PHOTO BY SUE KUN

Have your own opinion? Send your letter to the editor

guest column to letters@thedp.com.

Editorials

Opinion

Letter in support of student protestors

We, the undersigned faculty, are deeply concerned about the efforts of the Center for Community Standards and Accountability to deny or curtail the rights of Penn students to articulate their opinions as part of public protests on campus.

In this instance, two students have been issued notices stating that they have been in “violation of the University’s Guidelines on Open Expression … and Code of Student Conduct,” ostensibly because they had protested at the 2022 Penn Convocation on College Green. The charges against them are incorrect, in fact, as can be demonstrated even by a casual review of video shot during that protest: They were there protesting the forced displacement of the tenants who live at the University City Townhomes, as were many other students and people; President Liz Magill engaged with them briefly from her podium; event stewards asked them to show their IDs or move away from the protest, and while they re fused to identify themselves (as is their right), they did begin to leave. At that point, large numbers of other protestors arrived and took over the protest. They cannot be blamed for what followed, and they should certainly not be singled out from the large numbers of other students and non-Penn protestors who were gath ered there.

The fact that the two students who were singled out and identified — despite not showing their IDs — are promi nent activists, indicates the University’s intention to stifle student protest by in timidating campus leaders. That one of these students is a well-known Penn

Latinx student-activist speaking out on behalf of Black and Hispanic commu nity members causes us to note that the large number of white students who have participated in this and other similar pro tests have not been so charged. This adds another worrisome layer to our concern about the discriminatory actions of the CSA officials who have written to these two students demanding that they attend a hearing.

This past spring, in an earlier hear ing for students who were protesting both Penn’s investments in the fossil fuel industry and its gentrification of West Philadelphia, the faculty mentoradvocates who accompanied the students reminded the officials of the CSA office of the “Principles” of the Penn “Guidelines on Open Expression” that expressly state: “The University of Pennsylvania, as a community of scholars, affirms, supports and cherishes the concepts of freedom of thought, inquiry, speech, and lawful as sembly. The freedom to experiment, to present and examine alternative data and theories; the freedom to hear, express, and debate various views; and the freedom to voice criticism of existing practices and values are fundamental rights that must be upheld and practiced by the University in a free society.”

The Guidelines further state: “Rec ognizing that the educational processes can include meetings, demonstrations, and other forms of collective expres sion, the University affirms the right of members of the University community to assemble and demonstrate peaceably in University locations within the limits of these Guidelines and undertakes to

ensure that such rights shall not be in fringed. In keeping with the rights … the University affirms that the substance or the nature of the views expressed is not an appropriate basis for any restriction upon or encouragement of an assembly or a demonstration. The University also affirms the right of others to pursue their normal activities within the University and to be protected from physical injury or property damage. The University shall attempt to ensure that, at any meet ing, event or demonstration likely to be attended by non-University law enforce ment authorities, the rights provided by these Guidelines are not infringed.”

Furthermore: “The University shall be vigilant to ensure the continuing openness and effectiveness of channels of communication among members of the University community on questions of common interest.” And finally, and most crucially, the Principles conclude by noting, “In case of conflict between the principles of the Guidelines on Open Expression and other University policies, the principles of the Guidelines shall take precedence.”

In that earlier hearing, all charges against those protestors were dropped in accordance with the community values en shrined in these Principles, and the CSA officials conducting the hearings agreed that there was no cause to proceed fur ther, because there were no grounds for the charges that brought the students to the hearing. In which case we find it par ticularly surprising that, once again, two students here (and seven others in a sepa rate, concurrent case) are being charged on similar grounds. Given this recent history,

we can only understand the actions of the CSA office as an attempt at intimidation, an attempt to cause these student-activists, whom we admire, to give up on their urgent protest against “Penntrification,” the con tinual displacement of minority residents of West Philadelphia/the Black Bottom, to suit the interests of big developers and their clients.

As we face unprecedented climate and housing crises in our city and around the planet, we look to our young people to use their knowledge, principles, and passion to enable social change through bold and unconventional actions. These students protest out of deeply-felt care for the world. Instead of arbitrarily singling out two students from a crowd of hundreds, instead of disciplining them for exercising their First Amendment rights to political speech, instead of instituting a chill on free speech and protest at Penn, instead of contradicting Penn’s own Guidelines on Open Expression, let us turn our attention to the issues they call upon us to address.

We will continue to support our stu dents and their ethical and political insistence on protesting the wrongs done to vulnerable members of our community. We ask that no charges are brought against them, and that the CSA office cease its pattern of intimidation. And we certainly will act, in the interest of our university community, to preserve the right to pro test.

SIGNED, 73 PENN FACULTY For the full list of signatories please visit the article online at thedp.com.

How diversity is valued (or not) in Class of 2026 admissions

When I heard that Penn was tout ing this year’s class as the “most diverse,” I wasn’t surprised. I am often skeptical when it comes to broad statements such as this one, especially regarding ad missions rates at a highly selective school. This skepticism isn’t due to the actual di versity of races, economic statuses, or home countries of the incoming class — but because words such as “diverse” are being used increasingly in recent years as universities strive to portray themselves as more inclusive places.

As a Black woman who often infiltrates majority white spaces, I cannot escape hearing words adjacent to diverse or inclu sive thrown around when even one member of a large group is a person of color. Al though my specific experience cannot be generalized to fit every use of the word, I find myself cringing when I am the diver sity that people are referencing.

For many people of color, I assume this feeling (akin to tokenism) is not new, and applying to university only accelerated the use of diversity as a buzzword. In refer ence to 2026 admissions, Penn made the bold move to not release an official ac ceptance rate in March, and while Dean of Admissions Whitney Soule stated that this decision was meant to “celebrate the students we have invited to the Penn com munity as individuals,” not disclosing this information initially made it hard to deter mine who had been admitted.

Striving for certain types of diversity in institutions of higher education is not en tirely new, but since hearing that this year’s admitted class is the “most diverse,” it’s im portant to specify what that diversity really means. Our uniqueness is highlighted in our geography and extracurricular ac tivities, but important characteristics like racial identity or heritage, ideological iden tity, and gender identity are missing.

As a student, I value diverse ideological beliefs in both faculty and classmates, as well as transparency surrounding processes in administration, such as releasing the

acceptance rate! We all know that Penn is a selective school when it comes to academ ics and merit, but there is also selectivity based on the attributes the University wants to cherry-pick from its already handpicked basket.

What I find to be particularly inter esting comes from the demographics section of the admissions report. Instead of reporting ethnicity-specific informa tion, the category is instead named “races and ethnicities historically underrepre sented in higher education.” Not only am

I winded after reading a subcategory such as that — it’s the longest category title in the demographics section — I am also left confused. The University uses that term in line with the Integrated Postsecondary Education Data Systems definition, which classifies Pacific Islander, Black, and His panic students as underrepresented.

The decision of the University to not report ethnicity-specific information on their website makes me wonder what the actual admission numbers of each “his torically underrepresented” ethnicity are.

Universities such as Harvard, Princeton, and Yale all report demographic-based information directly on their admissions websites. Penn’s deviation from this trans parency leads me to question whether within this 23% we have — like we do in the University in general — an inequitable rate of one race over another. My biggest takeaway from this section is that regard less of the individual numbers, less than one third of this year’s incoming class iden tifies with an underrepresented identity. In addition to this question of equity within university space, another claim used in boasting about this year’s admitted stu dents surrounds “the highest proportion of students from Philadelphia” granted admission this cycle. As seen on the web site for admitted students, this staggering number is a mere 6% of the incoming class. Keep in mind that within this statistic of students from Philadelphia, there is no mention of the percentages from repre sented or underrepresented identities. This, when coupled with the fact that 77% of this year’s class are from historically repre sented identities, paints a picture far less diverse than the one initially thought of when I think of a “diverse” paradise.

When making claims about diversity, I’d love for the University to be honest about its faults and continued inequities, rather than throw around buzzwords in an effort to portray itself as something they have not yet achieved. As a first-year stu dent, I remain optimistic for the future of Penn and recognize that true diversity of thought, background, and opinion is attain able down the line. Until then, I encourage the University to focus energy on fostering true diversity on campus rather than statis tical representations.

MIA VESELY is a College first year studying philosophy, politics, and eco nomics from Phoenix, Ariz. Her email is mvesely@upenn.sas.edu

PHOTO BY OSCAR VASQUEZ

PHOTO BY JESSE ZHANG

Virtual classes are still needed in a post-COVID-19 world

A s classes kick into full swing with the first few weeks under our belts, students and faculty alike have rejoiced at the return of an inperson, maskless semester. And with the return of classes comes the return of strict policies — especially attendance. Students have already faced the dilemma of taking an absence when their class does not warrant one, causing many to drag their feet out of bed when they are men tally or physically unwell.

Professors should therefore have an option for students to attend class live from Zoom, providing the opportunity to stay up to date on class materials while also taking health into consideration. Especially in large lectures with hundreds of students packed in an enclosed room, it is important to be cognizant of the community’s overall well-being.

This is not to say that Zoom University should make a comeback. We can all attest that virtual learning is not an ideal academic experience. However, the past two years have taught us that online classes are possible, and it is better for students to learn from their computers than not learn at all. Though we all want life to return to normal, our extensive experience with COVID19 has provided us with alternative solutions that should not immediately be discarded. Education is all about learning from the past, and we should utilize these prior adaptations to improve our current situations, rather than immediately fall back in line with our former way of life.

Although Philadelphia’s COVID-19 rates have decreased and, thankfully, present less of a risk compared to previous years, a wide variety of illnesses continue to circulate. The so-called “frat flu” always spikes up at the beginning of the semester, as well as the “freshman plague” that seems inevitable due to room mates, communal bathrooms, hookup culture, and unmasked classrooms. Monkeypox has also become a recent threat, and this is not to men tion the multitude of seasonal illnesses that also occur as temperatures begin to drop.

Furthermore, college students are not ex actly a beacon of health and wellness. “Seventy to 96% of college students get less than eight hours of sleep each week night,” which is detri mental to one’s health as “chronic lack of sleep impairs the immune system.” Stress also “does a number on the immune system,” and with a rigorous course load expected at Penn, students are undoubtedly sleep deprived and stressed throughout the week.

Penn was also ranked as the No. 1 party school in the country in 2014, with a social scene that remains similarly rambunctious to this day. Students turn to parties for social relief on the weekends, creating additional strain on one’s health. Not only do they consume copious amounts of alcohol, but they also turn to junk food and takeout for both comfort and conve nience. To make matters worse, “most students don’t know how to care for themselves when they do get sick,” and insufficient care can pro long a pre-existing illness.

Of course, exposure to germs is natural and

How making

W hat if I told you three minutes each morning could help you destress, manage your day, and lead a healthier life? While it may sound too good to be true, it’s not.

Our 21st-century reality is a world obsessed with health, wellness, and beauty. And Penn is no exception. Whilst dealing with being fulltime college students, we manage sports, clubs, jobs, and vigorous social lives. This means life is moving at hyperspeed, and there’s rarely time to focus on anything else. When it comes to selfcare, time is a necessity — and frankly, there usually isn’t any.

We all are guilty of pining over the newest trend or scrolling through TikTok for hours on end trying to find a one-step cure to acne, bed head, anxiety, and stress. While I can’t give you a mira cle cure, I have found the next best thing — and it costs nothing.

When my mom first handed me “Make Your Bed” by Admiral William H. McRaven, I have to admit I was far from intrigued. The only activ ity I thought could be more boring than actually making your bed would have to be reading about it. However, after several speeches from my mother promising this book is a “fundamental read,” I decided to give it a try — and I recom mend you do, too.

Former Navy SEAL Admiral William H. McRaven started this idea at his commencement speech for the University of Texas Austin. The speech was so successful that he turned his words into a self-help book that is more than worth the read. McRaven states, “If you want to change the world, start off by making your bed.” The book delves deeper into the importance of the small things in life in order to set up success for the bigger ones.

As a Navy SEAL, if you failed to make your bed perfectly each day, your punishment would land you rolling around in the sand, wet, while you find your comfort and dignity slowly slip away. Making your bed is so beneficial in every day life that it led the United States government to require our own soldiers to start each day with this task. On days that feel impossible, making your bed is always within your control.

At an Ivy League institution, our lives are far from predictable. No matter how hard you try, finding a routine will always be a struggle due to the fast-paced, overscheduled, and never-ending weeks students experience far too often. However, routine is critical to maintaining a healthy balance

necessary, but falling ill is something to be avoided when possible. Because some profes sors have strict attendance policies, students are consequently deterred from skipping class when they really need to. Many large lecture halls have been filled with students hacking up a lung, eliciting eye rolls and dirty looks from their peers. Students should not have to jeopar dize the health of their classmates in order to prevent themselves from falling behind. Many classes only meet two to three times a week, so a couple of absences could already mean a week’s worth of material to catch up on. During exams, this could have a severe impact on one’s final grade.

Mental health must also be considered, especially with substantial evidence that dem onstrates how much Penn students struggle. In 2019, Penn received a failing grade of a D+ for mental health. That same year, Penn was also ranked No. 1 in the country for having the most depressed student body. It is therefore unfair for professors to expect consistent in-person

attendance with the multitude of mental health issues that students endure.

Professors often decline to offer Zoom recordings after class in an effort to ensure par ticipation and discussion. If students have the option to watch their lectures in their leisure time, they are more likely to sleep in and slack off. This undoubtedly produces bad study habits, as it grants the opportunity to push lectures off until the last minute, leaving students to cram months of material the night before an exam.

However, this is why professors should have the Zoom option available only during class time, so students who are unable to physically attend class can still join their peers at the scheduled hour. Professors can also establish policies that prevent abuse of the Zoom offer ings. For instance, they can offer the Zoom link to students who provide advance notice, and they can speak privately to a student if an ex cessive number of absences were to occur for suspicious reasons. Attendance is certainly necessary for the sake of learning, and students

bed will change your life

in day-to-day life. A routine ensures you are able to make time for each area of your life, whether it be family, academics, athletics, or the packed social schedules we’re all too familiar with. Not only that, but routine can also be critical to your health itself — the benefits of routine have also been scientifically proven and include reduced stress, better sleep, and overall better mental health.

So, how do you do the seemingly impossible and create a routine in an unpredictable world? You make your bed. While making your bed seems simple enough, it creates benefits that go

far beyond having a tidy dorm room. Waking each morning and dedicating two to three minutes to make your bed helps you to take control of your life. No matter what amazing or terrible things are coming your way, you can always be sure that tomorrow will bring one thing: a made bed in the morning.

Not only does this promote routine and help you control your life, but it also sets your day up for organization and success. It gives you a break, even if only a few minutes long, to ease your mind and focus on a simple task that we are all totally capable of doing.

should be able to fulfill attendance policies without jeopardizing their health.

Many professors also fear a privacy breach with the existence of class recordings published online for extended periods of time. Implement ing a live Zoom option protects intellectual property as class material would only be acces sible at a certain time to a certain audience and would therefore not be available for public con sumption.

As Penn transitions back to the in-person experience we all desire and deserve, the com munity’s mental and physical health must stay at the forefront of our minds. There is no need for prior solutions to go to waste, and we should continue learning from the past to improve cur rent life.

EMILY CHANG is a College junior studying communication from Holmdel, N.J. Her email address is changem@sas.upenn.edu.

ANNIE BINGLE is a College first-year student from Connecticut. Her email is bingle@sas. upenn.edu.

So, instead of turning to Gwyneth Paltrow or TikTok for your next lesson in wellness and selfcare, consider simply making your bed. It’s not time consuming, not hard, and completely free. This simple task will have effects that last way beyond the time it takes to complete, and put you on your way to being the best version of yourself.

PHOTO BY DEREK WONG

PHOTO BY AMANDA SHEN

NITIN SESHADRI Staff Reporter

Dining tab of the Penn Mobile app, the Analytics page displays a graph of previous swipe and Dining Dollar usage along with a line predicting when the student will run out based on their current behavior.

The dining analytics feature relies on an API pro vided by Penn Dining which transmits data from Campus Express to Penn Mobile. The API tracks real-time student dining balances and a daily his tory of swipe and dollar expenditures, according to a written statement from Barbara Lea-Kruger, Penn Business Services director of communications and external relations.

“We are always looking for ways to improve the student life with more access to data, and this seemed like a great opportunity,” Wharton and En gineering senior Jong Min Choi, the iOS Team Lead for Penn Mobile, told The Daily Pennsylvanian.

A team including Choi and other current and former Penn Labs members — Dominic Holmes, Josh Doman, Andrew Antenberg, and Hassan Hammoud — developed the feature. Hammoud, a Wharton senior and Penn Labs co-director, said that persuading Penn Dining to provide access to their API required some effort, including a PowerPoint presentation. Members noted that the COVID-19 pandemic also delayed the feature’s deployment.

“The school was pretty receptive, but at first, there was a little bit of hesitancy, in terms of, ‘we’re not sure who you guys are, why do you want this data, and what are you doing with it,'” Hammoud said.

Hammoud added that while Penn Labs has very strict security standards and can’t see any student’s

dining balance information, Penn Dining was not initially aware of their security practices, so he had to prove to them that all student data was anony mized and hashed.

Hammoud also analyzed the beginning and endof-semester dining balances from fall 2019 and found that there were hundreds of thousands of dol lars of unused swipes and Dining Dollars caused by students not accurately budgeting their dining plans. He said that by making dining analytics available to students, this six-figure deadweight loss could be reduced.

Wharton first year Max Chen said he believed the new feature was “really cool” and was prompting discussion among students, but noted an issue where the prediction becomes inaccurate after a student changes their dining plan.

“The projections are completely off because it looks like — I don't know how the regression model works — but basically my dining balance shot down because I changed it, and then my swipes shot up,” Chen said. “So everything’s out of sync.”

Both Choi and Hammoud said that Penn Labs is working on fixing that issue, and encouraged stu dents to submit feedback through the “Share Your Feedback” link in the app.

Currently, the dining analytics feature is only available on iOS. However, according to Choi, Penn Labs is currently working on bringing the feature to Android. Hammoud said that Penn Labs is also considering improving the prediction model to dis tinguish between weekdays, weekends, and breaks,

Penn Labs added a Dining Analytics feature to its popular Penn Mobile app, aiming to predict when a student will run out of meal swipes or Dining Dol lars.

The feature has been in development since fall 2019 and was introduced by Penn Labs, a student software development organization, with an update earlier this month. When accessed through the

PHOTO BY KYLIE COOPER

The Penn Mobile Dining tab on Jan. 30, 2020.

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression ranks Penn second-tolast college in free speech

FIRE

SIERRA WEI Staff Reporter

A recent ranking placed Penn second to last for free speech on college campuses, prompting mixed reactions from some students.

The Foundation for Individual Rights and Expres sion, a nonprofit aimed at protecting free speech on college campuses, released its third annual free speech ranking on Sept. 7, placing Penn second to last out of 203 schools surveyed — just ahead of Columbia University in last place. The University of Chicago came in first, followed by Kansas State University, Purdue University, Mississippi State Uni versity and Oklahoma State University. Skidmore College, Georgetown University, and Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute rounded out the bottom five.

In the full report, FIRE ranked Penn 188th for dis ruptive conduct, 187th for comfort expressing ideas, and 130th for administrative support. Penn ranked 69th for tolerance of liberal speakers and 151st for tolerance of conservative speakers. According to the full report, for every one conservative student at Penn, there were approximately 5.9 liberal students.

Penn received a low score in the FIRE report for administrative behavior due to one successful dis invitation of a speaker in 2019 and five attempts to sanction scholars, including three attempts to sanc tion Penn Law professor Amy Wax and one attempt to sanction Robert Schuyler and María Paula Romo.

Some students that The Daily Pennsylvanian spoke with said that FIRE’s ranking for Penn was inaccurate, describing the campus free speech en vironment as average or comparable to other elite universities, while acknowledging occasional in stances of certain views being censored.

College senior Matthew Liu, the communica tions chair of Penn’s chapter of Young Democratic Socialists of America, said he believes that Penn ad ministration does suppress discussion around certain issues and uses intimidation tactics to discourage students from protesting.

“Penn is very good at promoting the rhetoric of free speech and talking about how they are in sup port of speech while also in more subtle, indirect ways limiting or restraining [speech]. I have seen it a little more so, generally speaking, with students if

they tend to be underrepresented at Penn, whether that be women or people of color,” Liu said.

Liu added that he believes the administration’s response to UC Townhomes protesters is a recent ex ample of Penn trying to quell productive discourse, speech, and activism on campus.

College and Wharton sophomore Joshua Fra zier said he sees self-censorship as a larger issue on campus than how Penn administrators approach free speech.

“Free speech is neither hindered nor promoted by Penn’s administration. I think the bigger prob lem exists with students self-censoring due to social pressures,” Frazier said. “A lot of times, we have this self-censorship, whether it’s [that] we don’t want to offend someone else … or don’t feel like we could defend our belief to an Ivy League professor.”

The primary factors differentiating the top five and bottom five schools in FIRE’s ranking are “Comfort Expressing Ideas,” “Administrative Sup port,” “Administrative Behavior,” and “Tolerance Difference.”

The survey’s categories were summed to create an overall score out of 100 for each school. Penn scored 14.32 overall.

According to FIRE’s ranking, 63% of students surveyed were worried about damaging their rep utation because of someone misunderstanding

something they said, and 21% reported that they selfcensor “very” or “fairly” often. Both Frazier and Liu agreed that Penn is more tolerant toward liberal views on social issues.

“There is a little bit of censorship of conservatives on social issues, I will give them that,” Liu said.

FIRE’s report indicated that at the colleges they surveyed, there was more support for liberal speak ers than controversial speakers. Frazier said that he appreciates the diversity of thought that exists at Penn. He cited the Government and Politics Asso ciation debate held last March, which featured both conservative and liberal speakers, as one notable example of respectful and productive free speech on campus.

“It was just a lot of camaraderie and not preju diced or anything amongst the student body, which is something not common that you hear on the news every day,” Frazier said.

Frazier and Liu added that they believe that col lege provides a good opportunity for students to be exposed to different ideas, describing the Univer sity as an environment that is uniquely “conducive” to freedom of speech.

FIRE used data collected from College Pulse, a college survey platform, to create their ranking. 44,847 student respondents enrolled in four-year degree programs were surveyed at 208 colleges and

Developers are planning a new 34-story building close to Penn’s campus

The building will have 363 units and be named The Mark at Philadelphia

EVA NEE Senior Reporter

360 units for individual apartments and group living.

The building — which will be located at 3615 Chestnut Street — will have 363 units and be named The Mark at Philadelphia. Of the total units, 236 units will be used as individual apartments and 127 units will be used for group living. The building will also have 70 parking spaces and 96 bicycle stalls, Rising

universities in the United States.

FIRE hosted an open Zoom session last on Sept. 21, which focused on its 2022-2023 college free speech rankings. At the session, FIRE senior re search fellow Sean Stevens said that schools could improve their ranking by having administrators publicly support free speech, defend scholars rather than sanction them, and revise campus speech poli cies.

FIRE Vice President of Research Adam Gold stein said at the session that schools can improve by defending the practice of tenure, describing the protection as “the lifeblood of academic freedom and free speech on campus.”

Frazier said professors can help facilitate free speech by creating a venue for open discussion.

“I think that classrooms should be safe spaces for all voices — and safe spaces not in the fact that we cut out opinions from the classroom, but rather we include all, and all agree, that we might debate really tough subjects in the classroom,” Frazier said.

FIRE was cofounded in 1999 by Penn Profes sor Emeritus Alan Charles Kors, prompted by his involvement in a scandal regarding free speech on campus. In 2012, FIRE ranked Penn in the top seven colleges for free speech.

Real Estate reported.

The building will be constructed on what is cur rently a surface parking lot in the heart of University City. The building’s pedestrian entrance will be on Chestnut Street, and the parking entrance will be on Ludlow Street.

Made up of stacked stone and metal and precast panels, the exterior of The Mark will be composed of different shades of blue and gray. The neighboring buildings will include the existing Ralston House and a church.

According to Rising Real Estate, The Mark is using a low-income housing bonus to build an additional 250% in floor area ratio. The next step of the project will be a hearing with the Civic Design Review on Oct. 11, and no permit has yet been issued for the construc tion of the building.

The BKV Group and Landmark Properties are the architects and developers of the project, respectively. Landmark Properties is planning to construct a similar project to be completed in 2024, next to the University of California, Los Angeles.

Existing Mark properties also serve as student hous ing and are located in Arizona, Texas, and Georgia.

“The Mark is a luxurious student community de signed for the ultimate off-campus living experience,” according to the The Landmark's website. “With custom-designed furniture packages and first-class amenities, our residents are met with a high quality of life that is a mark above the rest.”

PHOTO BY LILIANN ZOU

RENDERING FROM BKV GROUP

A 34-story tower has been planned to be built at 3615 Chestnut Street.

From club to walk-on: How Zubeir Dagane leads men’s cross country

Aiming to lead among the rest of the pack is a central goal in cross country, but senior Zubeir Dagane finds that leading the team is just as important

WALKER CARNATHAN Sports Reporter

As the runners take their mark, all is still. The course is quiet. It is a moment bristling with both intensity and tranquility.

The sounding of the gun marks the beginning of the unparalleled test of physical stamina, and senior runner Zubeir Dagane has already cleared his mind.

“If you’re able to think during a race, you’re going out way too slow,” Dagane said.

This is a feeling many cross country runners know all too well. It is a sport so physically demanding that

it zaps away any mental energy. There is nothing to consider, other than the next step, the next breath, the next goal.

“That whole time, I’m just thinking about how much pain I’m going through,” he said.

Eventually, after what feels like an eternity of mind-numbing exertion, the race draws to a close. At that point, Dagane is too tired to eat, but can resort to a Gatorade or Sunny D in hopes of regaining the energy the race took from him. And regardless of his finish, Dagane knows that running is, above all else, a journey.

Unlike many of the athletes he competes against, Dagane, now a senior, did not have the “flashy times” to attract the attention of a Division I program while in high school. When he arrived at Penn, he joined the club cross country team, and spent the en tirety of his first semester getting into good enough shape to walk on to the University’s track and field and cross country programs.

“I was lucky enough to train with a good group of guys on our team, which got me into good enough shape for the tryout,” Dagane said, crediting his fellow club runners for the role they played in his progression.

After a semester of hard work, Dagane broke through and earned a spot on the team in the spring, just after the final race of the cross country season. But thanks to factors outside of his control, it would be some time before Dagane could take his rightful place on the course, finally donning the Red and Blue.

As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Ivy League did not play any fall sports during the 2020 season, which would have been the debut of Da gane’s collegiate cross country career. And while this would be an understandable setback for many athletes, Dagane credits it as the event which helped fortify his mindset.

“I picked right back up,” Dagane said. “I became more obsessed with running. I became

goal-oriented, to contribute to the team once stuff came back.”

That obsession, that fixation on one’s goal, is a necessary trait for any great runner. During a gruel ing race, when the only thing on your mind is pain, determination alone drives you to the finish.

As a distance runner, Dagane runs for both the Penn cross country and track and field teams. On the track, he holds the ninth fastest 10,000 meters time in school history, a race which he describes as his “lucky 10K.”

“I don’t think I’m cut out to be a 10K guy,” Dagane said. “That’s my upper limit. I don’t think I’ll be re turning to that anytime soon.”

Such a performance can never be complete luck, but it likely would not have occurred had it not been for the input of Dagane’s coaches. On both the cross country course and the track, he takes their advice with diligence, a factor which has undoubtedly con tributed to his success.

On the day he ran his “lucky 10K,” Dagane says he was originally slated to race the 1,500 meters, but switched after his coaches suggested trying out the unfamiliar race. In cross country, he allows his racing strategy to be informed by expert guidance.

“We just follow the coaches, whatever they think is best to do,” Dagane said. “For big meets, we usu ally try to keep it controlled, go with the top guys, then finish well from there.”

That final step, finishing well, is what separates impactful runners from the pack. To do so requires a laser focus on the objective, which Dagane has, but it also requires another intangible quality, one which he cites as the biggest difference between track and cross country.

“You have to be a lot grittier in cross country,” Dagane said.

Grit and determination are challenging to de velop, and perhaps even more difficult to pass on. But as one of the team’s fastest and most experienced runners, Dagane inherits the responsibility of being a dependable leader. Just as he once relied on other runners to help him get into good enough shape to make the team, he now hopes to set that example for a young, promising team.

“We’re still young. We’re still up and coming. The journey is a big part of it,” Dagane said. “Trainingwise, the guys are geared to look up to some of the top runners. It just happens naturally … I just try to lead.”

From successfully walking on, to an unexpected place in the history books, to all the arduous races he has pushed through, many of Dagane’s goals have already been achieved. And yet, with the majority of his senior year still to come, there are many more challenges to confront and conquer.

And if Dagane’s past is any indication, his accom plishments yet to come are only a matter of time.

Burney’s individual defensive prowess and aggres siveness for the ball mirror the other Penn starting defenders and rotational players. Senior midfielder Nick Schimbeno starts alongside Burney and is often tasked with clearing difficult crosses in the box with his head.

The outside players on the Quaker backline, on the other hand, have more varied responsibilities. Sopho more outside back Ben Do has established himself as one of the two starting fullbacks for the Quakers along with senior Jack Rosener. Given the team’s em phasis on possession, Do can often be found far up the left side of the pitch, where he tries to balance his attacking and defensive duties.

“Before I came to college, I was actually a winger,” Do said. “So I have these attacking tenden cies to go forward. I think the coaching staff does a really good job of making sure that we’re defensively minded and disciplined in how we attack, without sacrificing our creativity.”

Covering the outside-left area of the field, Do is usually matched up against fast and technical right wingers, against whom he has to track back and delay by using his speed and composure.

“When I go into a one-on-one matchup, I try to slow my feet down, read his shoulders, read his

movement, and avoid overstepping,” Do said. “At any second, the player can easily cut the ball in another direction. The wingers are really skilled nowadays.

I think just trusting all the training that I’ve done to prepare myself for games and having confidence in my matchups are keys for success.”

Of course, the Quakers hope to avoid these tough situations by keeping the ball and defending col lectively. Communication is key to Penn’s defensive organization, whether it be deciding how far to set up the line for an offside trap or calling out runners trying to get in behind players for dangerous through balls.

Key in forging solid communication is form ing partnerships among the defenders, something Burney and Do, who play near each other on the left half of the field, have managed to accomplish.

“I think how well we work as a team, not just us two but our entire team, how we function so well in the field is a testament to how close we are off the field,” Do said. “Leo and I had a really good chance to get closer this past spring. We played a couple of spring games, and we developed really good rela tionships that took us into this year. I don’t think I could have any better center back to play with.”

In the modern college game, defenders have to be physical, fast, and composed at all times to secure results. The members of Penn’s defensive unit have seemingly accomplished this through their first seven games, but they will be tested more so when the team begins Ivy League play at Yale on Saturday.

DARTMOUTH, from page 10

yards over two games, with tailback Zack Bair contribut ing 223 yards and a touchdown, and Howard tallying 243 yards and four touchdowns.

While the Dartmouth run game will certainly provide a challenge greater than any the Quakers have faced this season, it will not be anything they have not seen before. Colgate, whom the Quakers dispatched in week one, fea tured a similar scheme led by mobile quarterback Michael Brescia.

“The quarterback in our first game against Colgate, that was a very similar concept and offense that they ran,” coach Ray Priore said. “So we’ve gotten a little bit of a live version of it already, which is always good to see.”

The Quaker defense stifled Brescia in their opening matchup, holding him to -4 rushing yards on 14 carries. If they can repeat that performance against Howard, it will go a long way toward earning a victory.

Heimlicher leads a defensive line that held Lafayette to a net total of one rushing yard, and will be crucial in stymying the Dartmouth offense. After a 10-tackle, onesack performance against Lafayette last week, he cites his commitment to preparation as the secret behind his recent success.

“Just getting in the film room, seeing all the tendencies of the different offenses we’ve been playing,” Heimlicher said when asked what factor has most contributed to his standout play.

In regard to the defense as a whole, Heimlicher believes their relentless approach is behind their superb start to the season. The Quakers have not allowed an offensive touch down thus far, and according to Heimlicher, give 100% effort on every down.

“As a unit, just staying focused on every play, never ex haling, and getting after the QB,” Heimlicher said.

Slowing down Dartmouth will be a tall task for the Quaker defense, but to this point, the group has demon strated a staunchness that will need to continue if they want to write a new chapter in the rivalry with the Big Green.

Offensively, Penn has been solid thus far, but has left much to be desired in the way of explosiveness. The team

had just one play of more than 15 yards against Lafayette, and short of an electric second half against Colgate, there have been few flashes of potential improvement.

The Dartmouth defense, however, is in an arguably worse position. Last week against Sacred Heart, the Big Green took a 31-17 lead with 5:34 left to play in the third quarter, seemingly putting the game on ice. But the Sacred Heart offense responded with 14 unanswered points, send ing the bout to overtime. There, the Dartmouth defense gave up the game-winning touchdown, losing by a final score of 38-31 and snapping the team’s 20-game non-con ference win streak.

Coming off of such a colossal letdown, Dartmouth will look to swarm Penn’s offense and overwhelm sophomore quarterback Aidan Sayin. Sayin has thrown three inter ceptions across the first two weeks, a habit he will need to quit in order to thwart Dartmouth.

In order to take some of the pressure off of their quar terback, Penn’s receiving core will also need to generate more consistent separation. With the exception of a 57yard throw and catch to Julien Stokes in the first quarter against Lafayette, there has been little in the way of a verti cal passing attack. If the defense is unable to completely shut down Dartmouth, the offense will need to look for more chunk plays in order to keep pace.

Going into a matchup against such a formidable oppo nent is a daunting test for any team. But the Quakers want to capitalize on their early season momentum and prove they are cut out for Ivy League contention, it is a test they will need to pass.

“They’re a very well-coached team,” Priore said of Dartmouth. “They don’t make mistakes.”

Regardless of recent history between the two programs, the Quakers will take the field on Friday night armed with a fervent belief in themselves. From the conference cham pionship banners hanging in Dartmouth’s stadium to their punishing run game, the Big Green loom large.

But the Quakers are not making the trip with the intent of allowing the past to dictate the present.

“I feel good about the guys that will be hopping on the bus,” Priore said of the team’s chances. “We’re going up there with a focus of mind, and we’re thinking very posi tively.”

On Friday, we’ll find out if Priore’s feelings are wellplaced.

PHOTO BY ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL

Now-senior Zubeir Dagane competes in the 5000-meter race during Penn Relays at Franklin Field on April 28.

Freshman Mallory Lucas brings consistent dynamic prowess off the bench

The freshman midfielder is already claiming considerable minutes on the field

ALEXIS GARCIA Sports Associate

For Penn women’s soccer freshman midfielder Mallory Lucas, the phrase “family affair” holds a different meaning in the game.

Most athletes would name another athlete when asked, “Who is your biggest inspiration?” But Lucas finds the greatest influence to her soccer career in family. The Whitman, Mass. native doesn’t come from a family of soccer players, yet soccer was the sport that stuck.

“I have just always liked running,” Lucas said. “So I ran cross country and track when I was in middle school and high school. But running with out any purpose, really, wasn’t my thing. I’d rather be chasing a ball and trying to score a goal.”

Lucas started playing soccer very young, drib bling a ball across green fields at the age of five.

“Neither of my parents played soccer, so I don’t really know how exactly I got into it,” Lucas said. “But I just know every time I put my cleats on, I just love the sport so much and it’s grown on me.”

Although her parents had no prior experience with the sport, Lucas always sourced their deepest support in both soccer and school. They instilled a “no-failure” mentality in Lucas, which she found most valuable through the toughest challenges of her soccer career.

“[Whether it be] to try and get a little bit faster, to maybe become a little bit quicker at a certain drill, or to get a shot on frame,” she said. “It could [also] be to learn something new in class every day or study a little bit extra to get that good grade on a test — they are always there to push me and support me no matter what.”

One of Lucas’ said challenges occurred during spring of her junior year in high school. Tragedy struck when she sprained her lateral collateral liga ment, strained her hamstring, and suffered a severe patella bone contusion.

Lucas still remembers how tough it was to watch from the sidelines and not be able to practice or play. But her optimism returned her to the field as a better player overall.

“Honestly, that challenge was truly beneficial, because when I [got] back, my love for the game was just reinforced,” Lucas said. “I feel like I was just happy out there on the field!”

Her renewed joy for the sport boosted her perfor mance even further. Lucas sealed her high school career as her school’s all-time leading goal-scorer with multiple regional, state, and even national ac colades to her name.

Now wearing the Red and Blue, her college career has the potential to be accolade-filled as well.

Despite being with the program for only a few months so far, the freshman has already played 214 minutes and scored her first collegiate goal — the winning goal, for that matter — during the team’s first victory of the season against Lehigh on Sept. 4. Lucas has seen playing time in all but one match this season, sitting out against Maryland in the second game of the season.

Collegiate play obviously entails a faster-mov ing ball, more athletic players, and a quicker game pace. Yet Lucas persists with an optimistic outlook while adjusting to the higher level of play.

“The girls that we play against are incredible, and it’s just so amazing to be out on the same field as some of these incredible players,” Lucas said. “But [the mentality is] still the same: compete to win.”

Being a new face on a new team, under a dif ferent coaching staff — many athletes find the challenge of figuring out where to fit in. Lucas’ transition to the Red and Blue, though, has proved a relatively seamless continuation.

Penn has shot out to a 2-0 start, slowly beating La fayette last week more or less on the back of their stout defense. This performance, while positive, doesn’t neces sarily predict success this Friday when considering they play the Dartmouth Big Green.

“I haven’t started many games, so I think my role has been to come in, keep the tempo up in the game, and keep the girls that are playing 90 minutes on their toes,” Lucas said. “I get so excited every time the coach says my name and I am able to go sub in.”

Support from within the program itself has also been building toward Lucas’ success.

“[Penn women’s soccer has] been everything I could have ever hoped for,” she said. “My teammates are just absolutely incredible. They are so support ive, they help me get better on and off the field; they’re honestly so great. The coaches are amazing, too. We had the coaching change, so I didn’t know what to expect coming in, but our coaches are great.”

Lucas also expressed high praise for the quad of captains on the team. She mentioned their upbeat attitude, team-bonding activities, and positive re inforcement as key factors to consistent motivation and mentality between her teammates.

Her current game-to-game objective has been to be as impactful as possible during play and

optimizing her time on the field, while keeping her teammates motivated to play their best as well.

In the long run, Lucas hopes to leave a lasting impression on the Red and Blue’s women’s soccer program — whether it entails being on the field, or trying to volunteer off the field to connect further with the Philly community.

And of course, her goals include an aim toward claiming the Ivy League title.

Through a current 2-1-6 overall record for the Quakers, the team is keeping confident. Consid ering the circumstances (new coaching staff, new class of players, construction on Rhodes Field, etc.), it is no surprise Penn women’s soccer has faced a couple of kinks to iron out through this first half of the season.

“Considering we’ve won a couple of games, and the ties have been very [against] good teams, I think the future is looking upward and we’re just excited to compete in the Ivy League,” Lucas said.

senior quarterback Nick Howard. Howard already has 243 rushing yards and four rushing touchdowns on the season.

Look, Penn’s defense has been stellar this year the only touchdown they’ve let up is a pick-six but its pre vious opponents don’t have the same offensive resume.

So, you can’t expect a repeat of the Lafayette shutout.

Dartmouth also has something else on their side: mo mentum. They won the Ivy League last year. They beat Penn for the past four matchups. They destroyed Penn in their last matchup.

Penn may be the underdogs, but they will not go down without a fight. However, it’s a fight that they’ve lost many times before.

Dartmouth 20, Penn 14 — Brandon Pride, former Sports Editor

Something’s got to give in this game.

Dartmouth comes in averaging over 350 rushing yards per game, while the Quakers are giving up less than 40 on the ground coming into the contest. I anticipate this game will push down and up those averages, respec tively, but the Big Green will emerge the victors. The Red and Blue won’t give senior Dartmouth quarterback Howard much to work with through the air, but he will beat them on the ground consistently, especially in cru cial moments.

If the Quakers are to have any chance in this game, they have to be perfect. That means a defensive per formance like last week’s and no mistakes or miscues on offense. It’s a tough draw for Penn this early in the season, going up against a good team on the road on Family Night. While this matchup will be closer than the last couple of times these programs have met, the Quak ers will exit the forest Friday night with their first loss and but also with the rest of their season — and a nearly seven-hour bus ride — ahead of them.

Dartmouth 30, Penn 14 — Sean McKeown, Sports Reporter

Coming off a heartbreaking loss to the underdog Sacred Heart Pioneers in overtime, Dartmouth is look ing to bounce back with a win against the Red and Blue. Despite the loss, Dartmouth ran for over 300 yards and three rushing touchdowns all while only throwing the ball 16 times.

Last week, the Quakers were able to hold Lafayette’s running game under 2.5 yards per carry, while also sack ing freshman quarterback Ryan Schuster and junior quarterback Rent Montie a collective total of five times. While this performance is impressive, it doesn’t lead me to expect Penn to be able to stop Dartmouth on the ground whatsoever when they meet at Memorial Field.

Expect Dartmouth’s run game, headed by senior quar terback Howard and sophomore running back Q Jones, to overwhelm the Quakers defense with size and speed that they haven’t yet seen this season.

Penn 21, Dartmouth 17 — Walker Carnathan, Sports Reporter

They say those who do not know history are doomed to repeat it. In this case, Penn football is well aware of their history with Dartmouth, and is ready to ensure that this chapter has a different ending.

The Big Green enter the matchup at 1-1, and have not resembled the co-Ivy League champions of last season. They were on the wrong end of a thrilling overtime finish against Sacred Heart last weekend, a game which saw the Dartmouth defense let up 21 unanswered points to let the victory slip away.

While the Dartmouth rushing attack led by mobile quarterback Howard has remained strong, the Quaker defense has looked more than prepared over the first two weeks. The game will likely come down to the ability of the defensive line and linebacking core to hem in the elu sive Dartmouth ball-carriers. In the end, I see an efficient passing attack and gutsy defensive performance leading Penn to their first defeat of Dartmouth since 2016.

PHOTO BY ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL

Freshman midfielder Mallory Lucas kicks the ball away from a Stony Brook player during the game at Rhodes Field on Sept. 11.

Penn begins Ivy play at Dartmouth in primetime showdown

WALKER CARNATHAN Sports Reporter

As Penn looks to continue its strong start to the season and compete for an Ivy League title, a giant stands in their way.

That giant is Dartmouth football, as well as the mountain of precedent that the matchup carries with it. Dartmouth has defeated the Quakers in each of their last four faceoffs by a combined score of 112-49.

But, as the team travels to New Hampshire to begin its conference schedule, an aura of optimism permeates throughout the group. In their eyes, this is not the same Dartmouth team that won a share of the Ivy League title a year ago, nor is it the same Quaker group that struggled to a 3-7 record. This time, Penn believes things will be different.

“We’re really confident,” senior defensive lineman Jake Heimlicher, who was recently named Ivy League Defen sive Player of the Week, said. “Going into this matchup, they’ve had our number the last couple years, but we have a team that’s resilient and ready to get after it.”

In 2021, Dartmouth utilized a unique strategy en route to a 9-1 record and one of the most scathing offensive attacks in the FCS. The Big Green employed a two-quar terback system, with Derek Kyler and Nick Howard splitting snaps under center. While Kyler was the more adept passer, Howard added another dimension to the offense with his rushing ability, and both earned All-Ivy League honors. But Kyler transferred to Pitt in the offsea son, leaving Howard to ascend to the role of QB1.

With Howard alone at the helm, Dartmouth’s scoring output has not skipped a beat. The Big Green are averag ing 36.5 points per game, with the bulk of their production coming from the ground attack. The team has 707 rushing

The Picks are in: Penn vs. Dartmouth

BRANDON PRIDE, KRISTEL RAMBAUD, SEAN MCKEOWN, & WALKER CARNATHAN Sports Staff

This Friday at 7 p.m., Penn football (2-0) — coming off a gritty, defensive win against Lafayette last week — will travel to Hanover, N.H. to take on Dartmouth (1-1) in its third game of the season and its first in Ancient Eight play. Four Daily Pennsylvanian sports reporters make their picks ahead of the Quakers’ last game before begin ning Ivy competition.

Dartmouth 24, Penn 14 — Kristel Rambaud, Sports Reporter Penn’s undefeated season could very well come to an end in Hanover against Dartmouth. Dartmouth has a high-scoring offense they scored a combined 66 points game over its past two contests led by their

Friday Night Lights

Penn men’s soccer’s win streak built on aggressive defense

Good defense is often an unthanked trait on the stat sheet, but Penn’s backline remains vicious on possession

ANTONIO MELONI Sports Reporter

Over Penn men’s soccer’s last four games — all wins — the team has tallied a total of 18 goals, shining offensively en route to a 5-1-1 record. Less outwardly noticeable, though, is the Quaker defense, which hasn’t conceded more than one goal in any of its first seven games.

Aiding this strong start to the season have been Penn’s defensive tactics, which, compared to previous seasons, have been drastically altered, in fluencing the entire team’s style of play.

“We really want to be a team that’s possessing the ball in the opposition’s half,” senior goalkeeper Nick Christoffersen said. “We trust our defenders to step up aggressively against opposing players to try to win the ball back quickly. I think we’ve created a lot more attacking chances by being able to lock teams in their own half, which is a credit to our defenders.”

Christoffersen has played the most minutes of anyone on the team this season, serving a big role in organizing the defense. Penn’s four-man back line has been pushed higher up the field for the majority of games, leading to new challenges for Christoffersen.

“Being a very offensive team this year, I think our biggest threats for conceding goals are transition sequences and set pieces,” Christoffersen said. “A huge thing that we work on in training a lot is our setpiece play. My biggest contribution probably over the course of the season has been my ability to collect balls off of set pieces and corner kicks.”

Players in the Penn back line have to track back and cover ground quickly when the team loses the ball. That requires Penn’s fullbacks and center backs to be on point at all times during the game, show casing physicality, pace, and one-on-one defending abilities.

Sophomore center back Leo Burney has played the second-most minutes out of any Quaker on the men’s squad, and he embodies the qualities that are necessary to be successful in Penn’s defensive scheme. Standing at 6-foot-3, Burney’s frame makes him dominant in the air and forceful in one-on-ones against strong opposing forwards.

“Ideally, if we’re playing well defensively, I don’t have too many one-on-one battles through out the game,” Burney said. “But I pride myself on being able to stand up to a striker and shut him down. I’ve been able to develop a very aggressive approach to heading where I really want to get my head onto every ball that I can. This approach to defending has been huge for all of us in the back line.”

PHOTO BY NICOLAS FERNANDEZ

The Penn football team makes its entrance at last year’s home opener against Dartmouth on Oct. 1, 2021.

The Quakers seek their first win against the Big Green since 2016

Can the Quakers extend their win streak in their first road game?

PHOTO BY ANNA VAZHAEPARAMBIL

Sophomore defender Ben Do kicks the ball away from a Rider player during the game at Rhodes Field on Sept. 2.