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THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA • FOUNDED 1885

PHILADELPHIA, THURSDAY, MARCH 5, 2026

VOL. CXLII

NO. 8

Financial constraints hit Penn Museum, Career Services The decisions come after Penn directed all schools and centers to reduce certain expenditures by 4% in January LAVANYA MANI AND RYAN RUCKER Staff Reporters

communication and a lot of meetings with a variety of people, including faculty, staff, and students, over the past year.” On Feb. 26, a Columbia University student was detained by ICE officers who entered her residential building by allegedly impersonating members of the New York Police Department and requesting access to find a missing child. One individual — who identified herself as an international Penn student and requested anonymity for fear of retribution — told the DP that the incident at Columbia “hits a lot more close to home.”

Both the Penn Museum and Penn’s Career Services recently made significant cuts to programs and offerings in response to University-wide financial limitations. The Penn Museum indefinitely suspended its anthropology summer camp — which ran for nearly 30 years — while Career Services announced a significant decrease in funding for its summer 2026 programs. The decisions come after Penn directed all schools and centers to reduce certain expenditures by 4% in January. A museum webpage attributed the move to Penn’s ongoing hiring freeze, adding that the University was “unable to cover the operational staffing required to run the camp.” The Penn Museum Anthropology Camp was an eight-week-long program designed for children ages 6-13. “We have made the difficult decision to suspend the summer camp for the foreseeable future, and we will not be running the program in Summer 2026,” the website read. According to the announcement, the decision came after “extensive discussion and careful consideration of multiple scenarios.” “We are grateful to Museum colleagues and all the families who have made this a successful and memorable experience for the past 27 years,” a Penn Museum spokesperson wrote to The Daily Pennsylvanian. Roughly 12,000 students — nearly 500 each summer — have participated in the program since its inception in 1998. “Each week offers an exciting theme inspired by the museum’s world-renowned collections, blending handson workshops, expert talks, gallery explorations, and creative projects,” a 2025 camp description read. “With themes changing weekly, there’s always something new to learn and create.” According to a recent update, Career Services will limit its summer 2026 funding to the Turner Schulman Human Rights Internship Award, which supports research on various global matters. Career Services has historically provided undergraduate students with a wide range of summer funding opportunities, often supporting those who pursued underfunded or unpaid programs. “We were informed in January that there would

See ICE, page 2

See BUDGET, page 2

ABHIRAM JUVVADI | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

As University remains silent on ICE, Penn community offers guidance for possible campus encounters In the absence of widespread communication, students and campus organizations have offered resources and organized workshops to inform the Univeristy community ARTI JAIN AND CHRISTINE OH Senior Reporters

As federal immigration enforcement escalates across the country, multiple students told The Daily Pennsylvanian that they have stepped up to support each other in the absence of detailed guidance from the University. While University officials have stated that they are “quite attuned” to the national issue, Penn has remained largely silent on how it would respond in the face of United States Immigration and Customs Enforcement activity on campus. In the absence of public guidance, Penn students and organizations have shared resources and hosted workshops to inform the campus community about how to prepare for possible confrontations with federal agents.

Historian Michael Beschloss set to deliver Commencement address Penn’s 270th Commencement — held on May 18 at Franklin Field — will grant degrees to graduates, recognize honorary recipients, and feature remarks from University officials ISHA CHITIRALA News Editor

Vice President for the Division of Public Safety Kathleen Shields Anderson told the DP that the “presence of law enforcement in and of itself is not a reason to send out a UPennAlert” — referencing the University’s emergency notification system that disseminates information during “significant emergencies or dangerous situations.” On an FAQ webpage, Penn’s Division of Public Safety wrote that it “cooperates with outside agencies as required by law, while protecting the rights and privacy of students, faculty, and staff.” Shields Anderson also acknowledged that there was “understandable anxiety” from members of the campus community, adding that DPS had “a lot of

Students describe housing lottery system as ‘unfair’ Each year, hundreds of Penn undergraduate students participate in the University’s housing lottery, giving them an opportunity to choose where they will live in the upcoming year LAVANYA MANI AND CATHY SUI Staff Reporters

Each year, hundreds of Penn undergraduate students participate in the University’s housing lottery, giving them the opportunity to choose where they will live for the upcoming academic year. The system randomly assigns students time slots to select rooms. In interviews with The Daily Pennsylvanian, students expressed discontent with the process, saying a limited number of “preferred” rooms leaves those with later time slots at a disadvantage in securing their desired housing. “For returning students, Room Selection is a self-selection process,” a Penn Residential Services spokesperson wrote to the DP. “Students are assigned a randomly generated timeslot and are notified of

that timeslot at least one business day before their selection phase begins. The process is not first-come, first-served.” The spokesperson explained that “timeslots are randomly generated,” and the final selection order is “not tied to when a student submits their application.” They added, “Once their timeslot opens, students may select from available rooms and can view real-time availability through the Room Availability tool in MyHomeAtPenn.” Students also replied concerning the randomness of housing selection. College first-year Anish Gopala — who will live in Lauder College House next year — thinks that students have limited control over the

housing selection process. “I think it is nice that students will get at least one semester, if not two, in a single room to themselves,” Gopala said. “I’ll also say I don’t love the randomness of it and how your time slot is fully random.” College first-year Jecolia Pinto described the selection process as “unorganized and inconvenient.” “It’s definitely not what I expected coming to Penn,” she added. College sophomore Taya Allardice — who serves as the Undergraduate Assembly’s communications director — said the process presents “a huge equity issue.” See HOUSING, page 2

Penn community responds to U.S. military strikes in Iran

United States presidential scholar and best-selling author Michael Beschloss is set to deliver Penn’s Commencement speech for the Class of 2026. Penn will grant Beschloss — who has published nine books on the American presidency — an honorary doctor of letters degree, according to a March 3 announcement made by Vice President and University Secretary Medha Narvekar. Penn’s 270th Commencement, scheduled for May 18 at Franklin Field, will grant degrees to graduates, recognize honorary recipients, and feature remarks from Beschloss and University officials. Beschloss currently serves as a presidential historian at NBC News and as a PBS contributor. His most recent book — titled “Presidents of War: The Epic Story, from 1807 to Modern Times” — published in 2018, earned a spot on The New York Times bestseller list. He has also held appointments at the Smithsonian Institution, University of Oxford, and Harvard University. Beschloss has received the National Archives Foundation’s Records of Achievement Award, the Order of Lincoln, and an Emmy Award for his Discovery Channel series “Decisions That Shook the World.” “In his highly successful, decades-long career as author and media contributor, Mr. Beschloss has pursued the study of leadership and educated us all on many important historical figures,” Penn President Larry Jameson wrote in a Tuesday announcement. “His scholarly research, writing, and insights offer an indispensable source of knowledge for better understanding the past and appreciating how it shapes the present and future.” Jameson also highlighted Penn’s celebration of “our

From Feb. 28 to March 1, Penn track and field hit the road to compete at the 2026 Ivy League Heptagonal Indoor Championships

In the early hours of Feb. 28, the United States launched drone strikes on multiple targets in Iran — a move that marked a significant military escalation and prompted various reactions from members of the Penn community. Leaders at Perry World House and Penn Washington, alongside faculty experts and campus centers, weighed in on the potential geopolitical fallout of the conflict. As a result of the U.S. intervention, Penn Global also “strongly advised” students to defer travel to and transit through the Middle East region. Just after the bombing was reported, members of

See SPEAKER, page 3

Page 7

See IRAN, page 3

NEWS The coffee and matcha chain Blank Street will open a location on Penn’s campus

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As a result of the U.S. intervention, Penn Global also ‘strongly advised’ students to defer travel to and transit through the Middle East region LUKE PETERSEN Staff Reporter

UMA MUKHOPADHYAY | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER

In Photos: Ivy League indoor championships

NEWS Penn’s Class of 2025 landed jobs at familiar destinations, including finance and consulting

OPINION The Daily Pennsylvanian Editorial Board argues the price of a Penn education degrades its purpose

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SPORTS Penn men’s basketball will compete in the Ivy Madness tournament next weekend