THE INDEPENDENT STUDENT NEWSPAPER OF THE UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA • FOUNDED 1885 VOL. CXLI
PHILADELPHIA, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 25, 2025
NO. 22
Joe Biden’s public career is waning. The Penn Biden Center’s influence has faded with it The fate of the Penn Biden Center has mirrored Biden’s shifts from public office to private life — and back again WILLIAM GRANTLAND Senior Reporter
CHENYAO LIU | SENIOR PHOTOGRAPHER
‘Lowest on the totem pole’: Penn lecturers allege job insecurity, lack of representation The DP spoke with lecturers across the University, many of whom said their roles were marked by restricted benefits, uncertain career prospects, and limited representation in administrative decision-making AIDAN SHAUGHNESSY Staff Reporter
Penn’s Faculty Handbook describes lecturers as “eminent scholars” who provide “valuable instructional services” to Penn and its student body. But in interviews with The Daily Pennsylvanian, non-tenure track faculty said that their day-to-day experiences and treatment do not reflect that description. This past summer, the Faculty Senate’s annual report raised concerns about the equity of treatment of non-tenured faculty members, explicitly noting discrepancies in faculty pay and representation. The DP spoke with lecturers across the University, many of whom said that their roles were marked by restricted benefits, uncertain
career prospects, and limited representation in administrative decision-making. As the name implies, non-tenure track faculty, including lecturers, are not eligible for tenure at Penn — which is defined by the Faculty Handbook as a “continuous appointment that extends until retirement.” As of 2024, nontenured faculty members made up over 60% of all University faculty, according to the Penn chapter of the American Association of University Professors. Multiple lecturers interviewed by the DP requested anonymity, citing fears of professional retaliation.
In many schools and departments across the University, lecturers are tasked with teaching introductory courses — many of which are also requirements for various majors. This includes the Critical Writing Seminar, which is taught exclusively by lecturers and is the only course that is mandated for all Penn undergraduates. “So much of the teaching at Penn is done by non-tenure track people,” Critical Writing Program lecturer John Kehayias said. “I think that’s a big thing that students don’t know about and don’t understand.” Formally, lecturers are separated into two See LECTURERS, page 2
When the Penn Biden Center for Diplomacy and Global Engagement opened in February 2018, then-Vice President Joe Biden laid out his hopes that it would serve as a “gathering place” that could foster the exchange of ideas for years to come. But seven years later — after an exit from the Oval Office and amid a drastically different political landscape — the center’s presence has all but disappeared. The fate of the Penn Biden Center has mirrored Biden’s shifting path from public office to private life — and back again. First launched by then-Penn President Amy Gutmann, the center’s establishment appeared to position Penn as a focal point of Biden’s post-political career. After Biden began campaigning for the presidency, the center experienced a sharp decline in external-facing activity, beginning a period marked by partisan controversies and culminating in an eventual restructuring under a new initiative. “Penn Washington is now the physical and programmatic home for the University of Pennsylvania’s engagement in the nation’s capital,” Penn Washington Executive Director Celeste Wallander wrote in a statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian. “The Penn Biden Center is now one component of this broader entity.” A spokesperson for Biden did not respond to multiple requests for comment. Biden’s early ties to Penn The former United States president’s personal involvement with Penn preceded the center’s establishment and any official appointments. His late son Beau Biden graduated from the College of Arts and Sciences in 1991. Several of Joe Biden’s grandchildren also would go on to attend the University. Biden spoke at the School of Social Policy & Practice’s graduation ceremony in 2010 while serving as vice president and again at Penn’s 2013 See BIDEN, page 7
College first year Daniel Kim elected president of Class Board 2029 by 23vote margin
New H-1B visa fee could cost Penn millions of dollars each year, DP analysis finds
In a statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian, Kim wrote that he ‘really appreciated the connections and friends’ he made throughout the election process
According to data from United States Citizenship and Immigration Services, Penn ranks first among all Ivy League universities as an employer of H-1B visa beneficiaries
CHRISTINE OH Staff Reporter
ANVI SEHGAL AND SRISHTI BANSAL Senior Reporter and Staff Reporter
Penn Student Government announced the results of the Class Board 2029 and Undergraduate Assembly elections on Monday. College first year Daniel Kim was elected 2029 Class president with 187 votes — 23 more than the first runner-up, College first year Zheng Kang Teo, who is also a staffer at The Daily Pennsylvanian. Wharton first year Esteban Machorro was elected as the Class of 2029 executive vice president with 238 votes. In a statement to the DP, Kim wrote that he “really appreciated the connections and friends” he made throughout the election process, recalling how he campaigned as “Daniel Kim, DK, and [his] barber name DKUTz” while cutting hair for three hours outside McClelland Cafe. “I wanted people to believe in me as a person first, rather than my policies and implementations,” Kim wrote, adding that he talked to voters not about the policies that he wanted to establish, but “about the person that [he] was.” The Class of 2029 elected College first year Solon Osei-Agyemang as vice president of external affairs, College first year Shiven Dawda as vice president of internal affairs, and College first year Ryan Loughran as vice president of finance. College first years Sophia Chen — also a DP staffer — and Sara Turney were elected as the College class chairs, and Engineering first year Wesley Leeroy was elected as Engineering class chair. Running unopposed, Wharton first year Sinan Erkurt was elected Wharton class chair, while Nursing first year Ariana Escarne was elected Nursing class chair. Osei-Agyemang, Teo, and Loughran were also elected to fill seven of the eight new-student representative seats on the Undergraduate Assembly, along with College first years Ameera Karim, SEND STORY IDEAS TO NEWSTIP@THEDP.COM
Charmaine Chinodakufa, Sophie Rivell, and Wharton first year Samyam Khatiwada. College first years Advait Wattal and Cavance Snaith, who is also a DP staffer, tied for the eighth seat, after both receiving 217 votes. “A runoff election will be held only between the two tied candidates,” College sophomore and Nominations and Elections Committee Vice Chair Ananya Shah — who is also a senior columnist at the DP — wrote in an email sent to the candidates. Voting for the runoff election will open on Thursday, Sept. 25 at 9 a.m. and is set to close on Friday, Sept. 26 at 11:59 p.m. “When I opened the form to read the results, I was in shock that I tied with another candidate,” Snaith wrote in a statement to the DP. “During the campaign, I found it difficult to convince Penn first year students to participate in the voting process, and now I imagine it is going to become more difficult.” Despite his initial reaction, Snaith described his optimism for the upcoming election, writing that he is “excited to get back out and [take] this as an opportunity to socialize more with first years and potentially establish new relationships.” A request for comment was left with Wattal. College sophomore Eshaal Ubaid — who is also a DP staffer — was elected as the new UA transfer representative, winning 29 votes, 9 more than runner-up and College sophomore Kate Patterson. The election round also included contests for four special elections, two seats for UA College representatives, two seats for UA Engineering representatives, one seat for Class Board 2027’s Engineering representative, and one seat for Class See 2029, page 2
SRISHTI BANSAL | STAFF REPORTER
Penn may be forced to pay millions of dollars to continue employing certain international workers after the federal government imposed fees on new H-1B visa petitions. According to data from United States Citizenship and Immigration Services and an analysis by The Daily Pennsylvanian, Penn ranked first among all Ivy League universities as an employer of H-1B visa beneficiaries. Under a proclamation made by 1968 Wharton graduate and President Donald Trump last week, each new H-1B petition will be subject to a $100,000 fee. In 2025, the University secured 111 new approvals, which could cause Penn to face more than $11 million in fees each year if it maintains similar levels of sponsorship. Penn sponsored an average of 269 H-1B visas
ONLINE AT THEDP.COM
annually — including both new applicants and renewals — between 2020 and 2025. The University had 227 approved H-1B employees in 2025. A University spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment. H-1B visas are for employees with “highly specialized” knowledge and education who are able to work temporarily in the United States. The visas last for three years but can be renewed for a period of up to six years. In an interview with the DP, President’s Distinguished Professor of Political Science and immigration expert Michael Jones-Correa characterized the proclamation as “not very well thought out” and highlighted the “substantial cost” that will place a financial burden on employers that sponsor See VISAS, page 7 CONTACT US: 215-422-4640