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Student Experiences with Confidential Resources at Penn

Penn Women's Center, one of the University's confidential resources, is on Locust Walk. It is a brown building, and there are fallen leaves around the building. Photo courtesy of The Daily Pennsylvanian

Many students have had traumatizing experiences when trying to speak to a confidential resource about their experience with sexual violence. Similarly, students have had negative experiences with confidential resources provided for other issues, those of which we discuss in this article.

Inside the Fight for a Grad Student Union

Photo shows a black paper sign with white lettering that reads "GET UP" on a bulletin board with other posters. Photo courtesy The DG

Graduate students serve as teaching assistants, instructors, and research assistants that carry out operations essential to university life and experiences. However, despite the amount of work that graduate students do in order to ensure that undergraduate education and research goes smoothly, the University does not recognize them as workers.

How Penn and Other Universities Are Turning Teaching into Temp Work

Protestors stand in solidarity in front of the Ben Franklin statue on College Green with signs about justice for workers.

What are the labor conditions of the tens of thousands of people whose work makes Penn work? As a faculty organization AAUP–Penn advocates for the university workers employed in teaching and research, though our commitments don’t stop there.

Penn’s Problematic History of Union-busting

Many University-affiliated staff members have said that Penn has promoted union-busting strategies to their advantage. Photo shows white, male protestor with a sign that demands a fair contract for custodial staff and housekeeping workers. Photo courtesy of The Daily Pennsylvanian

Penn has been faced with allegations of union-busting tactics and remained silent in the face of labor organizing in Philadelphia. Corporations and institutions implement common union-busting strategies to keep workers divided, demoralized, and controlled.

The Erosion of Asian American Studies

Six student protestors stand in front of the Ben Franklin statue on College Green with other protestors demanding more resources for the ASAM program. Photo courtesy of The Daily Pennsylvanian

AM Program was the result of countless and constant efforts on part of students and faculty, and its existence holds an important place not only for academic enrichment but for students who fall under the AA+NHPI label at Penn. While it is important to celebrate the program’s tenacity, it is equally important to understand the program’s past, specifically Penn’s consistent institutional disregard of the program and its students and faculty.

Cultural Houses at Penn: A Decades-long Deadlock

Photo of the ARCH Building and a portion of Locust Walk in front of it on a cloudy day. Currently, the three major race-based cultural centers are housed in the ARCH building's basement. Photo courtesy of The Daily Pennsylvanian.

For those who are not already aware, the University of Pennsylvania is a predominantly-white institution. This detail is overlooked by some who are aware of Penn’s strong history of establishing some of the nation’s first Cultural Resource Centers (CRCs) on college campuses. However, many remain unaware of the history behind these spaces and the war that their student leaders have continuously waged in their journey to advocate for students of color at this institutions.

Penn Loves Your Trauma Until They Don’t: Mackenzie Fierceton’s Story

Students at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia rallied in support of Mackenzie Fierceton, a former Penn undergraduate student, who was accused of falsifying information about her background, on the school’s campus on April 13, 2022. Photo courtesy of Kimberly Paynter (WHYY)

Mackenzie Fierceton is a Penn graduate and former foster youth who received a Rhodes Scholarship. Last year, she was manipulated and abused by the University and lost her scholarship. Now, the Penn community demands justice.

Penn Can Do More to Support FGLI Students

Picture shows a brown desk with a blue and red sign reading "Office of Student Financial Services." While resources exist, many believe that Penn does not provide enough support for FGLI students, especially in dealing with the psychological consequences of imposter syndrome. Photo courtesy of The Daily Pennsylvanian

Despite receiving varying degrees of financial aid, many FGLI students still struggle with their economic circumstances at Penn. Only 3.3% of students at Penn are from America’s bottom 20% of family income, while 71% are from the top 20% and 19% are from the top 1%. As a result, low-income students can feel extremely isolated.

A Recent History of Organizing at Penn

Less than a week after Russian forces invaded Ukraine, Penn students walked in solidarity across campus to show solidarity between the University community and Ukraine. A poster reads "Slava Ukraine Heroem Slava" among other phrases. Photo Courtesy The Daily Pennsylvanian

Over the past few years, the Penn community has rallied in response to injustice on and off campus. Every movement deserves to be discussed, but here are some of the most notable examples.

Why Can’t Penn Talk About Palestine?

We believe it is about time to start talking about Israel and the way our school is helping to perpetrate human rights violations in the OPT. Here’s what you should know about divestment, a popular and nonviolent movement to fight for equality in Israel.