PILOTs – Penn Disorientation Guide

A Letter from the Editor

Attendees of the vigil display a banner of names of people who died in the Israel-Hamas war on Oct. 14. Credit: Chenyao Liu August 25, 2025 Today the University of Pennsylvania formally welcomes the Class of 2029. Today is the six hundred and eighty-eighth day of genocide. For six hundred and eighty eight days, theContinue reading “A Letter from the Editor”

How Penn is Cheating Philly’s Public Schools

Protesters march on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania demanding the school and Drexel University pay PILOTS to support Philadelphia schools on March 30, 2021. A black student in a blue coat holds up a sign that says, "Pay your fair share PILOTs now!!" Another protestor in the background holds a sign that reads, "Fund our schools not police."

In Philadelphia, the poorest large city in the U.S., Penn is both the largest employer and largest private landowner. However, due to its federal status as a nonprofit institution, it does not pay property taxes.

How Penn is Cheating Philly’s Public Schools

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.