A newly released study by scientists, mostly from Penn State University, outlines their technique of penetrating cancer cells and editing them to make them more vulnerable to cancer therapies.
The proof-of-concept study was published July 4 in <a style="font-style: inherit; font-weight: inherit;" href="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41587-024-02271-7" target="_blank" rel="noopener" data-analytics-id="inline-link" data-url="https://doi.org/10.1038/s41587-024-02271-7" data-hl-processed="none" data-component-tracked="1" data-custom-tracking-id="1364405149715553536" data-hawk-tracked="hawklinks" data-google-interstitial="false" data-label="Nature Biotechnology">Nature Biotechnology</a>.
The scientists “devised an approach to edit cancer cells, delivering two new ‘switches’ into them. The first switch enables modified cells to outgrow the rest of the cancer cell population. Then, the second switch allows these cells to unleash a toxic drug onto the remaining tumor,” Kristel Tiandra wrote in <a href="https://www.livescience.com/health/lung-cancer/ive-never-seen-anything-like-this-scientists-hijack-cancer-genes-to-turn-tumors-against-themselves" target="_blank" rel="noopener">LiveScience.</a>
Tiandra explained that the scientists inserted two &#8220;suicide genes&#8221; into non-small cell lung cancer cells (NSCLC); one gene, aided by the cancer drug erlotinib — which usually stops a protein called EGFR from being activated — allowed the cancer cells to become resistant to erlotinib, thus permitting the team to control whether the cancer cells proliferated.
The modified cancer cells grew faster than the unmodified cells that resisted the drug. Once more of the modified cells were added, the scientists stopped using erlotinib, and the growing cells stopped.
“Once their trap was set, the scientists activated the second suicide gene using a harmless molecule called 5-FC. Cleverly, the second gene codes for an enzyme that helps cells transform 5-FC into a toxin, called 5-FU, that kills cancer. The 5-FU ultimately kills both the modified cancer cells and the cells surrounding them,” Tiandra explained.
The team found that after 20 days of treatment, the modified cancer cells had outgrown the unmodified cells; by roughly 14 weeks after the initial treatment, the tumor&#8217;s volume had dwindled to zero.
“We see this as something beyond the treatment of lung cancer,” lead study author Scott Leighow said. “We see this as a generalizable platform for delivering therapeutic genes in cancer and using those to create therapeutic opportunities that might lead to cures in the future.”
Aaron Goldman, a cancer pharmacologist at the Brigham and Women&#8217;s Hospital, told LiveScience, “I&#8217;ve not seen anything like this.”

Lung cancer, illustration

Researchers Trick Cancer Tumor Cells, Force Them To Destroy Themselves

Cancer

Health

Medical Research

Penn State University

Dylan Mulvaney earned mockery online after the Tikok star failed to fill a room during a speaking event at Penn State on Tuesday evening.
Mulvaney appeared at Penn State at the invitation of the Student Programming Association (SPA). Mulvaney’s speaking fee is typically $40,000, though it’s unclear if Mulvaney and the SPA worked out a cheaper rate for the event. The event was funded with student fees, according to <a href="https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-12832559/Dylan-Mulvaney-Penn-State-talk-transition-Bud-Light.html" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Daily Mail</a>.
A photo, taken and shared by the Young America’s Foundation, of the auditorium that held the event showed a sparse crowd with row upon row of empty seats.
Daily Wire host Michael Knowles shared the photo, saying, “It’s so brutal I don’t even want to mock him for it. To quote Robert Frost, ‘Hell is a half-filled auditorium.’”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
It’s so brutal I don’t even want to mock him for it. To quote Robert Frost, “Hell is a half-filled auditorium.” <a href="https://t.co/bQ6Wy8npJQ">https://t.co/bQ6Wy8npJQ</a>
&mdash; Michael Knowles (@michaeljknowles) <a href="https://twitter.com/michaeljknowles/status/1732218595554308113?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
“We were accused by some on the Right of helping Mulvaney by ‘making him famous.’ But in fact we made sure his brand was viewed as it really is: toxic, embarrassing and ridiculous. Now he can’t draw a crowd and he’s radioactive to companies that associate with him. Total victory,” Daily Wire host Matt Walsh posted on X.
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
We were accused by some on the Right of helping Mulvaney by “making him famous.” But in fact we made sure his brand was viewed as it really is: toxic, embarrassing and ridiculous. Now he can’t draw a crowd and he’s radioactive to companies that associate with him. Total victory. <a href="https://t.co/imJQHAKqgt">https://t.co/imJQHAKqgt</a>
&mdash; Matt Walsh (@MattWalshBlog) <a href="https://twitter.com/MattWalshBlog/status/1732212638308761773?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
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Breitbart columnist John Nolte joked that “the seats identify as full and enthused.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
The seats identify as full and enthused. <a href="https://t.co/RIVMRmwXwB">https://t.co/RIVMRmwXwB</a>
&mdash; John Ocasio-Rodham Nolte (@NolteNC) <a href="https://twitter.com/NolteNC/status/1732212260288758263?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Mulvaney, who has pursued a career in acting, has garnered millions of followers on the social media platform Tiktok, an alleged tool of China’s Communist regime that is banned from government devices by dozens of states. Despite Mulvaney’s social media following, Tim Pool, host of the podcast and web show “Timcast,” stated that “Mulvaney is not popular.”
“Mulvaney is propped up by social media algorithms and gawkers who want to see a carnival side show,” Pool said, sharing the photo of the mostly-empty auditorium. “This person is suffering but being egged on by a mob of psychos cheering as Mulvaney destroys himself.”
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-width="500" data-dnt="true">
Mulvaney is not popular
Mulvaney is propped up by social media algorithms and gawkers who want to see a carnival side show
This person is suffering but being egged on by a mob of psychos cheering as Mulvaney destroys himself <a href="https://t.co/kTJC1T3lTi">https://t.co/kTJC1T3lTi</a>
&mdash; Tim Pool (@Timcast) <a href="https://twitter.com/Timcast/status/1732420640622420125?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">December 6, 2023</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
During Tuesday evening’s event, Mulvaney spoke about his experience “transitioning” as well as the time he endorsed Bud Light, prompting a mass exodus of consumers away from the beer brand, according to Penn State’s <a href="https://www.psucollegian.com/culture_lifestyle/penn-state-s-student-programming-association-presents-a-conversation-with-dylan-mulvaney/article_bee0f234-9450-11ee-9128-238510b9665c.html">Daily Collegian</a>.
Mulvaney called the Bud Light controversy “beergate” and said it contributed to “a hard six months” for the entertainer. Mulvaney accused Bud Light for taking advantage of him, saying, “I realized that these companies were capitalizing on my identity and transness in a way that was really ugly.”

Dylan Mulvaney

‘He Can’t Draw A Crowd’: Dylan Mulvaney Mocked For Sparse Support At Penn State Event

Pennsylvania

A former Pennsylvania State University at Abington professor <a href="https://s3.documentcloud.org/documents/23857287/show_temp23.pdf" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has filed suit</a> against his former employer, saying that he was discriminated against because he is white and the school violated his free speech when he spoke out against the school’s “race-based dogma and discrimination.”
The suit, first filed earlier this month, was brought by Zack De Piero, a professor who taught English at the school for about four years before he resigned in August 2022. In the lawsuit, lawyers from the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism (FAIR) outline several incidents that De Piero says shows the school targeted him because of his skin color. 
&#8220;When he complained about the continuous stream of racial insult directed at White faculty in the writing department, the director of the Affirmative Action Office told him that ‘There is a problem with the White race,’ that he should attend ‘antiracist’ workshops ‘until you get it,’ and that he might have mental health issues,&#8221; the lawsuit says. 
According to De Piero, he was told by university officials to excuse poor academic performance from black and Hispanic students in the name of “social justice” and “antiracism.” The lawsuit claims that he was asked to “penalize” the scores of certain students in order to “equalize outcomes on the basis of race.” 
De Piero and others were also told to watch racialized training videos with names like “White Teachers Are a Problem,” which suggested that all white people are <a href="https://freeblackthought.substack.com/p/the-best-microaggression-training">complicit</a> in white supremacy. 
In the aftermath of George Floyd’s death, De Piero says the racial activism at the school increased. Former Assistant Vice President for Education Equity Alina Wong appeared to encourage looting, according to the suit. “What we call looting, I think of as just getting what you’re due,” Wong reportedly said. 
FAIR legal advocacy managing director Leigh Ann O’Neill <a href="https://www.insidehighered.com/news/faculty-issues/diversity-equity/2023/06/26/white-professor-resigns-alleges-reverse" target="_blank" rel="noopener">said</a> the organization is representing De Piero because of the widespread “institutional intolerance” at American universities. 
“The institutional intolerance that has become so prevalent in the academic space is extremely concerning to us and, you know, we want to champion someone like Zack, who has taken the brave and courageous step to stand up for his rights — and that translates to honoring the rights of his students to engage with … and receive the benefits from a full academic experience,” she said. 
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In a statement to InsideHigherEd, the university said it “has repeatedly affirmed its active and ongoing commitment to diversity and equity, and made clear its goal to create an inclusive and respectful environment in which to live, work and study.”
De Piero, now a professor at Northampton Community College, said he was hit with a bullying complaint after critiquing one of the racialized presentations. 
“Not only was Penn State deliberately indifferent to the racially hostile environment for De Piero, Penn State actively treated De Piero as the problem, suggesting mental health treatment and disciplining him for bullying when he dared to complain,” the lawsuit read. “As a result, De Piero’s only option to escape the hostile environment was to leave Penn State.”

erasing racism, hand written word on blackboard being erased concept

Professor Says College Official Told Him ‘There Is A Problem With The White Race,’ Files Lawsuit

Professor Says College Official Told Him 'There Is A Problem With The White Race,' Files Lawsuit

Courts

Racism

U.S.

White Supremacy

A sociology professor at <a href="https://www.dailywire.com/topic/penn-state-university" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Penn State University</a> suggested during a class that straight students should watch gay porn to open up their sexuality.
In a lecture from his Sociology 119 course from the end of the fall semester, Penn State Sociology professor Sam Richards challenged students to watch same-sex pornography and confront the fact that they might be aroused by it. Richards claimed that every person has bisexual feelings, and that each individual might be more comfortable being bisexual.
&#8220;If you’re straight, watch gay or lesbian porn and see how quickly you feel aroused,&#8221; he said in the lecture, originally held on December 6, via <a href="https://www.foxnews.com/media/penn-state-professor-tells-straight-students-watch-gay-lesbian-porn-learn-how-to-be-bisexual" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Fox News</a>. &#8220;And how you can’t control that. You’ll realize that, ‘Oh, d***, I could be sexualized by people who are like me.’”
&#8220;We are all at some level nonbinary,&#8221; Richards added, in what he claimed was a summary of the views of many sociologists. &#8220;We’re all, very much, easily bisexual.&#8221; It is not clear to what research Richards is referring, but a 2015 study conducted by researchers at Cornell University claimed that both men and women were aroused when they watched porn of the same sex. The researchers <a href="https://www.vice.com/en/article/ypa7vk/straight-people-dont-exist-new-research-says?utm_source=vicefbus" target="_blank" rel="noopener">claimed</a> that this was evidence that sexuality is not strictly limited.
&#8220;I might have hit a nerve there. Did I hit a nerve?&#8221; the professor asked when the class fell silent in response.
Richards then doubled down on his challenge, specifically pointing out straight students, and especially men.
&#8220;Watch gay porn,&#8221; he reiterated, to laughter from the class. &#8220;See if you feel that feeling. If you feel that feeling, look in a mirror, and say huh, maybe I’m just feeling some things that I’m just afraid to release. And maybe you release that and maybe you’d be surprised that maybe you actually are fine being more bisexual.&#8221;
The video was posted to the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/@SOC119/videos" target="_blank" rel="noopener">SOC 119</a> YouTube page, but Richards has since made the videos private after news reports.
Speaking to <a href="https://www.campusreform.org/article?id=20987" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Campus Reform</a> this week, Richards defended his lecture. “When I discuss these issues, I generally do so as a sociologist, since that shapes how I see the world,&#8221; he said. &#8220;From this perspective, ‘sexuality’ is actually quite complex.”
“I have friends/acquaintances who&#8217;ve spent a long time in prison and they have homosexual sex,&#8221; he added. &#8220;They&#8217;re ‘straight’ until they need or want intimacy and then they have homosexual sex.”
According to Richards&#8217; <a href="https://tlt.psu.edu/faculty/sam-richards/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">faculty web page</a>, the SOC 119 course is immensely popular, attracting some 725 students every single semester. The course offers students the &#8220;opportunity to re-examine the world and challenge what they believe to be their place in it from a new perspective,&#8221; it says. The page claims that the course is &#8220;the largest race and ethnic relations course in the country,&#8221; and praised by both students and faculty on both sides of the political spectrum.
The college also defended the course in a statement to Fox News. &#8220;Professor Richards purposefully teaches in a manner designed to promote discussion across a spectrum of opinions,&#8221; Penn State commented. &#8220;His class is not mandatory but is a popular elective that students choose to join. Dr. Richards and his course colleagues take time to discuss opinions from many perspectives — from liberal to conservative — and delve into topics from different viewpoints to create conversation, challenge beliefs and encourage students to explore uncomfortable and complex topics.&#8221;

4D76E7E1-8ADD-4273-97C8-8AEB57C4020E_1_201_a

Penn State Professor Tells Students To ‘Watch Gay Porn’ And Confront That They Might Be Bisexual

Penn State Professor Tells Students To 'Watch Gay Porn' And Confront That They Might Be Bisexual

Education

LGBTQ

Pornography

In mid-January, Pennsylvania State University came under fire after a professor asked his students to “explain why the Taliban is not a terrorist organization.”
Now, a university spokesperson has <a href="https://www.thecollegefix.com/penn-state-defends-assignment-asking-students-to-explain-why-the-taliban-is-not-a-terrorist-organization/">told</a> The College Fix that the assignment was misunderstood.
“Penn State does not align with such violent groups whose values are so disparate from ours,” Bill Hessert, director of strategic communications at Penn State, told the Fix.
“This class, which is part of the political science major and can be used for the homeland security minor, was developed to understand and analyze world views,” he added.
Hessert told the outlet that the “Politics of Terrorism” class professor, Christopher Cook, believes the Taliban is a “a horrible and vicious group that has committed atrocities” while noting that the group has not been officially classified as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government. Currently, Pakistan’s Tehrik-e Taliban is designated by the U.S. State Department as a terrorist organization, but other Taliban groups are not.
Hessert told the Fix that the purpose of the Cook’s assignment was for students to use the State Department’s definition of terrorism to explain why the Taliban were not on its list and that the assignment was not a political statement from the professor.
The full assignment asked students to “In one page, explain why the Taliban is have not [sic] and are still not a terrorist organization.”
“You are not allowed to answer this question in any other way,” the assignment also said. “Any attempt to avoid the [sic] answering this prompt as written; or trying to argue otherwise will result in a failing grade. If you have any questions on the pedagogy behind this assignment — please contact me.”
“Remember to try and use the readings and definitions from this lesson to support your paper, not your feelings on the issue,” the professor added.
As the Fix noted, the assignment was shared by a student on Twitter, who said during a Fox News interview that she found the assignment “completely unacceptable.”
“I’ve had assignments in which they ask me to argue both sides, I love doing that kind of stuff. I think it’s beneficial to every student — but that’s not what this assignment was,” she told Fox.
The student transferred out of the class.
Professor Cook acknowledged the assignment in a tweet earlier in January.
“I am going to guess there is a Venn Diagram between the people who struggled understanding why the Taliban were not terrorists for the [last] 20 years and those who think there can be justified violence against the American government,” he tweeted.
The situation is reminiscent of an assignment from Iowa State University – but in that case, the assignment wasn’t misunderstood, but seen as offensive.
“Write a paper that gives a historical account of 911 from the perspective of the terrorist network. In other words, how might Al-Qaeda or a non-Western historian describe what happened,” was the assignment given to students in March 2017, the Fix <a href="https://www.thecollegefix.com/students-instructed-write-essay-911-terrorists-perspective/">reported</a>.
.

AFGHANISTAN-SOCIETY

Penn State Says Assignment Asking Students To ‘Explain Why The Taliban Is Not A Terrorist Organization’ Was Misunderstood

Taliban

Education is vital for a society to thrive. But in the current “inclusivity-heavy” culture of the United States, it is suffering like never before. As educational systems are dismantled, truth, logic, and reason become expendable concepts, as well.
Education is the very vector of freedom, the transformative way by which people bring themselves out of a particular place in life and into something better for themselves and their descendants. The status of education — and the equality of its access — often plays a key factor in determining how much upward mobility citizens retain in any environment or culture. If our universities continue to stray from their original purpose and fail to fight for reason and logic, our society might very well be destined to stagnate.
As schooling goes, so goes the culture.
In his speech, &#8220;<a href="https://teachingamericanhistory.org/library/document/blessings-of-liberty-and-education/">Blessings of Liberty and Education</a>,&#8221; abolitionist Frederick Douglass said:
<blockquote>
Without education, [a man] lives within the narrow, dark and grimy walls of ignorance. He is a poor prisoner without hope. The little light that he gets comes to him as through dark corridors and grated windows. The sights and sounds which reach him, so significant and full of meaning to the well-trained mind, are to him of dim and shadowy and uncertain importance. He sees, but does not perceive. He hears, but does not understand. The silent and majestic heavens, fretted with stars, so inspiring and uplifting, so sublime and glorious to the souls of other men, bear no message to him. They suggest to him no idea of the wonderful world in which he lives, or of the harmony of this great universe, and hence impart to him no happiness.
</blockquote>
Douglass went on to say that “Education, on the other hand, means emancipation. It means light and liberty. It means the uplifting of the soul of man into the glorious light of truth, the light only by which men can be free.”
In recent months, the American public has witnessed the slow erosion of education under the guise of equity.
Penn State faculty recently announced plans to remove gendered and binary terms from course and program descriptions at the university in an effort to be more &#8220;inclusive.&#8221; During its April 27 meeting, the school’s faculty senate approved multiple policies directed at creating a more “inclusive” environment.
In a <a href="https://senate.psu.edu/senators/agendas-records/april-27-2021-agenda/appendix-c/">statement</a> presented to the student government on behalf of the student-led Committee on Curricular Affairs, the removal of gendered and binary terms was lauded, because “as with most all academic institutions world-wide, has (sic) grown out of a typically male-centered world. As such, many terms in our lexicon carry a strong, male-centric, binary character to them.”
The committee continued, saying terms like “freshmen” are “decidedly male-specific, while terms such as ‘upperclassmen’ can be interpreted as both sexist and classist. Terms such as ‘junior’ and ‘senior’ are parallel to western male father-son naming conventions, and much of our written documentation uses he/she pronouns.”
The committee said that with the implementation of its Preferred Name and Gender Identity Policy, “it is time to close the loop and ensure that all people are not only able to choose their name &amp; gender identity within our systems, but that these documents and systems are also structured to be inclusive from the start.”
Its specific recommendations included moving away from the use of “gendered pronouns when referring to students, faculty, staff, and guests in course descriptions and degree program descriptions.” In effect, it said to replace “he” and “she” with pronouns like “they” or “use non-gendered terms such as student, faculty member, staff member.”
The erasure of gender pronouns based on biological sex is only one way in which educational structures are being dismantled by a determination to avoid facts and truth.
The committee also recommended that the school gradually stop using “academic grouping titles that stem from a primarily male-centric academic history in course descriptions and degree program descriptions.” Instead, the university should replace the terms freshman/sophomore/junior/senior with first-year, second-year, third-year, fourth-year, and beyond.
It added that concerns had been raised about using the number system past the fourth year, because this “would perhaps negatively reflect on students who, for various reasons, are taking longer to complete their (typically) four-year programs, and are also referred to as ‘super-seniors.’” To combat this negative connotation, they said that students who are still attending school past their fourth year “could instead be referred to as ‘advanced-standing’ students.”
Education is based on the goal of seeking knowledge and gaining an understanding of the world. Redefining language in generic terms undermines the notion that there are truths and falsehoods, that there are things that can be relied upon even as the world changes. When everything becomes relative, there is a risk that everyday nuances will lose their meaning and the concept of truth will become obsolete.
If someone is in their fifth year of schooling at a university, it doesn’t matter what the faculty senate determines to call them. They shouldn’t be treated unfairly or unkindly because of their ranking, but no rebranding is going to ensure that. A “freshman” and a “first year” are similarly the same status, and renaming certain levels of education doesn’t change that, either. Instead, what it does is slowly degrade the ability to say that anything is for certain.
Education matters, and the insistence of truth within educational institutions perhaps matters even more-so. It is possible that colleges and universities will lose their allure in coming years. Already, many degrees are viewed as increasingly unnecessary for certain jobs and fields where skills can be learned once someone is hired. The slow demolition of reality in these institutions, however, is a different issue.
The lasting harm universities are inflicting on our next generation will inevitably result in the confusion of the very minds they have the power to mold.
The views expressed in this piece are the author&#8217;s own and do not necessarily represent those of The Daily Wire.

real explosion of vintage electric bulb high speed photography

Opinion: The Shattering Of Logic In American Higher Education

Gender Pronouns

Pennsylvania State University&#8217;s faculty senate passed a resolution on “inclusive language” that will rid the university of alleged paternalistic labels such as “freshmen,” “junior,” “senior,” “upperclassmen,” and “underclassmen.” 
The Senate Committee on Curricular Affairs passed the “Removal of Gendered &amp; Binary Terms from Course and Program Descriptions” resolution on April 27, according to <a href="https://www.campusreform.org/article?id=17483">Campus Reform</a>.
The introduction of the <a href="https://senate.psu.edu/senators/agendas-records/april-27-2021-agenda/appendix-c/">resolution</a> claims that gendered language comes from living in a male-dominated society. 
“The University … has grown out of a typically male-centered world. As such, many terms in our lexicon carry a strong, male-centric, binary character to them,” the resolution reads. “Terms such as ‘freshmen’ are decidedly male-specific, while terms such as ‘upperclassmen’ can be interpreted as both sexist and classist.&#8221;
Terms such as “junior” and “senior” “are parallel to western male father-son naming conventions, and much of our written documentation uses he/she pronouns,” according to the resolution.  
Another goal of the resolution is to replace gendered pronouns such as “he/him/his” and “she/her/hers” with vague pronouns such as “they/them/their” or other “non-gendered terms such as student, faculty member, staff member, etc.”
Course descriptions are the target of the proposed gendered-language change. The resolution provided an example of a proposed edit. 
The original course description for a theatre class on lighting design read: 
<blockquote>THEA 270 Introduction to Lighting Design. Introduction to Lighting Design will focus on helping each student to develop a design process that takes him or her from script to stage.</blockquote>
Following the passage of the resolution, the course description will now read: 
<blockquote>THEA 270 Introduction to Lighting Design. Introduction to Lighting Design will focus on helping each student to develop a design process that takes them from script to stage.</blockquote>
The resolution acknowledged that in some places gendered terms are necessary, particularly in degrees or classes with an emphasis on gender studies. 
“The committee recognizes that there may be places where these terms, especially gender terms, may need to remain intact, for example in the case of courses or degrees that delve into gender studies,” the resolution reads.
A course description for a “gender and theatre” class would be allowed to include words such as “women’s” and “feminist.” The description would read: 
<blockquote>THEA 207 Gender and Theatre. Theatre 207 provides a basic survey of issues of representations of gender identity in theatre. The course will trace women’s experiences in theatre from their absence on European classical stages to the more recent formation of feminist theatres. </blockquote>
The resolution will also replace the terms “freshman/sophomore/junior/senior” with the terms first-year, second-year, third-year, fourth-year, and beyond. 
Concerns were raised by staff members that numbering years beyond fourth would “perhaps negatively reflect on students who, for various reasons, are taking longer to complete their (typically) four-year programs.” 
The resolution suggests that instead of being called “fifth-year” students or “super-seniors,” students should be referred to as “advanced standing students.” 
Terms such as “underclassmen” and “upperclassmen” were also switched to “lower division” and “upper division.” 
The resolution was signed by 26 professors and administrators. 
Penn State is among many universities that pushed to remove gendered language from instructional and promotional materials. According to <a href="https://www.campusreform.org/article?id=17256">Campus Reform</a>, the University of Virginia approved a student ballot measure that would remove “gendered pronouns” from the student government’s constitution. 
Nearly 89 percent of students who voted in the election approved of the update.

Penn State Nixes Labels Such As ‘Freshman,’ ‘Junior,’ ‘Senior,’ Citing Lack Of Gender Inclusivity

Gender

Asked by the Young Americans for Freedom chapter on his campus if he would act as an advisor for the group, a political professor at Penn State University (PSU) instead ripped YAF, seemingly blaming the organization for the breach at the U.S. Capitol on January 6.
Professor Pete Hatemi sent an email to Penn State&#8217;s YAF chapter saying, “Under no condition, would I support any group that has an implied or explicit support for Trump, racism, sexism, or indifference to democratic values, including peace, liberty, freedom, and justice for all peoples,” adding, “I question if your national organization has some responsibility for recent actions.”
After politely thanking Hatemi for his response, PSU YAF chairman John Stafford fired back:
<blockquote>I find your response insulting, not only towards YAF, but the entirety of the conservative movement. … YAF is a 501(c)(3) organization, therefore it cannot and has not ever endorsed candidates/political parties. … Your suggestion that YAF somehow is responsible for the violence at the Capitol last week is unsubstantiated. YAF has never advocated for violence, and to assert such a claim with no evidence or research is dishonorable. National YAF publicly condemned the violence that occurred.
Finally, the assumptions that you made are nothing but biased. You spent the majority of your email attacking my organization and wrongly assuming that we belong to an absurd narrative of violence and chaos, but you never once asked me about the organization or my motivations. I encourage you to research the history of YAF before falsely maligning it. I will continue my search for a chapter advisor to ensure that my YAF chapter has a strong presence on Penn State’s campus — promoting freedom and standing against false narratives like your own.</blockquote>
Stafford told YAF, “College is supposed to be a place where I am free to listen and learn. Yet my experience has been filled with roadblocks and professors limiting me to the realms of their own ideologies. I am proud to be a member of YAF — I will not speak quietly or amend my beliefs.”
“It is Penn State YAF’s constitutional right to exist on campus — whether this professor likes it or not,” YAFD’s Kara Zupkus <a href="https://www.yaf.org/news/penn-state-prof-under-no-condition-would-i-support-yaf-chapter-accuses-yaf-of-responsibility-for-capitol-riot/">wrote</a>. “To attack all conservative students and YAF by accusing them of supporting riots and violence with no evidence is disgraceful and unbecoming of a professor at an institution of higher education. Now is the time for healing in our nation, and this professor and many others are only further stoking the flames of division with baseless accusations and attempts to censor true conservative speech.”
Penn State’s <a href="https://polisci.la.psu.edu/people/pkh11">bio of Hatemi</a> reads:
<blockquote>I am Distinguished Professor of Political Science, Co Fund in Microbiology and Biochemistry at Penn State. My research currently focuses on explicating individual differences in preferences, decision-making, and social behaviors on a wide range of topics, including: political behaviors and attitudes, addiction, political violence and terrorism, public health, gender identification, religion, mate selection, and the nature of interpersonal relationships. In so doing I advocate theoretical and methodological pluralism …</blockquote>

Sundial on Penn State College Campus

Penn State Prof Suggests Conservative Student Org Partly Responsible For Capitol Riot

Capitol Riot

Young Americans for Freedom

In mid-June, Pennsylvania State University’s liberal arts department tweeted a statement affirming multiple student groups, including conservatives, who are often in the minority viewpoint.
The tweet began by saying “Dear students, each of you belongs here,” before listing several groups, starting with black students. “Your lives matter,” the tweet said. Here’s the rest of the tweet:
<blockquote>Dear Muslim and Jewish students,
Your beliefs are valued here.
Dear conservative students,
Your viewpoints are important.
Dear Latinx students,
You will not find walls here.
Dear female students,
You are respected.
Dear LGBTQ+ students,
You are supported here.
Dear international students,
You are welcome here.
Dear ALL students,
We are here to support and learn from one another.</blockquote>
Unfortunately for Penn State, viewpoint diversity is not tolerated, and students rushed to express their dismay for the department including conservative viewpoints alongside other groups.
“Conservatives in the United States do not live in a system that was built from the blood and trauma of their ancestors — a system that continues to put down people who look like [their ancestors] every day,” one student told The Daily Collegian, Penn State’s student newspaper.
“Black, Latinx, LGBTQ+, Muslim and Jewish individuals have to deal with [an environment] where a student can scream the N-word at protestors and draw a swastika for a ‘cute’ sorority squat picture and there are no consequences,” the student added.
Another student accused conservatives of being “some of the students that call us the N-word and show us firsthand what white supremacy really is.”
Many others simply repeated liberal stereotypes about conservatives to suggest they don’t care about minorities or women, including one person who said on social media, “penn state really addressed conservative students views being important while attempting to say ‘black lives matter’ i’m confused.” Another tweeted: “Penn state: conservative lives matter 
us: uh no.”
Another Penn State student told the Collegian that Penn State was remaining “silent” about racism.
“Actions speak louder than words and right now, and Penn State’s silence is deafening,” the student said.
“This administration needs to combat racism with a comprehensive plan to uplift the Black community not only at University Park but at all commonwealth campuses, or else it will bring them unbearable consequences that will hurt them in the long run.”
The tweet was soon deleted.
Campus Reform, which recently <a href="https://campusreform.org/?id=15231">reported</a> on the incident, reached out to Penn State Director of Strategic Communications William Hessert, Jr, who told the outlet the tweet was deleted because even though its intent was “to express the inclusive, democratic and participatory values of the liberal arts,” the “message was not being received well and it is important for us that our messages be received as intended.”
“While we do not believe in deleting our posts, given the sensitivities of the matter we felt that it was better to remove it,” Hessert told the outlet.

Butting Heads

Penn State Deletes Tweet Acknowledging Conservatives Student Viewpoints Are Important

Conservatism

Diversity

Penn State University has shut down a 98-year-old &#8220;Outing Club&#8221; after school administrators deemed the group, which enjoys hiking, backpacking, and kayaking, &#8220;too risky&#8221; for its student body.
<a href="https://reason.com/blog/2018/04/22/penn-state-outing-club-safety">According to Reason Magazine</a> and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Penn State undertook a &#8220;risk assessment&#8221; of all its student clubs earlier this year, and deemed the Outing Club &#8212; and outdoor recreation, in general &#8212; simply too dangerous. The &#8220;caving club&#8221; and the Nittany SCUBA club were also disbanded over similar concerns.
&#8220;This is a result,&#8221; an official announcement read, &#8220;of an assessment of risk management by the university that determined that the types of activities in which PSOC engages are above the university&#8217;s threshold of acceptable risk for recognized student organizations.&#8221;
&#8220;Student safety in any activity is our primary focus,&#8221; a spokeswoman told local media.
It seems the problem with the Outing Club was that it occasionally enjoyed the outdoors, and some students hiked, biked, and canoed beyond the reach of cell phone towers, which put them at risk of being disconnected from classmates and the rest of the world for short periods of time, even though that might be the entire point of an outdoors club.
The club itself seemed shocked by the decision, telling Reason that members &#8220;hadn&#8217;t heard of any injuries sustained on club outings in recent years.&#8221; Alumni who contacted the magazine noted that, while the Outing Club was disbanded, team rugby &#8212; one of the school&#8217;s more dangerous sports &#8212; is still on the list of available extracurricular activities, as are &#8220;Archery Club, Boxing Club, Alpine Ski Racing Club and Rifle Club.&#8221;
The Penn State Outing Club and Penn State administration are in &#8220;ongoing&#8221; negotiations about how the club will move forward. Penn administration says &#8220;staff members from the Campus Recreation, Risk Management and Student Activities offices have met with the Outing Club&#8217;s faculty adviser and student leaders during the past 15 months about safety concerns related to the club&#8217;s activities and practices, and &#8216;how those activities can be more safely pursued.'&#8221;
The group&#8217;s top suggestion? Reformat as a film club.

Penn State Shuts Down ‘Outing Club’ After Deciding Going Outdoors Is ‘Too Risky’ For Students

A total of 18 Beta Theta Pi brothers at Pennsylvania State University are facing charges over the death of one of their pledges. Here are the details.
According to <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/US/penn-state-fraternity-18-students-charged-connection-pledges/story?id=47226888">the grand jury&#8217;s investigation</a>, the pledge, Timothy Piazza, fell down a flight of stairs on the night of February 2. He had a blood alcohol level that reached as high as 0.36 due to a heavy amount of drinking he was required to engage in as part of the fraternity&#8217;s pledging.
Various fraternity brothers carried Piazza onto a couch and attempted to wake him up through a number of methods, including pouring liquid on face and smacking him. Two brothers pleaded to get help for Piazza, who at one point was &#8220;thrashing and making weird movements on the couch,&#8221; but such pleas were ignored. In fact, one fraternity member, <a href="http://www.post-gazette.com/news/education/2017/05/09/Penn-State-fraternity-members-911-piazza-pledge-death-pennsylvania/stories/201705090113">Jonah Neuman</a>, slammed Kordel Davis, one of the brothers advocating for help, against a wall and stated everything was fine.
In the ensuing hours, Piazza repeatedly attempted to move, only to fall down, causing him to hit his head on a hardwood floor, a metal railing, a door and fall down three stairs. Help was not called by the fraternity brothers until several hours after these falls had occurred, but by then it was too late, as Piazza was declared dead at the hospital. He had &#8220;a fracture at the base of his skull and a ruptured spleen&#8221; among other injuries, according to <a href="http://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/05/08/527434623/penn-state-students-hazing-death-was-no-accident-grand-jury-says">National Public Radio</a>.
Investigators concluded that the fraternity brothers had attempted to hide their hazing of pledges in their handling of Piazza, which included a deleted text that suggested that they lie to medical personnel by saying they found Piazza behind a bar as well as other attempts <a href="http://www.nj.com/hunterdon/index.ssf/2017/05/8_more_in_penn_state_fraternity_hazing_death_to_be.html">&#8220;to dress him, clean blood from his face and discussed destroying evidence.&#8221;</a> Beta Theta Pi is supposed to be a dry fraternity.
This was not the first time a Penn State fraternity member has died. In 2014, Phi Sigma Kappa member Marquise Braham committed suicide after being forced to endure incredibly rough hazing and then require new pledges to undergo these hazings, which included &#8220;being forced to choose between snorting cocaine or being sodomized; stealing; gutting, skinning and killing animals; forced physical fighting that resulted in concussions; extreme sleep deprivation; guns pointed at their heads; hot wax dripped down their backs; enormous consumption of alcohol,&#8221; according to <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2017/05/08/us/penn-state-fraternities-hazing-alcohol/">CNN</a>. However, a grand jury concluded that Braham &#8220;had been contemplating suicide for a very long time&#8221; and that there was no established link between his suicide and the fraternity&#8217;s hazing.
Beta Theta Pi has also previously received punishment twice, per CNN:
<blockquote>
The first time, in 2009, the chapter was suspended for a year after it was found to be serving alcohol to minors. When it came back, it was a dry house. But in 2013, it was found in violation of the alcohol-free housing policy put in place by the national chapter.
</blockquote>
The fraternity is now permanently banned from Penn State. The charges that the 18 fraternity members face include &#8220;eight for involuntary manslaughter, aggravated assault, reckless endangerment and hazing, among other charges; four for reckless endangerment and hazing, among other charges; and six for evidence tampering,&#8221; per <a href="http://abcnews.go.com/US/penn-state-fraternity-18-students-charged-connection-pledges/story?id=47226888">ABC News</a>. ABC also noted that &#8220;the fraternity itself is facing charges, including involuntary manslaughter and hazing.&#8221;
Piazza&#8217;s father, Jim Piazza, said at a press conference, &#8220;This didn&#8217;t have to happen. This is the result of a feeling of entitlement, flagrant disobedience of the law and disregard for moral values that was then exacerbated by egregious acts of self-preservation.&#8221;
The university president, Eric Barron, issued a statement that read, &#8220;The details alleged in these findings are heart-wrenching and incomprehensible. The University community continues to mourn his tragic death, but no pain we feel can begin to compare to the devastating heartbreak that Timothy&#8217;s family and friends are experiencing.&#8221;
<a href="https://twitter.com/bandlersbanter">Follow Aaron Bandler on Twitter.</a>

These Penn State Fraternity Brothers Are On Trial After One Of Their Pledges Died. Here’s What You Need To Know.

Penn State University will be putting student fees to ever-important use by hosting a workshop called &#8220;The Female Orgasm&#8221; on Tuesday, <a href="https://www.campusreform.org/?ID=8652">reports</a> The College Fix. The workshop, set up by the university&#8217;s Center for Women Students (CWS), will be put on by sex education organization Sex Discussed Here! The workshop will <a href="http://www.sexualityeducation.com/femaleorg/index.php">address</a> pressing issues, such as the pressure &#8220;to have multiple orgasms,&#8221; &#8220;to fake or not to fake&#8221; and the &#8220;existence of the G-spot.&#8221;
Yup. This is college in 2017. 
&#8220;The Female Orgasm combines sex education and women&#8217;s empowerment with a hearty dose of laughter. We bring a playful, honest approach to this topic, packing the house on college campuses,&#8221; reads the workshop&#8217;s <a href="http://www.sexualityeducation.com/femaleorg/index.php">online description</a>. &#8220;With warmth and humor, we illuminate the subject of female orgasm for everyone, whether you want to have your first one, you&#8217;re hoping to help your partner, or you&#8217;re debating the existence of the G-spot or &#8216;to fake or not to fake?'&#8221;
The students attending the workshop will be working in pairs to bring &#8220;multiple perspectives to the conversation.&#8221; Sex Discussed Here! also boasts of their &#8220;tasteful&#8221; and &#8220;appropriate&#8221; presentation of the &#8220;sexy&#8221; material, as well as their inclusivity to those suffering from <a href="http://www.dailywire.com/news/8592/report-transgenderism-not-supported-science-amanda-prestigiacomo">gender dysphoria</a>, or transgenderism.
&#8220;The program is inclusive of people of all genders, gender identities, and sexual orientations,&#8221; says the site. 
CWS Programming Coordinator Jennifer Pencek is hopeful that students, both male and female (and apparently any other madeup &#8220;gender&#8221; they choose to assign themselves ), will participate in the orgasm workshop. 
&#8220;We all realize that a lot is left out in general sex education,&#8221; Pencek <a href="http://www.collegian.psu.edu/news/campus/article_9abc62a6-dc5d-11e6-8ab2-4fb608efb7a7.html">told</a> The Daily Colllegian. &#8220;We want students to know it&#8217;s okay to talk about, that it&#8217;s not shameful and actually beneficial for both partners.&#8221;
&#8220;Orgasms are all about all about pleasure, exactly the aspect of sexuality that&#8217;s not discussed in most formal sex education,&#8221; chimed in Rachel Dart, a &#8220;sex educator&#8221; and co-presenter of the program. 
As <a href="https://www.campusreform.org/?ID=8652">noted</a> by The College Fix, &#8220;the program will be partially funded with UPAC Student Activity Fees, which are paid by students and then used for events or other items &#8216;that will ultimately enhance student life, add value to the out of class experience, and/or improve the educational climate at the University Park campus.'&#8221;
But don&#8217;t worry, that will be money well spent, as Sex Discussed Here! will also be bringing along &#8220;five free &#8216;I love female orgasm&#8217; t-shirts, 10 buttons, and 30 publicity posters, with additional materials available for purchase during the event.&#8221;

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