I was a committed English major by the time I set foot on Penn’s campus, so my main focus when it came to course selection—contrary to all advice given to new college students, then and now—was working the system to maximize those classes while still meeting the minimum requirements for graduation, very much preferably while also avoiding all courses that involved any kind of math.

Back in those days, in what was known as the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS), we had what I believe were called “clusters.” If your major was in the humanities, you needed to take three courses each in the social sciences and natural sciences to graduate. Three Anthro courses—heavy on the ethnographies!—met the former requirement; for the latter, I managed to cobble together a trio of Psych courses, only one of which—the one I took pass/fail—required numeracy. (I passed,
I assume barely.)

I hadn’t thought about this in many years until reading an early version of senior editor Trey Popp’s cover story in this issue, “Course Corrections.” Using the 65th anniversary of the Penn Course Guide as a jumping off point, Trey has pulled together a fascinating account of the classes that Penn students have sought out (and been shunted into under different curricular regimes) since the mid-20th century and how those have changed over the years.

While one element in the piece involves an interrogation of some recent misconceptions about “woke” curricula, the main pleasure for me at least, and I suspect, for many readers, will be in bringing back memories of lastingly meaningful classes, a few stinkers, and some missed opportunities. (Not for the first time, I wondered at my failure to enter the fierce competition for a seat in Riasanovsky’s Russian history course!)

Also in this issue, in “Every Bite, Every Day,” associate editor Dave Zeitlin C’03 chronicles the efforts of one Penn family to raise awareness about celiac disease, improve US policy on food labeling, and possibly effect a treatment or cure to allow gluten-sensitive people to eat safely.

This story had its start on the sidelines of a kids’ soccer game, where Dave got to talking with Jon Bari C’89, whose 11-year-old son Jax has been living with a diagnosis of celiac disease since he was a kindergartener. Jax has also become the amazingly articulate chief spokesperson for Celiac Journey, the foundation the Baris started—Leslie, Jax’s mother, and Lexi, his sister and a sophomore at Penn, are also involved—to share his story and increase funding for research on the disease.

As Dave details, some of that research is ongoing at a lab headed by Nobelist Drew Weissman, which is one cause of hope for the future. For now, the story ends at Penn’s Homecoming football game, where the use of gluten-free toast allowed Jax to participate for the first time without fear in the famous (or, for some, infamous) toast-throwing ritual at the end of the third quarter when the Penn Band strikes up “Drink a Highball.”

We also celebrate Homecoming in this issue, with our annual photo gallery of the festivities and the Alumni Award of Merit citations. As always, congratulations to all the winners!

—John Prendergast C’80
Editor

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