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Sep | Oct 2026
Vol. 125, No. 1
Features
Don’t Only Connect—Get Situated and Practice Agency
In new books, Penn psychologists offer their prescriptions for friendship and achievement and trace the impact of a can-do mindset on human history.
By Julia M. Klein
A Haven at Hillel
For more than 100 years, Penn Hillel has served varying functions with a wide range of offerings—but has always been a spiritual home for the University’s Jewish students. At no point in its history has its mission been more vital.
By Dave Zeitlin
Play Maker
The cofounder of New York Stage & Film—which has helped launch Hamilton, Hadestown, and hundreds of other projects since 1985—is tackling another medium right now: TV. With her new MGM+ show enjoying glowing reviews, yet still on the bubble for a second season, Leslie Urdang C’76 reflects on the high points of her 40-year career as a theatre and film producer—and the challenges of making stuff in 2026. Plus: the student production of Godspell that included some of Penn’s biggest future Hollywood players.
By Molly Petrilla
Departments
From the Editor | Big thinkers’ new books, Hillel’s place, what producers do.
From College Hall | Getting to breakthroughs.
Letters | Healthcare, bathtubs, AI, and more.
Views
Notes from the Undergrad | Death and memory in Cairo.
Alumni Voices | “What I had been missing before was urgency.”
Elsewhere | Home renovations and hermit crabs.
Expert Opinion | Successful businesses will take AI risks as seriously as benefits.
Gazetteer
Urban Design | Weitzman School affiliates stage pop-ups on Market Street.
Leadership | President Jameson confirms June 30, 2027, end to his term.
Symposium | Debating reasons for—and solutions to—mistrust of higher ed.
Journalism | Annenberg’s Pickard on the media’s crisis and opportunity.
Awards | Nicholas Dockery WG’27 receives Medal of Honor.
Sports | Penn’s new football coach, Rick Santos, takes the field.
Arts
Calendar
Landscape Architecture | How campus got its canopy. Penn’s Sylvania.
Briefly Noted
Musical Play | Franklin plays a rock star in The Sound of America.
Alumni
Bonnie Miao Bandeen C’80 WG’85 and husband are battling Parkinson’s.
Tomide Awe WG’17 is an entrepreneur teaching others to build businesses.
Alex Lasry C’09 was CEO of the NYNJ Host Committee for the World Cup.
Notes
Obituaries
Old Penn | Tournament by telegraph.
