Higher Education

Susan B. Sorenson of the School of Social Policy & Practice said parents can help prevent campus sexual assaults by asking college administrators about the topic. “It gives the message that parents care about this stuff as much as they do about academic advising and the dorm rooms and the policing or security system,” she said.

Laura Perna of the Graduate School of Education spoke about accommodating the needs of adult students. “There is a complexity to adult learners,” she said. “It is really recognizing, ‘What are the circumstances of individual people’s lives?’ If someone is to enroll in college, how do you make it possible for them to attend?”

Women make up the majority of Wharton’s incoming class of MBA students this fall, a first for any of the M7 programs. “COVID has just wreaked havoc on women in the workplace, and business schools serve as such an important pipeline for that talent pool,” said Dean Erika James.

More than half of the Wharton School’s incoming MBA class are women, a record high for both the school and the country’s other top business programs. “As a female leader, I understand firsthand the significant impact that experiencing meaningful gender representation can have on women as they chart their careers,” said Dean Erika James.

The Wharton School will create a virtual institute for HBCU students interested in the alternative-investment industry.

Eric Feldman of the Law School spoke about how vaccine mandates could affect colleges and universities. “There are likely to be many students who are only comfortable being in a classroom where everyone is required to be vaccinated,” he said.