Kal Penn to teach at Penn in spring '08

Attention, class: Introducing . Professor Kumar?

Kal Penn, famous for playing the fast-food-chasing, pot-smoking slacker Kumar in the 2004 film Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle, is slated to teach two undergraduate courses in the University's Asian American Studies Program during the spring 2008 semester.

Grace Kao, director of Asian American Studies, announced Penn's upcoming visiting-professorship at a Saturday-evening banquet celebrating the program's 10th anniversary.

Penn could not attend the banquet because he is busy promoting his movie, The Namesake, but he sent along a video clip offering his congratulations to the program.

"I'm looking forward to teaching my two classes at Penn," he said.

Penn will teach one lecture course, tentatively titled "Images of Asian Americans in the Media," and a seminar, "Contemporary American Teen Films." Each course will be cross-listed with Cinema Studies.

Kao will oversee Penn's classes to ensure a smooth transition from actor to academic.

After giving a speech at the University for Asian Pacific American Heritage Week, Penn "actually took the initiative" to return, Kao said, noting that the actor contacted her to express interest in a more extensive position.

Kao acknowledged that a movie star is an unconventional choice for an adjunct professor but said Penn's experiences make him uniquely qualified to teach.

Penn, who is of Indian descent, is one of the nation's leading Asian American actors, known for starring in films that address ethnic identity.

Although Harold and Kumar was ostensibly a light-hearted comedy, some critics praised the way it dealt with Asian American stereotypes. Penn's latest film, The Namesake, has likewise garnered acclaim for its portrayal of the immigrant experience.

But, bringing the actor to campus was, logistically, no easy task.

"The administrative question is always, 'How much is this going to cost?'" said College of Arts and Sciences Dean Dennis DeTurck.

Kao would not reveal how much more it cost to hire Penn versus the average adjunct professor, but he said that the Asian American Studies Program contributed a significant portion of its yearly budget, as did the Cinema Studies department contributed funding.

Penn is "really doing this because he wants to. He's not going to get rich doing this," Kao added.

The ASAM Program is relatively small, and students and administrators say that Penn's arrival could increase its prominence.

"Kal Penn coming to Penn for a semester is going to be huge for the ASAM program," College sophomore Rahima Dosani wrote in an e-mail.

Dosani, an Asian American Studies minor who serves on the program's undergraduate advisory board, added that this amplified visibility could be exactly what the program needs to grow.

DeTurck agreed, saying that Penn's visit "will raise the visibility of the program beyond the Asian American community."

Comments (22)

[QUOTE id="ba96b7cb-a32d-4878-88cb-7a74ad93f1f2"]Um.... what are his teaching qualifications, other than happening to be an Asian-American actor?[/QUOTE] Yeah no kidding! Ya know, in the old days, someone had to actually study and earn a degree in their field before they could teach.

As a Ph.D. candidate currently wading into the increasingly competitive job market, I find this kind of appointment reprehensible. What exactly are Kal Penn's qualifications? If the argument is that he starred in teen films as well as films that examine Asian American issues, then maybe the math department should hire Russell Crowe for a semester.

Is this the April Fools edition?

Um.... what are his teaching qualifications, other than happening to be an Asian-American actor?

Nothing against anyone else's qualifications, but its not like he's uneducated either - give a man his dues: "The university said Penn, a native of Montclair, N.J., received a bachelor's degree in sociology with a specialization in theater, film and television from the University of California, Los Angeles, and is pursuing a graduate certificate in international security at Stanford University." ON THE WEB FROM ASSOCIATED PRESS (AP): http://movies.yahoo.com/mv/news/ap/20070326/117494166000.html [QUOTE id="6d5a2257-fb27-4447-bdf4-ebd9cb9ba701"]As a Ph.D. candidate currently wading into the increasingly competitive job market, I find this kind of appointment reprehensible. What exactly are Kal Penn's qualifications? If the argument is that he starred in teen films as well as films that examine Asian American issues, then maybe the math department should hire Russell Crowe for a semester.[/QUOTE]

I hear Frankie Muniz is teaching an accounting class at Wharton.

[QUOTE id="6dc8151a-a4d3-4330-aed4-b3ce665ca6c2"]Is this the April Fools edition?[/QUOTE] Oh my god, I think it's not. Either that, or this is the most carefully crafted subtle joke issue ever. If you are trying to raise the reputability of your program, does this really seem like a good idea? The jokes are endless, and some posters have alredy laid them on: Val Kilmer to Physics, Sandra Bullock to teach Biology, Keanu Reaves to teach Computer Science.

Can I come teach at SEAS? I'm really good at making Flubber.

This sounds pretty interesting. Besides the fact that he is a child of Central Asian immigrants, he does have a lot of first-hand experience with how Asians are portrayed in the media. The guy also clearly isn't an idiot. If he was actually some sort of airhead, he wouldn't be coming to Penn with an interest in working with students. Besides, Penn needs to start attracting more interesting and prominent lecturers, even if only on a temporary basis.

BTW, He will be teaching "Images of Asian Americans in the Media," and a seminar, "Contemporary American Teen Films." Which are both cross listed with the Cinema Studies department. In my opinion, there is no one more qualified to speak on these topics than one who has first hand experience both as an Asian in American Media and as a star in various Teen movies. His real life experiences will be invaluable to the large number of students who will undoubtedly flock to these classes. As for his qualifications, Penn has already completed his undergraduate degree (in topics relevant to the classes he will be teaching) and is currently pursuing a graduate certificate in international security at Stanford University. Penn has also starred in various films and TV shows where the images of Asian Americans are addressed (The Namesake). If I was an employer looking for a candidate to teach "Images of Asian Americans in the Media," or a seminar on, "Contemporary American Teen Films" Kal Penn would undoubtedly stand out as the most suitable candidate for the task.

By all means, Penn should hire more people with BA's to teach classes. Of course, then one has to ask: why is Penn bothering to grant PhD's if they only plan on hiring people based on the BA plus experience? I think the University has some explaining to do to the hundreds of PhD students who are spending lots of money here at Penn in hopes of becoming a professor one day.

[QUOTE id="6d5a2257-fb27-4447-bdf4-ebd9cb9ba701"]As a Ph.D. candidate currently wading into the increasingly competitive job market, I find this kind of appointment reprehensible. What exactly are Kal Penn's qualifications? If the argument is that he starred in teen films as well as films that examine Asian American issues, then maybe the math department should hire Russell Crowe for a semester.[/QUOTE] "If the argument is that he starred in teen films as well as films that examine Asian American issues, then maybe the math department should hire Russell Crowe for a semester." HaHa! Well said. I like your sense of humor and logic. I don't think I could have said this any better than you did. I think this is a cheap publicity stunt on the part of UPenn to draw attention to it's South Asian Studies Program by trying to have a "celebrity" come teach. While they're at it, they might as well get Brittany Spear to come teach music too.

Well at least Brittany Spears knows something about music and could possibly teach something as bad as it might be. The rationale that Kal Penn brings his personal experience as and Asian American actor and an icon in Indian American cinema doesn't carry weight for him to be teaching courses on this subject. 1) I don't know if I would spend thousands of $$ at UPenn to take a class with him only to listen to him spend an entire semester talking about his personal experience. 2) If personal experiences as icons on that subject count so much so that it can land you a teaching job at an Ivy League institution, then maybe they should also hire Jackie Chan to teach a course on "Martial Arts in Asian Cinema" or Eddie Murphy and Denzel Washington to teach "Images of African American Cinema".

Can I teach moon walking? I still got the tocuh!

He's just an adjunct for god's sake.

I don't understand why Americans today are so caught up with qualifications that need proof on paper. Frankly, you'd think people would recognize that experience is worth more than any amount of reading on the same topic. Isn't that originally how people learned before institutions like universities existed?

...but I'm laugh-stricken at all of the pretentious PhD "candidates" who are getting their panties in a wad. Here's a tip guys; if any of you bothered to check, he's more qualified than any of you to teach sociology. Why don't you kids finish up your doctoral theses instead of getting whiny here? I know that's what I did!

[QUOTE id="563dabf5-c374-4dbf-bfd5-f4f7f437fe13"]He's just an adjunct for god's sake.[/QUOTE] There are people out there with years of experience and a PhD to boot who have yet to be adjunct professors. This is a joke, and frankly anyone looking to attend Penn or thinking of getting a degree from them should definitely think twice.

[QUOTE id="6d5a2257-fb27-4447-bdf4-ebd9cb9ba701"]As a Ph.D. candidate currently wading into the increasingly competitive job market, I find this kind of appointment reprehensible. What exactly are Kal Penn's qualifications? If the argument is that he starred in teen films as well as films that examine Asian American issues, then maybe the math department should hire Russell Crowe for a semester.[/QUOTE] Russell Crowe playing maths professor?!?! lmao. that was a character. kal penn on the other hand IS an ASIAN american and plays it also. Also the course is asian americans in media. so if the course was australians in media then it would be apt for your heartthrob russell to come along. Jackass.

Just because someone has experience doing something doesn't mean they can actually teach it. If upenn hired him 30 years from now, then I could admit he at least has a lot of experience under his belt. But come on... he's only 30 years old, and doesn't even carry a PhD! So when it comes to qualifications, he really doesn't have that many to justify teaching at an accredited university, let alone one of Ive League status... Now, if publicity is what they're after, then this is one hell of a smart move on their part. But when it comes to actually TEACHING the subjects, I think even experience (the relatively little that he has) does not make up for actual studied knowledge on the subject. If he wanted to tell people about his experiences, then write a book about it. I just hope that he proves me wrong and teaches well so that at least half the class learns what they came here to learn (the other half will be there just to be taught by a celebrity...).

thats right any of you bothered to check, he's more qualified than any of you to teach sociology.

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