Department of Anthropology
Dear friends and colleagues,
I write with the devastating news that Yalong (Allen) Chen, PhD candidate in the department, passed away on May 30. He was cremated in his hometown Zhongshan, Guangdong in China. Yalong began his Ph.D. studies in Linguistic Anthropology at Penn in 2017, and advanced to candidacy in 2020. Over the last two years, Yalong lived in China, conducting fieldwork at a vocational school in Guizhou where he studied issues of language, including computer language, corporate culture, and labor. He was not only an outstanding scholar, but also a kind, generous, and well-loved friend, student, and colleague. He will be sorely missed.
Yalong's classmates and advisors have written a eulogy for him, which I've attached below. It's so clear from this document that those of us who did not know him well have missed an important opportunity; his intellect, character, energy, and creativity shine through in this moving account.
We will hold an online memorial service this Friday, June 10th at 9:00am. Zoom link here - https://upenn.zoom.us/j/93252232057
CAPS is always available to students. Students can reach them 24/7 by calling 215-746-3535 (Medical Services) and 215-898-7021 (Counseling Services). For drop-in counseling services, students can come to 3624 Market, 1st Floor West during regular business hours or attend a Let's Talk session on campus.
Marie has also reached out to Dr. Batsirai Bvunzawabaya and Dr. Alaina Spiegel to help make individual and group therapy sessions available to our community. Batsirai and Alaina both have experience working with individuals and groups and with processing grief and trauma and she will pass along this information about specialized assistance as soon as she receives it.
There are no words adequate to express our loss, but I send to you my deepest condolences and my hope that we can support one another in this difficult time.
Kathy
