FALSE ALARM: Childers Is Just Taking A Semester Off - To those of you bemoaning the fact that you'd never get to take a class with beloved History department powerhouse Thomas Childers: weep no more! Rumors that he was to retire at the end of this semester have been declared false by the man himself. He debunked these claims while talking with a few students after his final lecture, and plans to just take next semester off. Worry not: he'll be back in action at Penn for the Spring 2012 semester.