From the Quadrangle to the high rises, Penn students have been given the opportunity to not only meet people who share their interests, but to live with them as well.
Each year -- with the help of college house deans, faculty, residential advisers and graduate associates -- a variety of interest-centered college housing programs are implemented in various dormitories across campus.
There are over 25 residential programs ranging from Health and Fitness to Media and Communications to Law and Society.
A new trend in residential programs began last year in Harrison College House. After an Undergraduate Assembly motion to create more freshman-centered housing, Harrison House Dean Frank Pellicone helped create the Freshman Experience residential program.
There are currently three floors in Harrison devoted to the Freshman Experience program, encouraging upperclassmen to "act as mentors for the freshmen," Pellicone says.
In general, the consensus amongst various house deans, students and residential program leaders is that students like participating in the events and enjoy the community provided by these living arrangements.
Despite the positive aspects associated with residential programs, there is still concern among house deans that some may apply to these programs in order to secure favorable housing assignments for the following year.
However, Pellicone has assured students that the residential program directors are "not interested in running a back door into housing."
DuBois College House Dean Patricia Williams has found that those students who "participate in the programs really, really enjoy them."
There are currently two residential programs in DuBois, including the Politics and Cultural Pluralism program, which started in 2002, and the Social Consciousness in Black Film program, which started this year.
Each of these programs, according to Williams, has been quite successful, with a total of 26 students combined living on these program floors. However, it is not only DuBois residents who attend the events for the program, but also other members of the Penn community.
Events initiated by DuBois that have especially united the community include events held by the PCP floor, such as voter registration, lectures on education and affirmative action and housewide viewings of the presidential debates.
In addition to creating unification of the student body, residential programs have been seen as resources for students looking to expand their knowledge and experience in a particular field of study.
Wharton junior Chen Xue is currently living on the Law and Society floor in Harrison. Xue says she applied to this residential program because she "was very interested in what the program had to offer in terms of extracurricular exposure to topics" in her field of study.
There are definitely opportunities for Xue to receive the extracurricular exposure she wanted from living on the Law and Society floor, as each month the program hosts a dinner and discussion covering topics ranging from international law to whether or not students should pursue law school once they graduate.
In addition, the GA on the Law and Society floor is a Ph.D. candidate in political science. Xue believes her GA is "a great source of information and support" whenever she needs advice.
Beyond being a resource for information and community bonding, residential programs also enable students to take a break from their rigorous coursework and have a little fun.
Kara Simmers is the GA for the World Cinema program in Harrison.
Simmers arranges trips to the Ritz theaters in Old City and the Bridge: Cinema de Lux for her residents, organizes film discussions with professors in the Film Department and has recently started the tradition of an Academy Awards viewing party.
At last year's party, "students dressed up and even laid a red carpet down the hall," Pellicone says.
For those students interested in technology, the Science and Technology Wing -- in Harrison and Kings Court/English House -- goes each year to the annual Physics Day at the Six Flags Great Adventure theme park in New Jersey.
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