Upcoming Events

Homecoming Weekend

Join us on campus for Homecoming Weekend, November 7-8, 2025! Penn Alumni and our partners across the University welcome everyone back to campus for three days of exciting programming during Homecoming Weekend. Homecoming Weekend features Arts and Culture at Penn, celebrated both virtually and in-person.

ARTS: Join in on the Gallery Hop and experience a guided tour showcasing Penn’s numerous world-class art galleries. Support fellow alums by browsing handmade pottery, paintings, jewelry, and more at the Alumni Arts Fair.

CULTURE: Explore the campus from an artistic perspective during architecture or sculpture tours. Attend a lecture with Penn alumni and faculty, then celebrate Penn’s rich culture and connect with the communities at gatherings with Penn Traditions, Young Alumni, and Penn Spectrum Programs.

TRADITION: Celebrate at the 90th annual Alumni Award of Merit Gala. Raise a toast to dear old Penn at Quaker Fest, then head to Franklin Field to cheer on the Quakers as they take on the Cornell Big Red. Dance along to your favorite student or alumni band at the 12th annual Blutt Band Slam.

Celebrate all things Penn this fall by connecting with old and new friends at Homecoming! Follow @PennAlumni on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram and post your favorite Homecoming memories using #HomeSweetPenn.

November 7-8, 2025

An Evening with Penn: New York

Join President J. Larry Jameson for a University update and conversation with esteemed Penn faculty members Dr. Sarah Gronningsater and Dr. Abby Reisman, followed by a reception with Penn alumni, parents, and friends.

J. Larry Jameson, MD, PhD
Penn President

and

Sarah Gronningsater, PhD
Associate Professor of History
Penn Arts & Sciences

Abby Reisman, PhD
Associate Professor of Teacher Education
Graduate School of Education

Monday, November 17, 2025
Cipriani 42nd Street
110 E 42nd St
New York, NY 10017

6:30 PM – 7:00 PM | Welcome & Check-In
7:00 PM – 7:45 PM | An Evening with Penn
7:45 PM – 9:30 PM | Networking Reception

6:00 PM | Penn Spectrum Stories: Arrive early to hear from local alumna Shameeka Mattis, SPP’05, about how her Penn experience created a drive to serve society, help others and build community for all.

November 17, 2025 | 6:30 PM ET

Discerning Your Career Path: Is Something Else Calling or Should I Keep Going Down the Same Road?

Figuring out “What we want to do with our lives” isn’t just a question for undergraduates. It’s something that many of us think about well after college. How can we decide – or even better – discern, which path we should take after we’re already many miles deep into our careers? Should we start our own business? Should we chase the artistic dream? Should we create more space for service or a hobby that is close to our hearts? Join Dr. Chaz Howard, Penn’s University Chaplain and Vice President for Social Equity & Community as he draws on lessons from his most recent book, Uncovering Your Path: Spiritual Reflections for Finding Your Purpose, to discuss these questions and more.

October 15, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

Meeting the Challenges of Climate Adaptation in the Dutch Caribbean

Chances are you’ve vacationed on one or more of the islands that make up the Caribbean. Each island has its unique cultural signature based on history, political status, and climate conditions. All of them are already contending with the impacts of climate change, whether from stronger hurricanes, drought, extreme rainfall, sea level rise, or higher temperatures. There are six Caribbean islands in the Kingdom of the Netherlands. In this webinar, we’ll investigate how these islands are navigating their relationship with the European Netherlands in their quest to become climate resilient. Professor Simon Richter will be “reporting from Bonaire” where he and the Poldergeist team are collaborating with residents to produce an animated video that explores the policy aspects of climate adaptation from an Islander perspective.

October 16, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

The Postigo Express: A Gallery Tour

This winter, the Arthur Ross Gallery presents the first American exhibition of work by acclaimed Basque photographer Fernando Postigo Silva (CGS ‘73). Postigo spent over two decades chronicling the Basque separatist movement from the late 1970s through the early 2000s. Working as a photojournalist in San Sebastián, he documented Spain’s transition to democracy following the death of dictator Francisco Franco in 1975; the implementation of the new Spanish Constitution in 1978; and most significantly, the Basque region’s struggle for autonomy. Join Postigo, curator Professor Peter Decherney, and the gallery’s faculty director Professor Gwendolyn DuBois Shaw, for a virtual tour of the exhibition, followed by the premiere of Professor Decherney’s new 15-minute film, entitled “The Postigo Express.”

November 5, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:30 PM ET

Untangling Difficult Relationships

Why is it that some people irk us and get in our way? Why is it so hard to “shake off” criticisms from our bosses, unwarranted competition from teammates, and annoyances from staff who are hard to manage? Relationship conflict at work is by far more stressful than task conflict. Yet, common advice about setting boundaries or ignoring doesn’t work at work. Moreover, AI is making “soft” people skills urgent and critical. Stacy S. Kim, GEd’95, GR’00, unravels different ways relationships become challenging and what you can do right away to mitigate their negative impact on you.

November 19, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

A Guide to Leveraging LinkedIn and AI for Networking and Job Searching

LinkedIn can be your one-stop shop for marketing your professional brand, building and maintaining your network, and applying for jobs as part of your career next steps. AI plays a role in many of LinkedIn’s features, and increasingly in many aspects of the job search process. Knowing how and when to use these tools is an important part of your career development strategy. In this fast-paced session, Dr. Joseph Barber, Director of Graduate Career Initiatives at Penn Career Services, will 1) cover the basics of an effective LinkedIn profile, 2) explore networking strategies for both introverts and extroverts, and 3) encourage the strategic use of AI to streamline your job search. Join us to make LinkedIn and AI work for your professional next steps.

December 9, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET

Shakespeare’s Others

When asking “Hath not a Jew eyes?” in William Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice, Shylock poses a question about what actual points of difference exist between people with distinct religious backgrounds. One of many English Renaissance plays that broaches religion, race, and nationhood, the Shakespearean drama explores a range of questions that are as relevant in the twenty-first century as they were in the sixteenth: How do religious and racial identities interact? How do cultural and political forces impact representation? In this webinar, Dr. Becky S. Friedman, Associate Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of English, will examine these complex questions by exploring several Shakespearean case studies, including Antony and Cleopatra, Othello, and The Merchant of Venice. It will also consider the historical moment in which Shakespeare was working, when Englishness was increasingly defined by distinguishing itself from ‘others’.

December 11, 2025 | 12:00 - 1:00 PM ET