Announcements

We hope that all of you had a good Winter Break, and we are excited to welcome you back to the spring semester. While the current circumstances may not be what any of us would prefer, we are determined to sustain our core university missions. We know that we can count on every member of our community to be part of this effort, as we all navigate together this challenging phase of the pandemic. 

As we wish you all a joyful and healthy holiday break, we write to update you on our plans to start the new semester in a way that ensures the safest and most fulsome Penn educational experience.

Penn will now require all eligible students, faculty, postdocs, and staff to receive a COVID-19 booster shot by January 31.

In May, our esteemed colleague and dear friend Wendell Pritchett announced that he would be taking a leave of absence from his duties as Provost to tend to some significant health challenges. I am very pleased to report that Wendell is healthy again and that he is eager to return to campus in January, which is very good news for all of us who treasure his friendship and value the extraordinary work he has done for Penn.

We are extremely grateful for the extraordinary efforts of every member of our community as we navigated a very unusual, yet exciting and inspiring, fall semester. With our return from Thanksgiving Break and as we head into the final weeks of the semester, we know there are concerns about the new Omicron variant. We want you to know that we are working closely with Penn Medicine and our public health experts to monitor and respond to this situation as it evolves.

A message of gratitude, and an update on Penn’s hybrid work program and extended winter break.

Penn has made its Climate and Sustainability Action Plan goals a top priority, while recognizing that the plans must be dynamic and adaptable to keep pace with the rapidly evolving challenges of climate change.

We write today to share our contingency plans for a possible SEPTA service disruption, which could begin as early as Monday, November 1. This work stoppage would impact the City Transit Division of SEPTA, which includes bus, trolley, Market-Frankford Line, and Broad Street subway services. Regional Rail, Customized Community Transportation, the Norristown High-Speed Line, and Trolleys 101 and 102 would continue to run.

An update on additional steps Penn is taking to help students, faculty, staff, and postdocs safely navigate the semester.

We are very pleased to inform you of an important enhancement to Workday. Penn faculty and staff members now have the option to self-identify their sexual orientation and gender identity in their personal profile. Sharing this information is completely voluntary. The aggregate data collected will be used to report on the diversity of the University’s faculty and staff more fully. This information will also assist the University in more effectively planning for benefits administration, policy development, and other administrative purposes.