Betsy Rymes is a great neighbor.

An associate professor of educational linguistics at the University of Pennsylvania’s Graduate School of Education, she’s also a residential faculty fellow in Riepe College House.

Rymes, along with her two children, Charlie, 15, and Anya, 7, have lived in a three-bedroom apartment in Riepe since the fall of 2011. Their family also includes two cats and a dog.

Riepe is the second-largest community in the historic Quadrangle, which consists of 12 connected residential buildings that are arguably the most iconic on Penn’s tree-filled, urban campus.

Known as the “Paper Doctor,” Rymes helps many of her 482 undergraduate neighbors fine-tune their research papers or brainstorm ideas during weekly clinics.

“Tuesday evenings, students can bring any work in progress to my apartment and I talk it through with them and edit at whatever level they need,” Rymes says, adding that it’s now become a family affair. Her son, Charlie, is a writing major at the Philadelphia High School for the Creative and Performing Arts. During “The Paper Doctor” clinics, he works on his own writing, while Rymes reads through essays with freshmen at the dining table.

Rymes’ daughter, Anya, is a student at the nearby Samuel Powel Elementary School.

Through the Riepe College House Mentors Residential Program, about 25 Penn students spend at least 90 minutes volunteering each week at Powel. The School relies on volunteers for additional support, especially for the children who may need a little extra time and attention. This type of local engagement aligns with President Amy Gutmann’s Penn Compact 2020.

As the director of the program, Rymes says volunteering as a mentor gives freshmen an opportunity to interact with the community while creating a network of friends.

As a mom, having so many volunteers in the area also gives Rymes a little peace of mind.

“Anya is always thrilled to see other Riepe residents there, and we are happy for those days when we find mentors on the Powel playground after school,” says Rymes, “and can walk back to campus with them.”

Rymes says most students in Riepe are freshmen, and this can bring up a whirlwind of deep emotions.

“They have just left home and may find living only with fellow 18-year-olds very fun but also lonely or even disorienting at times.  I believe that having families around keeps many of them grounded and happier,” Rymes says. “It also gives most of them a healthy level of self-consciousness about their behavior. Sometimes I can see my children have the tempering presence of a younger sibling.”

She says living in Riepe immerses her family in a community of smart, inspiring adults with whom to socialize, think and have fun. More important, the children have hundreds of brothers and sisters who are pretty good role models.

“My kids really look up to many of the freshmen in Riepe, especially when they see them talking with me at the Paper Doctor clinics or planning their mentoring at Powel,” Rymes says. “I think the freshmen can feel this admiration and try to rise to those expectations.”

Rymes, along with other faculty and staff members who live in Riepe, encourage students to explore the Philadelphia region, organizing off-campus excursions to Center City, the Reading Terminal Market, the Italian Market, Atlantic City and Cape May, N.J. They also plan trips to nearby museums, movies and concerts, including being at opening night of the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Kimmel Center.

Riepe’s event calendar is filled with poetry nights, home-cooked meals, comfort food study breaks, ice cream sundae nights, barbeques, dinners with special guests, cookie nights, espresso open houses and outings to restaurants.

And, of course, everyone likes pancakes. Rymes happily makes them for her fellow residents at Riepe every other Sunday morning.