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Who, What, Why: Alicia Meyer on the wonders of the Kislak Center
Alicia Meyer talks to students in Technology and Society course.

In February 2025, Alicia Meyer showed students in Elly Truitt’s Technology & Society course a rare 19th-century book of hours woven from silk on a Jacquard loom, an Egyptian clay tablet from 400 BCE, an astronomical rotula used to predict the movement of heavenly bodies, posters from Central America made on sugarcane paper, and more.

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  • Who, What, Why

    • Who, What, Why: Alicia Meyer on the wonders of the Kislak Center

    As curator of research services, Meyer wants students from every discipline to visit the Kislak Center and to find new insights from old materials.

    2 min. read

    Studying Shakespeare through the lens of love
    A professor standing at the head of a table talking to students.

    In honor of Valentine's Day, and as a way of fostering community in her Shakespeare in Love course, Becky Friedman took her students to the University Club for lunch one class period. They talked about the movie "Shakespeare in Love," as part of a broader conversation on how Shakespeare's works are adapted.

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    Studying Shakespeare through the lens of love

    In Becky Friedman’s English course Shakespeare in Love, undergraduate students analyze language, genre, and adaptation in the Bard’s plays through the lens of love.

    3 min. read

    Three ways to reframe boredom
    A person sleeping at their desk.

    Image: iStock/cyano66

    Three ways to reframe boredom

    In modern society, boredom is largely considered a bad thing. Stephen M. Gorn Family Assistant Professor of English Lilith Todd thinks people can reframe how to think about being idle.

    From Omnia

    2 min. read

    Reflecting on Jane Austen, 250 years after her birth
    Jane Austen book by Robert Miles and Mansfield Park by Jane Austen.

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    Reflecting on Jane Austen, 250 years after her birth

    English professors Michael Gamer and Barri Joyce Gold have been teaching courses specifically dedicated to Jane Austen for years. They spoke with Penn Today about their approach to teaching her novels, how they challenge common readings and myths, and what makes Austen’s work so enduring—and adaptable to the screen—more than two centuries later.

    3 min. read

    Two Penn students chosen as 2026 Marshall Scholars
    Adelaide Lyall, left, Norah Rami, right

    From left, Adelaide Lyall and Norah Rami are Penn's 2026 Marshall Scholars.

    (Images: Courtesy of Adelaide Lyall and Norah Rami)

    Two Penn students chosen as 2026 Marshall Scholars

    Adelaide Lyall, a graduate student in the School of Social Policy & Practice, and Norah Rami, a fourth-year in the College of Arts & Sciences, will receive funding for as much as three years of graduate study in the United Kingdom.

    2 min. read

    Connecting with America’s 250th anniversary
    The Declaration of Independence at the National Archives

    The Declaration of Independence on display at the National Archives in Washington, D.C.

    (Image: Mark Schiefelbein via AP Images)

    Connecting with America’s 250th anniversary

    Ahead of the main event on July 4, 2026, marking the signing of the Declaration of Independence, Penn students, faculty, and staff will have multiple early opportunities to engage with America’s 250th anniversary.

    3 min. read