Campus & Community

The blood stem cells that live in bone marrow are at the top of a complex family tree. Such stem cells split and divide down various pathways that ultimately produce red cells, white cells, and platelets. These “daughter” cells must be produced at a rate of about 1 million per second to constantly replenish the body’s blood supply.

In the spirit of this season of giving, the Penn Professional Staff Assembly (PPSA) is holding a clothing drive to collect business attire to donate to two Philadelphia organizations that help men and women become economically independent.

Fifteen years ago, faculty and staff at Kelly Writers House (KWH) decided to proceed with a novel yet lofty plan: bring eminent writers into the cozy cottage at 3805 Locust Walk.

For students in the “Design of Mechatronic Systems” class in the School of Engineering and Applied Science, “the finals” are more than just an exam; they are a tournament in which the winners hoist a trophy high above their heads in victory.

During the past five years, the number of international students at the University of Pennsylvania has seen record growth at the undergraduate and the graduate level. Penn is among the top destinations for international students from around the world seeking to study in the United States. Currently, the University hosts 5,751 international students from 137 different countries, including China, Japan, Thailand, Canada, Taiwan and Singapore.  

WHO:             University of Pennsylvania students in Herman Beavers’ “August Wilson and Beyond” course

Stanton Wortham’s grandmother was unhappy and wanted a simple answer. She was proud of her grandson and knew he was an accomplished scholar and professor—having graduated with highest honors from Swarthmore College and received his Ph.D. from the University of Chicago—but she still wasn’t quite sure what in the world he did.

NEW JERSEYAN: A freshman from Montclair, N.J., Jasmine Cole, 18, is a standout player on the Penn field hockey team.

GLOBAL LEARNING: Penn launched its Open Learning Initiative in July 2012, a vital part of the University’s mission to increase worldwide access to educational resources that can impact humanity.

Dear Benny:I’m trying to plan ahead for the holidays. The Human Resources website lists Christmas Day and New Year’s Day as holidays observed by the Penn, but I was told the University is also closed between the two holidays. What should I know about winter break this year?