Graduate Student Center at the University of Pennsylvania

Next Friday, June 19th will mark the 161st anniversary of our nation's second Independence Day. Juneteenth, also known as Freedom Day, commemorates the end of slavery in the United States and is celebrated on June 19th, which is the day in 1865 that enslaved people in Texas learned that they were free--over two years after the Emancipation Proclamation was signed and nearly five months after the 13th Amendment was proposed.

Juneteenth will be recognized through a number of events and programs on campus and throughout the Philadelphia area in the coming days. To learn more about Juneteenth, the history, traditions, foods, and celebrations, visit nmaahc.si.edu/juneteenth

Visit the link in our bio to see details about events celebrating Juneteenth throughout Philadelphia this weekend, or navigate to bit.ly/JuneteenthAroundPhilly.

June is LGBTQ+ Pride Month! The history of Pride can be traced back to June 1969, when q***r and trans patrons of the Stonewall Inn in Manhattan fought back against a discriminatory police raid. The following year, the Christopher Street Liberation Day Parade was organized to commemorate the uprising and make visible the growing LGBTQ+ rights movement. The annual event transformed into what we now know as Pride Month, which has since spread around the globe!

There are many ways to learn about and celebrate the LGBTQ+ community this month. Here are just a few resources:

– Penn’s LGBTQ Center is a resource hub that hosts programming open to the Penn community year-round.
– The Mayor’s Office of LGBTQ+ Affairs advocates for the empowerment of LGBTQ+ Philadelphians in official City policy and programs.
– operating since 1976, this publication reports on news and events of particular interest to LGBTQ+ Philadelphians.
– The William Way LGBT Community Center exists to serve Philly’s LGBTQ+ community through arts and culture, empowerment, and community-building. They hold a variety of events that are free and open to all.

Summer is almost here! Celebrate the start of the season with a classic Philly summer treat--water ice! We will be serving frozen goodness in the Common Room from 12:00 until 2:00 PM, or until supplies run out. Water ices are first come, first served.

This event is open to graduate and professional students, their partners/spouses, and children.

Register at the link in our bio or visit gsc.upenn.edu/events.

Bartram's Garden is a public park and botanical garden on the banks of the Schuylkill River in Southwest Philadelphia. And during the spring and summer, they offer FREE weekly activities for visitors! Swipe through to learn more.

The deadline for GAPSA's Summer 2026 travel grants is coming up soon! Apply NOW for grants to support current graduate & professional students presenting and participating in conferences, professional meetings, and other essential professional development activities this summer.

Summer grant deadline: JUNE 5 AT 5 PM
Application information & form: https://gsc.upenn.edu/graduate-grants
Program details: https://www.gapsa.upenn.edu/individual-grants

Are you a new graduate or professional student and want to learn more about Penn's campus? A current student looking for a refresher on where campus services are located? Join us for a guided tour of Penn's campus and learn more about the many resources and spaces Penn has to offer. The tour will provide an overview of important spaces on campus and will provide participants with a glimpse of Penn's history in the University City neighborhood of West Philadelphia.

Advance Registration is required. Students are welcome to bring up to two family members, including spouses/partners and children, as guests.

To view tour dates and register, please click the link in our bio or visit gsc.upenn.edu/events.

Graduating from Penn doesn't mean you can no longer benefit from University resources! Swipe through to see some resources available to graduate alumni and visit gsc.upenn.edu/alumni-resources for more information.

We're excited to announce that PhD candidate Kristina Stallings (Medicine) has been selected as a finalist and will be representing Penn in the upcoming Ivy+ 3-Minute Thesis Competition! The 3 Minute Thesis competition celebrates graduate student scholarship, cultivates students’ academic, presentation, and research communication skills and supports students’ capacity to effectively explain their research in three minutes, in a language appropriate to a lay audience.

The Ivy+ 3MT competition will be held live via Zoom where we will see the select 3MT presentations. The panel of volunteer judges will pick the winner with a people’s choice winner selected by the attendees.

Current members of the Penn Community are also invited to join an informal "watch party", where we will be showing the livestream in the 1955 Conference Room 241 in Van Pelt Library and cheering Kris on as she presents her work!

To register for the watch party or the livestream, click the link in our bio or visit gsc.upenn.edu/events.

The Grad Center and University will be closed today in observance of the Memorial Day holiday.

We will resume our regular summer hours tomorrow at 10am.

The Grad Center's Summer schedule begins this Tuesday, May 26.

Monday-Thursday: 10 AM to 5 PM
Friday-Sunday: Closed

View all building hours, including holiday closures, at https://upenn-gsc.libcal.com/hours/