The College Houses are a major part of facilitating a community and experience amongst the undergraduates of the University of Pennsylvania. Each house has one Faculty Master and one House Dean, with at least two College House Fellows (members of the faculty and senior administration) in residence. Each house hosts a wide range of jobs for students, including Residential Advisors, Graduate Associates, House Councils, Managers and Information Technology Advisors. The houses also encourage communities through the wide range of Residential Programs within the system.
DuBois College House
Harnwell, Harrison and Rodin College Houses - Filmed and edited by Maya Afilalo.
Du Bois, located at 3900 Walnut Street, is named after W. E. B. Du Bois and focuses on supporting the pursuit of African American culture. Many of its activities are co-sponsored by various campus organizations including Black student League, Muslim Students Association, and the LGBT Center. These activities include a lecture series, community service opportunities, and art exhibits within the house.
Residential Programs:
- Consciousness in Black Film and Theatre
- Politics and Cultural Pluralism
- American Indian Cultures
Fisher Hassenfeld College House
Fisher, located at 3700 Spruce Street, is the westernmost of the three College Houses in The Quad. It offers many events throughout the year, targeted at both its residential programs and its general residents. Such events include the annual Fall Festival, a spring BBQ, yoga classes, and group discussions related to law and health. Fisher is also known for the creation and hosting of the annual College House Student Film Festival, which began in 2003.
Residential Programs:
- Healthy Living
- Health and Society
- Law and Society
- Media and Communications
- Music and Social Change
Gregory College House
Gregory is named after Emily Lovira Gregory. It comprises two buildings: Van Pelt, located at 3909 Spruce Street, and Class of 1925, located at 3941 Irving Street. The house focuses on events geared towards film (hosting 60-65 screenings per semester) and their five language programs. The language events run the gamut from cooking and Pictionary to dinners and trips. The language programs can also get a student course credit.
Residential Programs:
- Film Culture
- Modern Languages
- Arabic House
- Casa Hispanica
- Chinese House
- Deutsches Haus
- Maison Française
Harnwell College House
Harnwell, located at 3820 Locust Walk, is one of three high rises at Penn. Its rooftop lounge is home to many activities, including plays, concerts, and dances. Harnwell is also home to a dance studio, a fitness center, and the Café du Soleil.
Residential Programs:
- Ancient Studies
- Arts
- East Asia
- Franklin Community
- International Program
- Latin American Program
Harrison College House
Harrison, located at 3910 Irving Street, is the second of the three high rises at Penn. Like Harnwell, it is home to a rooftop lounge, Heyer Sky Lounge, and a cafe, Café Prima. Harrison is also home to its own theatre group, Front Row Theater, which performs in the Sky Lounge.
Residential Programs:
- Freshman Experience
- Harrison Helps
- Health and Fitness
- Politics, Law, and Society
- Visual Arts and Contemporary Culture
- World Cinema
Hill College House
Hill College House, located at 3333 Walnut Street, is one of the largest college houses at the University of Pennsylvania. Hill was designed in 1958 by Finnish-American architect Eero Saarinen, who also designed the St. Louis Arch, the former TWA Flight Center at New York City's Kennedy Airport, and Dulles Airport. The building was unusual for its time, incorporating an interior atrium. Once a women's dormitory, Hill is now co-ed.
In common with other buildings constructed at the height of the Cold War, the basement of Hill contains a fallout shelter, which links to the University's utility tunnels. Hill is known for its Upper East Lounge, which houses a grand piano, and a basement called The Underground, where students go to socialize with games like table tennis and billiards. Hill is also one of two college houses that has an in-house dining hall.
Residential Programs:
- Exploring Philadelphia
- Freshman Leadership at Penn
- Medical Care and Medical Challenge
Kings Court English College House
King's Court English, located at 3465 Sansom Street, is known for having the first residential programs with STWing being founded in 1990, and PiH founded soon after. It is home to a student-run rooftop café called Mirage and a student-run convenience store called Oasis. English House is the other college house to have an in-house dining hall.
Residential Programs:
- Biosphere
- Huntsman
- Perspectives in Humanities (PiH)
- Science and Technology Wing
- Women in Computer Science (WiCS, affiliated with the student organization of the same name)
New College House
New College House was recently built next to Hill House. Opened in 2016, it is the first college house since the start of Penn's residential program to have been built specifically for students participating in the College House System. It will then have space for 350 residents. The architects are Bohlin Cywinski Jackson, who specialize in the Apple Store design.
Riepe College House
Riepe, located at 310 South 36th Street, is the easternmost of the three College Houses in The Quad. Activities include trips to sports games, orchestra concerts, art museums, and tours of Philadelphia. The house itself also has five lounges, a pool table, and a ping pong table to encourage students to get to know each other.
Residential Programs:
- Integrated Studies
- Living Cultures
- Mentors Program
Rodin College House
Rodin, located at 3901 Locust Walk, is the third of the three high rises at Penn. Like the others, it is also home to a café, the High Rise 'n' Shine Café. The House Council hosts weekly study breaks and brunch once a month. Other activities include trips to operas, to Broadway, and a Super Bowl barbecue.
Residential Programs:
- Leadership Residential Program
- Rodin Arts Collective
- Musical Engagement
- Theatre Engagement
- Visual Arts Engagement
Sansom Place East and West
Sansom Place is broken up into two buildings: East, located at 3600 Chestnut Street, and West, located at 3650 Chestnut Street. It is home predominantly to graduate students, but also houses many undergraduates and some faculty. Sansom East features a package room, computer room, an eleventh floor lounge, and a commons area with a kitchen and rec room. Sansom West has lounges on the third, sixth, eleventh, and fourteenth floors.
Stouffer College House
Stouffer, located at 3702 Spruce Street, offers a variety of common room games including: foosball, pool, air hockey, basketball, and volleyball. House activities include an annual trip to the woods and a semi-formal. Stouffer is also home to exercise equipment and a hammock.
Residential Programs:
- Stouffer Outdoors
- Healthy Living
Ware College House
Ware, located at 3650 Spruce Street, is the middle College House of The Quad. Ware is home to multiple music practice rooms, a computer lab, two kitchens, and game rooms. For events programming, it sponsors house trips to the city where they visit museums, arts events, parks, and go shopping. Ware also hosts open mic nights, weekly house dinners, and a special Dinner with Interesting People program.
Residential Programs:
- Entrepreneurs' Residential Program
- Interfaith Dialogue
- Literature & Culture
- Women in Leadership
- Study of Infectious Diseases
- Women in Science
References
External links
- College Houses Main Site
- Residential Programs Index