A pioneering Penn Medicine clinical trial using CAR T cell therapy has successfully enabled two patients with end-stage kidney disease to receive previously improbable kidney transplants. https://bit.ly/4fyDL1G

Every year, the Penn community gathers to celebrate exceptional staff members with the Models of Excellence celebration. This year's event brought together University leaders to honor four staff teams and seven individual honorees. https://bit.ly/4g7iUTa

The Center for Civil Rights will bring together three existing offices into a single team designed to strengthen Penn’s reporting, prevention, education, and response efforts related to civil rights. Read More: https://bit.ly/4aaAaDk

As sports betting expands across the U.S., researchers are finding that why people keep betting has as much to do with human biology as it does with business. Read More: https://bit.ly/4o97ksS

Penn and summer back by popular demand ☀️

The new book ‘Side Effects: The Social Ecology of Adverse Drug Reactions,’ by Penn Arts & Sciences sociologist Jason Schnittker and former Ph.D. student Duy Do, makes the case that side effects are a product of social, cultural, and institutional forces. https://bit.ly/42ZtFPZ

This year marked the 15th anniversary of the Natives at Penn annual powwow. Co-founders Megan Red Shirt-Shaw, C’11, and Paul Garr, C’10, celebrated the milestone and the tradition of Native fellowship, community building, and education. @upenn.edu

A tour of Penn’s AI-driven RNA BioFoundry gave U.S. Senator Dave McCormick (second from left) a firsthand look at how federal investment in science translates into shared research infrastructure, student training, and regional economic development. https://bit.ly/4nQ4nNu

This Memorial Day, we pause to honor the incredible strength and commitment of those who bravely served, marked in the ivy stones for the classes of 1944 and 1945. 🇺🇸

For over 150 years, the Ivy Day Ceremony has annually celebrated remarkable graduating fourth-year students for their leadership and service, with the Senior Honor Awards being one of the oldest traditions at Penn. Read more about the Class of 2026 Ivy Day Ceremony: https://bit.ly/4uo10jB

The Class of 2026 celebrated their achievements at Monday’s Commencement ceremony, an event that drew on the long history of Penn and the United States. About 6,000 graduates from Penn’s 12 Schools gathered on Franklin Field, cheered on by friends and family. Read More: https://bit.ly/43jbHry

The ceremony may be over, but the moment they’ve been waiting for is just beginning ❤️ 💙 We asked family and friends: What’s the first thing you’re going to say to your graduate after Commencement? 🎓

Congratulations to the Class of 2026!

Missed your post on the PennGrad big screen social wall? See all your messages here: https://penn.everwall.com/

“Hurrah, Hurrah, Pennsylvania, Hurrah for the Red and the Blue!” First composed over 125 years ago, “The Red and Blue” has been a Penn tradition ever since. The sheet music in this photo was written by William J. Goeckel with lyrics by Harry E. Westervelt. Read More: https://bit.ly/3PEo7XX

A great display of Penn pride ❤️ 💙 Alumni from across the decades reunite for the Penn Alumni parade of classes. #PennAlumni

The President’s badge has been part of Commencement since 1981. The medallion features the University’s official seal and motto, representing the role of the presidency and the generations of Penn history carried into each ceremony.

A $20 million gift from Wharton alumnus Greg Mondre and his wife, Alexandra Mondre, will advance financial aid and opportunity for middle-income students by supporting the Quaker Commitment. Read More: https://bit.ly/3RbYH4m

Penn’s 270th Commencement ceremony will be held on Franklin Field on Monday, May 18. To help guests prepare for the day, Penn Today has compiled important facts, tips, and answers to frequently asked questions. Commencement Frequently Asked Questions: https://bit.ly/4wLZmtN

Only 5 days to go until #PennGrad 🎓

Penn Today explores how Penn responded to the life sciences research revolution, investing in new facilities and creating opportunities for cross-disciplinary collaboration. Read More: https://bit.ly/4tuZvP2

20 years in 20 seconds ⏱️ #PennGrad

In this issue of Research at Penn, we celebrate “disruptive ideas” born at Penn that are now transforming the world for the better. Explore these stories on the Research at Penn website. https://penntoday.upenn.edu/research-at-penn

Kicking off a new Penn speaker series marking America’s 250th anniversary, a forum hosted by Perry World House, “Higher Education in the United States: From Origins to Outlook,” will take place on May 15. Read More: https://bit.ly/4dhodwn

Wharton graduate and President’s Engagement Prize recipient Katlyn Grasso shares how Penn mentors and resources have empowered her to make a tangible impact on society. https://www.upenn.edu/about/penn-matters

Common Press, which offers hands-on education about the significance of letterpress printing, typography, and bookbinding, showcases five steps to making paper as it was done in the Revolutionary era. Read More: https://bit.ly/4dgcA8R

“Mother’s Day. Founded by Anna Jarvis of Philadelphia. First officially observed in 1908, it honored motherhood and family life at a time of rising feminist activism. An early supporter was John Wanamaker, whose store stood opposite. Mother’s Day was given federal recognition in 1914.”

Fourth-year Rafaella Lambrinos traveled to London to study archival records about the Bengal famine of 1943 and British food rationing, gaining greater insight into the study of the past. #PennGrad Read More: https://bit.ly/3Payoe4

Fourth-years Chloe Chang, Darlene Leohansson, and Connie Ni won this year’s President’s Engagement Prize for their project HAVEN, which will launch an after-school program for K-5 children at the Jane Addams shelter in North Philadelphia. Read More: https://bit.ly/4tmPrYv

Final exams are underway, and the Penn community spent Reading Days preparing for the end of the semester. View All of the Photos: https://bit.ly/3QMeQgM

Using a President’s Engagement Prize, fourth-years Justin Wang, Janine Haros, and Eric Lee will dedicate the first year after graduation to Shared Vision, a project that will provide unhoused populations in Philadelphia with comprehensive vision care and related social support.https://bit.ly/4us1bKf

Fourth-year finance major Margaret Zhu received the President’s Innovation Prize for Serpent Robotics, which is prototyping a rope-climbing, ground-controlled robotic arborist system to improve safety in a dangerous industry. Read More: https://bit.ly/4ukqSwa

Physician-scientist Kate O’Neill brings patients hope. She directs innovative research that helps people suffering from infertility, endometriosis, and other issues build families and have excellent quality-of-life. Learn more about how PennMatters: https://www.upenn.edu/about/penn-matters

In recent decades, Penn has taken major steps to build a stronger, supportive relationship with its neighbors in West Philadelphia and beyond. This article examines the University’s community engagement efforts amid widespread societal change. Read More: https://bit.ly/3ODe4C5

Views from Hey Day 🔴 🔵 Relive the day and see if you can spot yourself in the crowd in our 146-photo Flickr album: https://bit.ly/4cXy1eJ

Wharton School fourth-year Gabrielle Fine plans to pursue sustainability consulting after graduation. Fine is an undergraduate who has benefited from the Quaker Commitment, which guarantees full tuition for families with typical assets making $200,000 or less. Read More: https://bit.ly/4eSWzZ0

A Penn Engineering and Penn Medicine team built CAMEL, an artificial intelligence model that forecasts dangerous cardiac rhythms before they strike. Their findings pave the way for a new era of real-time, predictive heart care. Read More: https://bit.ly/42HRb3v

Working with community partners, Penn offices offer options for off-campus pickups, on-campus donations, and additional curbside trash pickup days aimed at keeping the neighborhood clean and limiting what ends up in the landfill. Read More: https://bit.ly/4201u2T

Commencement is just 3 weeks away! Share your special moments with us using #PennGrad to be featured at the ceremony on May 18th.

Six Penn fourth-years and three recent graduates have each received a 2026 Thouron Award to pursue graduate studies in the United Kingdom. Thouron Scholars receive tuition for as long as two years, as well as travel and living stipends. Read More: https://bit.ly/4vRZuaF

The 130th annual Penn Relays featured track and field athletes of all levels competing at Franklin Field from Thursday through Saturday, April 23-25. Penn athletes marked numerous milestones during the world-famous meet. Read More: https://bit.ly/4cU30IV

The Biochemical Engineering of Wine course provides a real-world application of engineering principles, teaching students about the science behind the processes involved with making wine. Read More: https://bit.ly/48FtMDB

Jana Dweek, a fourth-year on the women’s squash team, discusses the team’s national championship-winning season. Dweek clinched the national title for the Quakers. The victory marked the women’s squash team’s first national title in 26 years. Read More: https://bit.ly/42w3rE8

"Five from Penn elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences--Mark G. Allen, Sara Cherry, Provost John L. Jackson, Jr., Michael E. Mann & Duncan Watts recognized for contributions to bio, social, natural, physical & behavioral sciences" via @upenn.edu News: penntoday.upenn.edu/news/five-pe...

Mark G. Allen, Sara Cherry, Provost John L. Jackson, Jr., Michael E. Mann, and Duncan Watts have been elected to the American Academy of Arts & Sciences, an honorary society and independent research center. Read More: https://bit.ly/42odLhv

Penn’s tree-lined campus is in bloom, and the community takes advantage of any T-shirt-weather day in the abundance of outdoor spaces for studying, lounging, and some spikeball. View All of the Photos: https://bit.ly/3OFjdth

The Penn Dental GRD Lab is more than a classroom—it’s a rite of passage. Madeline Dwamena (D'26) shares how comprehensive, hands‑on training in the GRD lab at Penn Dental Medicine is preparing her to enter the profession of dentistry.

Research led by Penn Dental’s Henry Daniell shows that antiviral and antibacterial chewing gums reduce the levels of three microbes linked to worse outcomes in oral cancers, paving the way for more effective and affordable therapies. Read More: https://bit.ly/3QQ4Y5o

Catherine Seavitt of Penn's Weitzman School of Design examines the connections between public space and public health through the lens of ecology, policy, and plant science. Learn more about how Penn Matters: https://www.upenn.edu/about/penn-matters

Jean Bennett, Albert Maguire, and Katherine High have been awarded the Breakthrough Prize in Life Sciences for developing the first FDA-approved gene therapy that dramatically improves vision in people with a form of blindness called Leber congenital amaurosis. Read More: https://bit.ly/48dUnau