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Innovative Services | In the News | Key Priorities

Innovative Services

As a Division, we are committed to creating a hospitable and customer-friendly campus environment through the delivery of innovative services. We invite you to explore our divisional website and learn more about the diverse portfolio of resources and programs we offer to the Penn community!

Learn more about our services:

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Recent Highlights

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What links our services?

Our diverse portfolio is linked together by common priorities. Throughout our site, these symbols highlight how each of our services reflects these themes:

Economic Inclusion

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Cost Containment & Revenue Development

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Sustainability

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Innovation

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A Gourd-geous ArBOOretum Standout

All through October, the Morris—Penn’s verdant plant-research retreat in Chestnut Hill—is happily haunted by a friendly horde of pumpkins, gourds, and scarecrows.

This is . . .

The Morris Pumpkin Cottage, adorably adorned with the orange icon of autumn.

It lives . . .

At the ArBOOretum, as the Morris Arboretum & Gardens is affectionately known from now through Halloween.

It’s cool because . . .

All through October, the Morris—Penn’s verdant plant-research retreat in Chestnut Hill—is happily haunted by a friendly horde of pumpkins, gourds, and scarecrows.

About 1,500 pumpkins—3 to 4 tons worth—decorate not only the cottage but also displays throughout the 92-acre grounds, to the delight of seasonal guests of all ages.

Putting the boo-hiss in ArBOOretrum, more than 30 villain-themed straw figures will vie for top honors in the annual visitor scarecrow design contest. Frankenstein, Maleficent, and Edward Scissorhands are just a sampling of the not-so-evil entries you might see along the perennially popular Scarecrow Walk.

Get all the details at www.morrisarboretum.org. Admission is always free with your PennCard.

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The Morris Breaks Ground for Research

On October 1, the Morris Arboretum & Gardens held a groundbreaking for its new Plant Science Lab.

On October 1, the Morris Arboretum & Gardens held a groundbreaking for its new Plant Science Lab. The facility will incorporate a wet lab and the equipment necessary for the Morris’ team of researchers and botanical scientists to study how plants evolve and adapt in relation to climate change, with an emphasis on species found throughout Pennsylvania.

“Scientific research in botany and horticulture has been one of the pillars of the Morris Arboretum & Garden’s mission since its founding in 1932,” said William Cullina, F. Otto Haas Executive Director, to open the event, at which Morris advisory board members, Lab donors, and a variety of guests from across the University joined the plant sciences staff. “This facility will allow the Morris to use the latest technology to begin answering many of the taxonomic and ecological questions generated by more than 90 years of work, and many more research questions of biological and horticultural interest.”

Construction is expected to be complete in early 2025. The Lab is a key component of the Morris’ 20-year site plan, which includes new research greenhouses, an adjacent nursery, and, eventually, an additional science building with a teaching lab and an herbarium.

Read more about it in the Fall/Winter edition of MA&G Seasons.

Fun fact: Cullina broke ground with a 120-year-old shovel owned by Morris namesake John Morris.

Pictured (foreground, from left): Elizabeth P. McLean, emeritus member of the Morris’ Board of Advisors; Anne Papageorge, Senior Vice President, Facilities & Real Estate Services; Michael D. Scales, Vice President, Division of Business Services; Cullina.

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Parking & Commuter Services Moves to the Penn Bookstore

Parking & Commuter Services is now conveniently located on the first floor of the Penn Bookstore (near the Sansom Street entrance). The move from 3401 Walnut, the department’s home of nearly 30 years, coincides with the launch of an expanded menu of flexible permits and programs for new parkers, offered based on community feedback. Open weekdays from 8:30 AM to 5 PM, Parking & Commuter Services joins the PennCard Center and Onboard@Penn at the Bookstore, solidifying the site as a convenient one-stop hub for a variety of Penn services.

Silver Served to Penn Dining

Over the summer, Penn Dining won two silver awards at the Annual Conference for the National Association of College and University Food Services (NACUFS). The department was recognized in the following categories:

2024 Wellness & Nutrition Program of the Year, for Dine Well, Eat Smart, a dietitian-led nutrition and wellness education program. Spearheaded by Sarah Goff, Bon Appétit’s Wellness Manager, the continuing series features newsletters, articles, and in-café culinary events.
2024 Loyal E. Horton Award for Residential Special Event of the Year, for the Quaker Kitchen cookbook launch of Klancy Miller’s "For the Culture: Phenomenal Black Women and Femmes in Food: Interviews, Inspiration, and Recipes."

Pictured from left: Kory Samuels (past Chairperson, Rochester Institute of Technology), Sean Lewis (Bon Appétit Management Co.), Kristin Cummings (University of Pennsylvania), Sarah Goff (Bon Appétit Management Co.), Rahul Shrivastav (Chairperson, Indiana University). Not pictured: Pamela Lampitt (Director, Dining & Hospitality Services), Barbara Lea-Kruger (former Director, Communications & External Relations), Thomas MacDonald (Operations Manager, Hospitality Services).

Penn Welcomes the Class of 2028

Penn welcomed the Class of 2028 and returning students to campus during the Academic Year Move-In, held August 17–25.

This year, 2,409 first-year students and 3,486 returning undergraduate students moved into 13 College Houses, assisted at every step by Residential and Hospitality Services staff.

Penn Dining once again hosted families and guests of incoming first-year students for lunch and dinner, adding a successful third day of service to give even more people a taste of what the Dining team cooks up year-round.

Click here to view Class of 2028 Move-In photos.

Welcome to Business Services!

Innovative Services | In the News | Key Priorities

Innovative Services

As a Division, we are committed to creating a hospitable and customer-friendly campus environment through the delivery of innovative services. We invite you to explore our divisional website and learn more about the diverse portfolio of resources and programs we offer to the Penn community!

Learn more about our services:

BSD News

Recent Highlights

What links our services?

Our diverse portfolio is linked together by common priorities. Throughout our site, these symbols highlight how each of our services reflects these themes:

A Gourd-geous ArBOOretum Standout

The Morris Pumpkin Cottage

A Gourd-geous ArBOOretum Standout

The Morris Breaks Ground for Research

The Morris Breaks Ground for Research

Digging Into Science

Parking & Commuter Services Moves to the Penn Bookstore

Silver Served to Penn Dining

Penn Welcomes the Class of 2028