Our Mission & Values
The College Houses are residential communities for Penn undergraduates that:
- Connect the academic life of the University with the residential experience.
- Develop smaller, intimate communities that students call home and from which they can more comfortably navigate the complexities of a large university.
- Provide academic and personal support to residents.
- Promote social interaction, engagement, accountability and leadership within a setting that honors the diverse needs and backgrounds of the population.
Our Commitment to Respectful and Welcoming Communities
The College Houses are committed to uplifting individuals and communities and challenging one another to understand and value what both binds and distinguishes us. We believe that our residential communities thrive when we consider, acknowledge, and honor all residents. We ask that each community member (resident, staff, or visitor) commit to doing this through the following steps:
- Actively listen to experiences different from your own
- Seek educational opportunities about issues and current events while embracing all intellectual perspectives
- Speak up when you witness or hear something disrespectful even when it is not convenient
- Engage with your community through joining organizations, attending programs, and participating in service and/or advocacy
What Our Houses Offer
Here's all our Houses with a little information about each. Click on any of the arrows to take a deeper dive!
Our Team
The College Houses are each staffed by a hard-working team of professionals who care deeply about their community and how the CHAS mission can help Penn students thrive. They collaborate with the members of Penn's faculty who live alongside undergraduates in the College Houses to create communities that support residents throughout their University experience.
The History of CHAS
Penn has been fostering a vigorous on-campus community since it was first founded more than two centuries ago. In 1998, Penn decided to extend the successful faculty-in-residence model it had created at Van Pelt College House and Du Bois College House across all of its undergraduate residences. Today, with its newest College Houses less than a decade old, Penn's College House system is meeting the challenges of today with adaptable, dynamic communities that bring the University home to almost 6000 undergradutes every year.
Upcoming events in the College Houses
[14th floor only] December Coffee & Bakery
Snow-Mazing Hot Chocolate and Coffee Bar
The weather and finals having you feeling frosty? Grab a cup of piping hot coffee or hot chocolate from Guttman’s hot drink bar at the Multipurpose Room on 12/6 (Saturday) from 1-4pm! Add toppings like whipped cream, dark chocolate syrup, and peppermint sticks for a customizable sweet treat.
Everyone Deserves a Break...
Everyone needs a break from the shackles that are exams!!!! Join RA Brialis in a study break to relax for just a bit, yap with peers, and eat snacks :)
Penn Ballet's show "The Nutcracker"
To get in the spirit of winter holidays and to catch a relaxing and inspiring break during the weekend, come with us to the Zellerbach Theatre at the Annenberg Center (a five-minute walk from our college house) on Saturday, December 06 @ 6:00 PM for this beautiful tulle and satin show —in which Lily Cate is performing! 🤩 (A former KCECHer, Lily recently spoke to us about her experience as a recipient of the CHAS Research Fellowship! Those of you who attended the info session met her!) 😉: Penn Ballet is a student-run dance company dedicated to make classical ballet free and accessible to anyone in the University community. They are known for being an open, low-pressure group that allows Penn students to continue doing what they love despite the stress and time constraints of a rigorous academic environment. Their classes are free and offered twice a week, taught by professional dancers and teachers, and by their own student directors. (If you want to learn more, click here). Each fall, they perform the holiday classic The Nutcracker, and each spring they stage a new ballet. So, stay tuned! The Nutcracker is an 1892 two-act classical ballet by Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky, set on Christmas Eve at the foot of a Christmas tree. This beloved holiday classic tells the story of Clara and her magical Nutcracker, gifted to her by her mysterious Uncle Drosselmeyer. The Nutcracker comes to life as the clocks strike midnight, leading Clara on an enchanting adventure through a fierce battle, a sparkling snow-covered forest, and the wondrous Land of Sweets. If you would like to join us, please email Lidia (lleon@upenn.edu) and bring $5 to Isabelle at the House Office (EH112) by Thursday 04 at 4pm. If for any reason you're unable to make the payment, let Isabelle know, and we can work it out. Please, RSVP only if you can commit, as tickets are non-refundable. We will be leaving from KCECH at 5:40 pm: meet us at the main entrance hall, by the reception desk.
News & Announcements
Stouffer Fellow named William T. Grant Scholar
Finding Common Ground in KCECH
Benjamin Franklin Scholars receives $8M endowment
