Teens explore U. on "Communiversity' days

Creating a tangible sense of community between the University and its West Philadelphia neighbors has been a top priority of students, faculty, staff and administrators for years. With the introduction of "Communiversity Days" on March 22, this elusive goal may finally become reality. Carol Scheman, vice president for government, community and public affairs, said she is working with Glenn Bryan, director of the Office of Community Relations, to plan a monthly program that allows high school students residing in the University City area to get a glimpse of day-to-day campus life. "[Communiversity Days] are intended to hook together small groups of young people -- as in ninth- and tenth-graders in the community -- for a very personal experience day on the campus," Scheman said. Beginning March 22, high schoolers will come to campus in groups of no more than a dozen to get to know individual University students better. The high schoolers will participate in the same activities that University students do each day -- such as eating meals in dining halls, going to classes, seeing a basketball practice or performance at the Annenberg Center, visiting the University Museum and spending time at The Daily Pennsylvanian to learn how a newspaper is produced. Communiversity Days will also permit neighborhood kids to get a first-hand look inside University buildings. Some have lived just blocks away from campus since birth but have never set foot in a classroom, library, dormitory room or laboratory. "I want these kids to be able to imagine going to Penn -- whether they choose to go to Penn or somewhere else [for college]," Scheman said. "They can learn that they're not that different from you guys." University President Judith Rodin said she is also excited about the introduction of Communiversity Days. "I think they're wonderful," she said. "It's a great way to open the University to the community. "When we talk about the community, it's often been what Penn is doing out in West Philadelphia," Rodin added. "[But] community means interaction between the University and the community [at-large]." Scheman added that Communiversity Days will only continue to evolve with extensive student input. Her office will function as a "dating agency," making connections between high schoolers who want to spend time on campus and University students -- in Greek groups, the Undergraduate Assembly or floors of campus residences -- who want to act as their mentors. "The abstract idea was kind of nice, but it is the students' enthusiasm [that] will make it go," Scheman said, referring to Communiversity Days. "If it's going to be something that catches on, it's going to be because there's going to be some real enthusiasm across the student body." Bryan, who grew up in West Philadelphia, is a University alumnus. He said last night that he was exposed to the opportunities available on campus as a youth, when he participated in the Upward Bound program. He characterized Communiversity Days as a "work in progress," saying that evaluation of the program's effectiveness by members of the University and West Philadelphia communities will occur consistently throughout its duration. "The wonderful part about this is that it's an institutional effort driven by students," Bryan said. "[The Office of Community Relations] is just providing support and coordination. "It's all of us working together regarding one particular project, something that we'd like to do more of and run as a theme throughout more of what we do," he added.

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