Category Archives: Events

April 12, 2011 · 9:02 am

The Many Paths from a Penn Education

Author: Stephanie Yee, C’08

Have you ever heard someone talk about their job or career, and think, “Wow, that’s so interesting. I wish I could do that.” I get that feeling every time I attend a Penn Alumni speaker series event. I hear Penn’s Men’s Basketball Head Coach Jerome Allen (W’09) speak and I think, “I should have played more sports.” I hear Kristin Haskins Simms (C’93), a contestant on Project Runway’s Season 8, speak and I think, “I should really learn how to sew, or at least finish my knitting project.” The great thing about meeting Penn alumni is you realize a Penn education can lead to a successful career in any field – let it be athletics or fashion design.

Waiting for Superman movie poster

A few weeks ago, I attended “No More Waiting: Remaking Urban Education Today, a conversation with Charles B. Adams, W’91.” The event was hosted by Penn’s Multicultural Outreach in conjunction with the Center for Africana Studies. Charles B. Adams is Head of The SEED School of Washington, D.C., and he is featured in the award-winning documentary, Waiting for Superman. He spoke about his experiences at Penn, where he studied marketing, his short-lived law career (he went to law school but never practiced law), and how he got into teaching. When the event ended, I asked Mr. Adams how Penn alumni can get involved in education to make an impact in their communities. He suggested tutoring students and providing meeting space where students can practice giving presentations in professional settings.

Penn alumni are incredibly inspiring, and it is always so nice to hear them talk about why they came to Penn and how their experiences at Penn paved the way for their successful career. They give great advice to current students and alumni who are interested in their field, and they remind us all why it is so special to be a member of the Penn community. Keep an eye out for future speaker series events. You will most likely see me there.

The Excelano Project is Real Cool

Author: Cecilia Ramirez, C’05, SPP’10

This past Saturday night, I had the pleasure of attending Penn’s very own Excelano Project Spring 2011 Show, We Real Cool, in commemoration of their ten-year anniversary. The Excelano Project (EP) is the university’s first and only spoken word student group. A mixed audience of students, alumni and staff members devoted our Saturday nights to a celebration of the single most inspirational poetry that Penn has ever seen.

A compilation of joint poems, emotional ballads, melodic free verses, passionate odes and powerful couplets, appropriately entitled, Short Poems, filled the stage as the EP’s all-star student cast graced the stage for a nearly-two hour show. EP’s founder and award-winning actor, poet and playwright, Carlos Andres Gomez C’03, was among the many alumni present for this milestone performance. The coffered domed ceiling could barely contain the cheers, applause and event-appropriate ::snaps:: from the crowd. Nearly all of the Penn Museum’s Harrison Auditorium 780 seats were taken as we watched on with frequent guttural affirmations and sighs of amazement of the magic on stage. The artists included students from all years, including EP’s only senior, Justin Ching C’11. Ching closed his final show with a surprise collaboration with Penn Masala, Penn’s nationally-recognized Hindi a cappella student group.

I decided to attend this year’s anniversary show on a nostalgic whim and I was absolutely blown away. The level of skill, maturity, lyrical prowess and sheer brilliance that I was privileged enough to witness was truly moving. I was an undergraduate when EP was formed and I had not attended a show since then. I have fond memories of its awe-inspiring first shows and of my secret wishes for the courage and talent to emulate my talented peers. Ten years later, I found myself with similar sentiments and feelings of admiration; EP is unquestionably more than cool, it’s real cool.

At the Game

Author: Casey Ryan, C’95

I had the pleasure of watching a Penn baseball game over the weekend. The Penn Club of Hampton Roads, headed by Joel Nied, C’90, invited Penn Alumni in the area to watch our Quakers take on the Norfolk State University Spartans in the first game of a double header this Saturday. Penn won, 3-2, and went on to beat the Spartans in their second game that day, too.

As Joel and I introduced ourselves to the Penn-appareled crowd, we met a hard-core crowd of Penn Baseball fans – the parents of the team members. Both alumni and parents chatted and had a great time while the alumni got the inside scope on players and their skills as the game continued. The Alumni Club joined the parents to cheer on native son, #36 John Beasley, C’13, of Virginia Beach, when he took to the mound to pitch for the Quakers. One proud mother thanked the club for coming out and supporting the baseball team, saying it was really touching that some alumni came to cheer the team and her son on and she really appreciated it.

While I watched the intense 14-inning game, I sweated so hard that my “waterproof” sunscreen dripped off, and then I found $5.