Student Organizations
At GSE
University-Wide
For International Students
For Budget Request forms and other info, visit http://www.gse.upenn.edu/gsesg/center
At GSE
Announcements of events for all GSE student organizations can be found on the Student Lounge bulletin board and by e-mail. Questions about your student organization? Contact GSE Student Affairs Liaison Thammika Songkaeo.
GSE Student Government (GSESG) is an important part of student life at GSE. In addition to representing the student body of GSE, the GSESG supports and allocates funds to all Student Organizations. Contact Student Government at gsesg.president@gmail.com if you want to get involved during the academic year.
The Association of African American Graduate Students in Education (AAAGSE) is a supportive network at GSE for African American students. AAAGSE's main goal is to create an environment at GSE that enables African American students to utilize their unique gifts and talents fully in their chosen fields. AAAGSE sponsors social events, poetry readings, interest dinners and community service projects. For more information contact Tamika Barrow at tamika.barrow@gmail.com.
CAMRA at Penn is a unique research collaborative dedicated to experiments in research representation. CAMRA staff and affiliates work at the intersection of scholarly communication and emerging technologies, and an array of media. Principally, CAMRA aims to support cutting-edge research with an explicit focus on providing practical guidelines for future research and practice. We aim to create a space in which students and professors can experiment with and be funded for projects which use multiple forms of representation – video, web platforms, etc. Moreover, CAMRA creates workshops so that students and professors learn how to use, for example, film or wikis in their scholarly projects. Website: www.camrapenn.org
Educational Linguistics Forum (ELF) explores the dynamic relationship between linguistics and education by supporting and promoting student research in the trans disciplinary field of educational linguistics. Please contact Sofia Chaparro at sofiach@gse.upenn.edu.
GlobalEd seeks to create a cultural bridge for international and domestic students at the Graduate School of Education by offering programs to enhance understanding of academic and culture norms as well as provide opportunities to socialize with other cultures and cohorts within the Graduate School of Education. Contact Akashi Kaul akashi@gse.upenn.edu or Yue Hong hongyue1@gse.upenn.edu
The Higher Education Student Association at Penn (HESA) serves to develop the academic, social and professional experience of individuals interested in the field of higher education. Through programming, leadership opportunities, professional development and community engagement, HESA will strengthen the community of scholars, alumni and professionals at Penn and beyond. For more information, please contact hesapenn@gmail.com.
Korean Student Association (KSA) was established to help students interested in Korea share information related to academia as well as life in Philadelphia and at Penn. They hold regular meetings to discuss current educational issues in Korea and in the States. For more information, please contact Yongsu Park at penngsekorea@gmail.com.
L.E.A.R.N. is an interdisciplinary graduate student organization with the goal of creating a forum for students who are interested in improving the quality of education in America’s schools. This year, L.E.A.R.N. will invite guest speakers to campus, moderate brown-bag discussions among Penn graduate students, provide career and networking opportunities for students interested in education reform, and host our annual Spring Education Conference that brings together hundreds of students and professionals on Penn's campus. L.E.A.R.N. also oversees several advocacy projects that will provide experience for graduate students interested in representing public school students in suspension and expulsion hearings, educating parents on special education rights, or conducting cutting-edge policy research to assist educational advocacy non-profit organizations. For more information, contact info@learn-network.org or visit www.learn-network.org.
Out-Ed provides a variety of educational, cultural, and social activities for students interested in gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, and queer issues in education. For more info, please contact Paul D'Avanzo at pdavanzo@gse.upenn.edu.
Part Time Students Association (PTSA) The PTSA is a forum for all part-time students within GSE, across divisions and degrees, to gather and meet one another, offer support, and get more involved in the GSE community. We try to offer a range of activities at different times of the day and days of the week to reach out to the broadest population of students and schedules. Please join us! Contact Stephanie Consoli (sconsoli@nursing.upenn.edu) or Amy Benson (ambenson@mail.med.upenn.edu) for more information or any questions/suggestions.
Penn GSE Perspectives on Urban Education: GSE Online Journal Penn GSE Perspectives on Urban Education provides an interactive forum to investigate critical issues in urban education. It fosters conversations about the complexities of urban education among practitioners, researchers, policymakers and graduate students. It hopes to increase cooperation and understanding among all those concerned about urban education. Contact Andy Danilchick at danila@gse.upenn.edu or go to http://www.urbanedjournal.org/.
Penn-King's Collaborative Link is a joint student/faculty organization, which fosters and supports connections and collaborations between Penn GSE and King's College London. This main purpose of this organization is to promote international conversations about language and literacy. The group organizes several video-conferences per year where young scholars share their research. Additionally, the group is committed to forging collaborations through on-site academic conferences both at Penn and King's. For more information, please contact Debora Broderick at deborab@gse.upenn.edu.
Student Community in Reading Writing Literacy (SCRWL) The purpose of SCRWL is to provide a group that is driven by the unique needs of reading, writing and literacy doctoral students at all stages of their studies. This community enables students to act as resources to one another in our field and professional lives. For more info contact Katrina Bartow Jacobs at kbartow@gse.upenn.edu.
Students Confronting Racism and White Privilege (SCRWP) provides a discussion space for those who are interested in engaging in conversations surrounding racism. The group was founded by white students with the purpose of confronting their own white privilege. Today, SCRWP is a multiracial coalition of students examining race-related issues in ourselves, our schools, and our society. The group provides a space to do internal work on race and identity that often doesn't happen in classrooms. The only requirement is a desire to take an anti-racist stance in learning about race and whiteness, and a willingness to face discomfort, uncertainty, or anger in the process. For more info, contact scrwp.gse@gmail.com.
TC@Penn (Teaching Chinese@Penn) is a student organization within the Graduate School of Education. In order to promote Chinese language and culture, we offer free Chinese language classes and tutoring to students at Penn. We also host teacher-training workshops for teachers who serve for TC@Penn and other cultural workshops and events open to all students. Currently, we are looking for graduate students who are interested in promoting Chinese culture and language. For more info, please contact Wenjie Li.
Teach-in Project The Teach-in Project is a workshop series that aims to bring GSE students, staff, and faculty to a common space in which they can learn from and teach each other. For more info, please contact Melissa Kapadia-Bodi at melk@gse.upenn.edu.
UPenn TESOL Taiwanese Student Association (UTTSA) provides a forum where students can discuss how to combine TESOL theories with practice, how to improve English skills, and how to manage course work. UTTSA also coordinates networking opportunities with alumni, where current students can learn about their work experiences and the PhD application process. For more info, please contact Shu-Shan Cheng at chengshu@gse.upenn.edu.
We Support Diversity of Mind (WSDM) was founded to enhance the overall community for students of color at the University of Pennsylvania Graduate School of Education (Penn GSE). Through academic, social/networking, and community engagement events, WSDM provides support, awareness, and leadership opportunities for Penn GSE students of color; and seeks to build bridges to faculty and alumni of color to maximize the student learning experience. For more information, please contact Ufuoma Abiola at gse.wsdm@gmail.com.
University-Wide Graduate Student Organizations
www.gsc.upenn.edu/resources/gradgroups.php
Graduate and Professional Student Association (GAPSA) is the University-wide government for graduate and professional students, interacting regularly with the President, Provost, Board of Trustees, and other University officials. GAPSA is governed by elected representatives from each of Penn's twelve schools and a student executive board. GAPSA also works with the student governments of individual schools and with other specialized student governments at Penn. For GAPSA's homepage, go to http://www.gapsa.upenn.edu.
Graduate Inter-School Activities Council (GISAC) is an autonomous committee of GAPSA. GISAC includes ethnic, cultural and sports clubs. Contact: 251 Houston Hall, 215-898-3150.
Black Graduate And Professional Student Assembly (BGAPSA) is a federation of African American graduate students at Penn. Members are drawn from all 12 schools and serve as the main political voice for black students. To learn more, go to http://www.dolphin.upenn.edu/bgapsa/. Contact: 251 Houston Hall, 215-898-1495.
Lambda Grads provides social, educational and political activities for students from the 12 schools. The group meets every Friday night in Houston Hall. To learn more, go to http://www.dolphin.upenn.edu/lgrads/. Contact: Lesbian, Gay and Bi-Sexual Alliance, 243 Houston Hall, 215-898-5270.
Jewish Graduate Student Network is a program of Hillel of Greater Philadelphia, serves all of the Jewish graduate and professional students in Philadelphia through campus and city events. For more info, go to http://jewishgrads.org/grad.
Muslim Student Association (Friday prayer 1pm, 245 Houston Hall) For more information, go to http://www.upennmsa.org/. Contact: Muslim Student Association, Houston Hall Information Center, Houston Hall 1st Floor Lobby, 267-324-8484.
International Student Organizations
Chinese Students and Scholars Association at Penn strives to improve the mutual understanding and friendship among CSSAP members, to protect members' legal rights, to provide members with necessary services, and to contribute to cultural diversity of the Penn community. For more info, go to http://www.cssap.org/. Contact: cssapsurvey@yahoo.com.
Korean Graduate Student Association introduces Korean culture and tradition to the University of Pennsylvania community. For more info, go to http://www.pennkogsa.org.
Turkish Student Association provides a platform for bringing Turkish community in Philadelphia together, for promoting exchange of information, and for introducing Turkish culture and Turkey to international community. For more information, go to http://www.dolphin.upenn.edu/turks/. Contact: turks@dolphin.upenn.edu.