Tis the Season

Disclaimer: I'm sorry for the delay in writing this post, or any post for that matter! It's been a crazy busy week between the final assignments I'm trying to procrastinate and put off completing and the huge influx of work in the admissions office - THANK YOU to those of you who submitted your apps and for those who haven't, winter break is a great time to finish them up!

This post has taken me FOUR days now to get through, and although I'm really excited to share it with you, it's had to take a backseat to the rest of the work, but here it is!!!

Here we are in the last 2 weeks of the semester at Penn, and finals are in full swing! It's so hard to keep motivated through all of the late-night paper-writing, cram-studying for exams, and still attending classes! Unlike undergrad, grad students have class all the way up until the very last day of the semester (only eleven ten nine EIGHT more days!!). There's no "finals week" or "reading days" where we get a break from class to focus on our final assignments. We are warriors who push through to the very end! But this structure has left many GSE students feeling overwhelmed, stressed-out, and at times hopeless here at the end of the semester. All-nighters, endless hours in the library, computer lab, or study spaces, and lots and lots of coffee have become the norm for many of us! Winter break and some time to mentally recharge is so close but still so far away!

I know it's kind of a dated joke, but still funny and relevant!!

This weekend I had so much work to do (2 final papers and a presentation are only one more paper is standing in my way) but it was nearly impossible to focus with our FIRST SNOWFALL OF THE YEAR happening right outside my window!! The gorgeous flakes falling down outside while I was in my cozy apartment was a HUGE distraction, and eventually I gave in to the temptation and took a mental break to watch football all day on Sunday. The games in Philadelphia and Baltimore were absolutely insane because it was snowing so hard! I'm a huge football fan, but this weekend was more of a comedy show than a competitive game - they were even using shovels and snowblowers to clean off parts of the field between plays!

This is what Sunday's games looked like in the Northeast!

Since it's now "officially" the holiday season (Thanksgiving is over, it's December, and we've had not one but TWO snowfalls in Philly!) I figured I would share some links to my favorite holiday attractions and events in the Philadelphia area.


Ice Skating
There's several places to go ice skating during the winter in Philly and every once in a while a new one pops up! My favorite by far is the River Rink at Penn's Landing. It's outdoors so you can skate around on a cold but sunny day and look out over the river; it's a lot of fun and a great winter weekend activity! They even host special events like themed evening skates and a New Year's Eve party! This year there's a new rink in town (also outdoors!) at the Piazza in Northern Liberties. I haven't been there yet, but I'm hoping to check it out over break! Finally, there's the Penn Ice Rink at the Class of 1923 Arena RIGHT ON CAMPUS! And the best part is, it's an indoor arena (used for Penn Ice Hockey, etc.) so it's open ALL YEAR ROUND! Public skate happens several times a week so check it out once you're on campus!

Christmas Village
Every year, a little "town" pops up outside City Hall with tiny wooded houses filled with local vendors selling everything from homemade treats, knit hats, scarves, gloves. etc., fun toys, delicious food and drinks, ornaments, decorations, and lots more! It's a great place to visit and maybe buy some holiday gifts while enjoying the Christmas spirit with your neighbors in the City of Brotherly Love. In the past, the village has been located right in front of City Hall, but due to construction on the new plaza, it has been relocated to Love Park - how appropriate!

Holiday Shows
I love shows and performances! My favorite in Philadelphia is the Christmas Light Show that takes place in the Macy's in Center City (it was formerly Wanamaker's and it's a gorgeous old building with the world's largest operating pipe organ inside!) The show started in 1956 and has changed very little since then! During the holiday season, at the top of every other hour (10am, 12pm, 2m, 4pm, 6pm, and 8pm), the whole store stops and turns its attention to the spectacle of lights as Julie Andrews narrates a ten-minute condensed rendition of the Nutcracker, complete with some of our favorite characters (Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer!). The whole show ends with a performance of "Oh, Christmas Tree" on the historic organ. It's one of my favorite Philly Christmas traditions!

The Comcast Building also puts on a great Holiday Spectacular every year, but it's very different from the vintage feel of the Macy's show. The Comcast show is very high tech, involving dynamic video of real people on their giant LED video wall!

I have to admit, as someone who has been taking dance classes since age 3, I absolutely adore the story and ballet performance of The Nutcracker! If you're a fan of the ballet like I am, or if you're just looking for a fun cultural activity, definitely check out the Pennsylvania Ballet's show running through December 29th!

As an added holiday bonus, the Philadelphia Parking Authority is giving the city FREE PARKING in Center City on Saturdays after 11:00 AM through December 28th! YAY!

So there's a little snapshot of some things I like to do on the weekends in December in Philly! Feel free to share any other things you do for the holidays - I'd love to hear them! I'll still be posting over winter break (hopefully I'll have time to post more frequently!) so stay tuned for more of my reflections from the semester, fun things to do if you're spending New Year's Eve in Philadelphia, and my goals and plans for next semester!

Happy Holidays!!!

Meet the Dean!

Attention New York City and Chicago - we're coming to you!

Penn GSE is hosting Holiday Reception/Meet the Dean events in both Chicago and NYC.  It will be a great opportunity to meet leaders from GSE, find out more about our degrees and programs, network, and enjoy some delicious food! You can RSVP here. 

Here are the details for each event: 

Chicago
Tuesday, December 10th, 6-8PM
Gleacher Center at the University of Chicago
450 North Cityfront Plaza Drive
Room 420 (South Lounge)

New York City
Thursday, December 12th, 6-8PM
Grand Hyatt New York
Park Avenue at Grand Central
Uris Room

Hope we see many of you there!!

If you can't join us in either Chicago or New York, check out our web chat with current students and alumni coming up on Tuesday, December 10 from 12:00-1:00pm ET. Register for the online chat here!

Post-Holiday Excitement!

Hi All!

I’m back from a relaxing long weekend at home with my family and I've entered an incredibly busy week at the admissions office! Evenings and weekends in the office are becoming the norm (along with several large coffees a day!), BUT that means we’re getting lots of applications from all of you, which is fantastic!

Admissions plug: If you haven’t completed your application yet try to submit it as soon as possible!

First, a few updates on the events going on at GSE during the next few weeks:

This Saturday , December 7^th is our Teacher Education Program Information Session! If you’re interested in becoming a certified teacher (Pre-K through high school) join us on campus from 10:00am-12:00pm to learn more! RSVP here.

Next Tuesday, December 10^th is our final Web Chat of 2013. Join current students, alumni, and admissions and financial aid representatives to learn more about all of the programs and being a student at GSE! The web chat is taking place online from 12:00-1:00pm ET. RSVP here.

Want to get a first-hand experience at Penn GSE? Join us for a campus visit where you can meet with program managers, admissions and financial aid reps, current students, and take a tour of campus! Visits take place between 9:00am and 5:00pm Monday through Friday. We kindly ask for two-weeks’ notice to plan any visit. Sign up for a visit here.

NOTE: We are NOT hosting campus visits between December 7^th and January 12^th as the staff is very busy processing applications. We will begin visits again on January 13, 2014.

After a long weekend it’s tough to be back at school and work. Only 2 ½ more weeks until the semester is over but I still have 2 big projects/papers to complete. Wish me luck!

I wanted to share some pictures from how I celebrated the Thanksgiving holiday, but somehow in the chaos of hosting 18 people at my house for dinner, we didn't manage to take any pictures of us, but I’ll leave you with a few pictures of my dog – I think she enjoyed the day more than we did!

Hope your Thanksgiving was as delicious as this one!

A small powdered-sugar mishap while baking cookies...

As always, questions and messages are welcome - I love hearing from you!!

Counting my Blessings

Thanksgiving might just be my favorite day of the year! I like it more than my birthday, or Christmas, or Labor Day, or Arbor Day, and definitely more than Halloween! Not only does Thanksgiving mean there is an avalanche of some of my favorite foods [read: potatoes and pie] but my family and friends gather at our house and celebrate the day together! BIG shout out to my amazing Mom who cooks a DELICIOUS dinner every year for all of us!!!

In the spirit of giving thanks, I wanted to share a list of all of the things I'm grateful for this year, and there's A LOT of them, so here's a small segment of my list...

1. I am beyond blessed to have an incredible and supportive family. My parents always go out of their way to provide things for my sister and I as well as helping us through all of our many many challenges - I don't know what I would do without them! My sister is also one of my best friends in the world  I'm so proud of her and thankful that I have her in my life!

2. I also have an amazing boyfriend who I'm thankful for every day! Even when I'm upset, or angry, or stressed out, or overwhelmed, or doubting myself, he can always make me feel better and push through whatever I'm struggling with. He never fails to make me laugh and he gives the world's best hugs!

3. I'm thankful for the blessings of education that I have been able to obtain during the past 17 years. My parent's sacrifices and hard work have allowed me to attend great schools where I've grown as an individual and opened my eyes and brain to countless new ways of thought and life.

This year I have some new blessings to be thankful for.

4. I am ridiculously grateful to be here at Penn GSE getting my master's degree. It is a phenomenal school and I'm meeting so many incredible people and learning so much from being here! I'm thankful that this program is helping me to figure out and follow my "dream" career (whatever that may be) and giving me a strong foundation to do so. Even though I've been frequently doubting myself and what I'm doing here, I know I made the right decision to come to Penn, and I would do it over and over again...maybe just a little differently (but that will be a future reflection).

5. I'm also thankful for my Graduate Assistantship at Penn where I get to interact with current and prospective students each day and share something I love (GSE!) with them! I love that I get to share one of my blessings with many other people every day!

6.  The final blessing I'm going to share today is my cohort here at GSE. Coming into the program I was really worried that I wouldn't make myself available to people and that I wouldn't make friends because I already have a lot of people I know and hang out with in Philadelphia. I struggled with that balance for many weeks and I've only recently put forth a really conscious effort to do things with my fellow higher ed students, and I'm so glad I made that change! My fellow higher ed students are phenomenal and I wish I had gotten to know more of them sooner! I fear that I'll leave this program without building a relationship with everyone, but at least I've made a small start. I'm so thankful for these people and the time I've been able to spend with them so far on this journey!

So that's just a snippet of what's on my list this year, not to mention the infinite other things I'm grateful for every day! I hope you all can share your blessings and thanks with others, not just on Thanksgiving, but throughout the year. 

Also, I'm not neglecting all of my friends celebrating Hanukkah - Happy Hanukkah! I'm sad that I'll be missing a small gathering of my cohort members tonight who will be lighting the candles and eating delicious latkes - yum!

Teacher Education Information Session!

Interested in becoming a teacher? Join us for an on-campus information session!

Whether you want to teach pre-kindergarteners or 12th graders, our Teacher Education Program (TEP) can get you on track to certification. 

Through a commitment to social justice and urban education, TEP prepares prospective teachers to transform students and schools. You can read more about the program on their extensive website: http://www2.gse.upenn.edu/tep/.

Read through the website and want to learn more in-person?

Join the Urban Teacher Education program for an on-campus information session on Saturday, December 7 from 10am-noon ET. RSVP here. (Please note only the Teacher Education program will be represented and discussed at this event.)

Hope to see you there!