While the Penn community awaits the University’s decision on spring 2021 operations, some of the buildings and operations on the Penn campus have reopened for students with limited capacity.

Three weeks before the start of fall classes, Penn announcement its decision to scrap its plans for a hybrid semester guaranteeing on-campus housing for early years, sophomores and transfer students into the College House system. Students facing “significant housing or personal hardship” may apply for on-campus housing, wrote Penn President Amy Gutmann and Rector Wendell Pritchett in the Aug. 11 email.

Although Gutmann wrote that there will be no physical activities on campus this semester, Philadelphia students have limited access to facilities such as the Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center, Penn Park, the Center Hamlin Tennis Court and the Penn University Archives Reading Room.

Van Pelt-Dietrich Library Center

Penn Libraries announcement on October 20 that a limited number of places would be available at Van Pelt for students to study individually. Undergraduate, graduate and professional students must live in on-campus housing and be a part of Penn’s COVID-19 surveillance testing program to reserve a place.

The ground floor of Van Pelt is open from 6 p.m. to 10 p.m. Monday to Thursday as part of the pilot program.

Students qualified to study at Van Pelt must complete a reservation online for a minimum of one hour and a maximum of four hours. To enter the library, students will be required to present a PennOpen Green Pass and confirmation of their reservation, which must be made at least four hours in advance.

Once inside the library, students must adhere to the safety precautions outlined in the Contact Student Campus, including wearing a mask and practicing social distancing. Students will not be allowed to eat or drink while inside the library.

Penn Leisure Campus

Franklin Field, Penn Park and Hamlin Tennis Center are open for undergraduate and graduate students, faculty, staff and graduates of Penn to participate in socially distanced activity.

Penn Recreation announced the reopening of Franklin Field and Hamlin Tennis Center for free recreational activities in an email to the Penn community on October 15. Students do not need to live in on-campus accommodation to use the facilities, but must participate in supervision tests.

“This resumption of activities is not an indication of plans for the spring semester,” Penn Campus Recreation wrote in the October 15 email. “Fuller details on plans for the spring semester will be released by the University at a later date.”

The Franklin Field Track and Turf is for individual conditioning only, with the use of personal water bottles, stretch bands, foam rollers, and ankle and wrist weights allowed.

Adams Field and Dunning-Cohen Champions’ Field located in Penn Park are also only available for individual physical activity. Adams Field has lacrosse goals, soccer goals and field hockey goals, while DCC Field has soccer goals, field hockey goals and soccer goal posts placed appropriately to allow social distancing.

Students can participate in the Franklin Field Outdoor Bootcamp offered every Wednesday at 12 p.m. on the lawn of Franklin Field. Registration opens one week before bootcamp and is limited to eight slots.

For recreation open at Franklin Field and Penn Park, guests should book 45-minute sessions every hour, with the remaining 15 minutes allocated for turf, track and stadium cleaning. For the use of the tennis courts, guests must book hour-long sessions.

Those wishing to use the facilities must present a PennOpen Green Pass.

Franklin Field and Penn Park are open Monday through Friday, 7:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m., 4:00 p.m. to 7:00 p.m., and Saturday to Sunday, 10:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. The Hamlin Tennis Center is open Monday through Friday 8:00 a.m. to 8:30 a.m. and from Saturday to Sunday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

“This opportunity to participate in physical activity will serve as a mental and emotional support resource for those who are not currently living at home and who have been isolated or lacking physical activity since returning to Philadelphia,” wrote Penn Campus Recreation.

Student health service and psychological counseling and services

SHS and CAPS organize in person and telehealth appointments throughout the semester.

SHS, located at 3535 Market Street, hosts in-person clinical appointments Monday through Friday 8 am to 4:30 pm and Saturday 10 am to 3:30 pm SHS telehealth appointments are available Monday through Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Students should make an appointment by calling 215-746-3535, and same-day appointments are available. After hours and during weekends, students with urgent issues can call the SHS phone number and press option three to speak with the day care provider.

In person CAPS meet at 3624 Market Street are available Monday to Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. CAPS virtual meetings are available Monday to Thursday 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Students should call 215-898-7021 and press option two to schedule an in-person or virtual meeting. Those wishing to meet with a CAPS staff member in person should call the number to be approved for an in-person appointment before coming to the office.

1920 Municipalities

1920 Commons, Gourmet Grocer, and the Starbucks at Commons are the only on-campus dining options available to students this semester. Communal room, which is open to students on a Penn Dining meal plan, offers breakfast, lunch, and dinner on weekdays, and brunch and dinner on weekends.

Penn decided to open Commons following a pilot program that took place earlier this month. On October 7, Penn Dining invited all RAGAs to participate in the four day pilot program in which they could sign up for 30-minute time slots to eat their meals inside Commons. Although there are 95 RAGAs on campus, only six have chosen to participate in the pilot program, citing coronavirus concerns.

Penn University Archives and Archives

The University Archives Reading Room located at 3401 Market Street reopened October 26 for limited access to faculty and staff as well as students who require in-person access to the archives for any course.

The room is open Mondays and Tuesdays from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m. and from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. Appointments for a maximum of two hours per day must be made at least three working days in advance.

Students and staff who wish to use the reading room should contact Public Service Archivist Timothy Horning to make an appointment. To enter the building, individuals must present a PennOpen Green Pass and join the Student Campus Contact.

Penn Museum

After four months of closure, the Penn Museum reopened to the public on July 28 as part of COVID-19 prevention measures.

Visitors must book “timed tickets” for one of the three two-hour blocks offered Tuesday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The 30 minutes between blocks of time allows staff to clean up the museum between waves of visitors, museum services director Edward Reidell told The Daily Pennsylvanian.

Visitors are permitted to bring personal bottled water, but no other outside food or drink is permitted.

The Museum Café is open for limited hours, Tuesday through Friday 10:30 am to 12:30 pm The Guardians’ Garden, Stoner Court and Mosaic Court at the Penn Museum are open to visitors wishing to picnic. while distancing themselves socially.