1. The Toasting Ceremony
Everyone can participate in this toast to success. At the University of Pennsylvania, fans throw toast on the field during the third quarter of the football game for good luck.
2. Thank you, Ben
Ben Franklin founded the University of Pennsylvania in 1740, and it was the first American college to be founded on strictly secular principles. Franklin advocated a course of study that included practical competencies as well as the classics. You can see a copy of Franklin’s “Proposals Relating to the Youth of Pennsylvania,” the university’s founding document, here. Although Ben Franklin founded the University of Pennsylvania and served on its Board of Trustees, he did not actually attend college. His education was self-administered through reading. That may or may not explain the dolphin in the UPenn coat of arms.
3. Button it up!
What is 16 feet in diameter, weighs 5,000 pounds, and stands 4 feet and 11 inches high? Why, a button, of course! Claes Oldernberg’s controversial sculpture has become a UPenn campus landmark since its installment in front of the Van Pelt Library in 1981. Not into buttons? Perhaps you would prefer The Love Statue in Blanche Levy Park. This statue is a larger rendition of the one in John F. Kennedy Plaza.
4. The Penn Relays
Each year UPenn hosts The Penn Relays, the nation’s oldest and largest amateur track meet. High school and college athletes participate in three days of competition each April with an average of one race beginning every five minutes.
5. Famous Alumni
Ezra Pound , Noam Chomsky, and Khalil Gibran Muhammad went to UPenn, as did Doc Holliday.