New and updated resources

08/11/23

Dear Colleagues,

 

As you enjoy the final weeks of summer, I wanted to share a few updates on resources and support that may help as you prepare for the upcoming Fall start. 

 

  • 50% increase to discount for the Commuter Discount Program: For full-time benefits-eligible faculty, staff, and postdoctoral researchers and fellows who use public transportation for their commute to campus, Penn Parking & Commuter Services has increased the discount to 50% (maximum discount of $105 per month) on Philadelphia regional transit.  This discount is available for transportation options including:

 

    1. SEPTA Monthly City TransPass+ and Monthly Regional TrailPass (does not include SEPTA Key’s Travel Wallet)
    2. PATCO FreedomCard-T
    3. New Jersey Transit
    4. Amtrak Prepaid 10-pack tickets and Monthly Pass

 

For more information, please see here and here.   Note an August 19th deadline if you would like to utilize the 50% SEPTA discount starting on September 1.

 

In addition, please see two important traffic alerts at the bottom of this email as you plan your commute.

 

  • Childcare availability (including flexible schedules) at Bright Horizons at University City: Enrollment is now open at Bright Horizons (3600 Civic Center Blvd.), with flexible schedule options and drop-in and back-up care available.  Please see flyer here, and visit the Bright Horizons website for more information.

 

  • New website for Penn Medicine Clinical Research: The Office of Clinical Research has launched a new website designed to provide easy-to-access information about our clinical research enterprise to patients and families, investigators, clinical research professionals, and our community. Please visit the site and learn how we are driving collaborative and innovative research.

 

  • Freely share up to 300GB of data: Looking for resources to preserve and share data from completed research projects?  Utilize the University’s new membership with Dryad - an open access data repository and a community committed to the open availability and routine re-use of all research data - to share freely up to 300GB of data per deposit.

 

These are only a few of the many resources across campus to support your work.  You can find these and others on our research website; if you have any recommendations that we can add, please share them by email, and we will help spread the news.

 

Best wishes for the year ahead,

Jon

 

Jon Epstein, MD

EVD | CSO

 

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Traffic Alert: The University of Pennsylvania student move-in later this month will include road closures that may contribute to traffic delays in University City and West Philadelphia from Monday, Aug. 21, through Sunday, Aug. 27. If driving to campus, allow extra time for travel. Please plan your commute accordingly and contact your manager or local HR team if you encounter problems getting to work. Click here for specific dates and times of road closures and here for SEPTA updates.

 

Traffic Alert for Managers: Given recent changes in traffic patterns and commuting options, staff in roles with remote work potential are encouraged to reach out to their manager and make arrangements to work from home when possible, and those who work on the HUP/PSOM campus are urged to use public transportation. If your employees are driving to campus, they should allow extra time for travel.