University of Pennsylvania

Philadelphians began a building intended as a preaching hall and charity school, but inadequate funding stalled the project. Penn later acquired it and adopted 1740 as its official founding year, distinct from the opening of Franklin’s academy.⁠[4][5]

Benjamin Franklin circulated his educational proposals and assembled 24 trustees to develop an academy. He advocated useful learning for commerce and public affairs alongside classical studies.⁠[4][1]

Franklin’s group acquired the unfinished building and opened an academy, with a charity school honoring the original donors’ intentions. A collegiate charter followed in 1755 and the first graduating class in 1757.⁠[1][4]

John MorganJohn MorganJohn Morgan, whose full name is John Bryan Morgan, is an American attorney, entrepreneur and author, and the founder of Morgan & Morgan. A University of Florida graduate, he has businesses in legal services, tourist attractions and legal technology, and helped advance Florida constitutional amendments on medical marijuana and the minimum wage. Forbes estimated his net worth at $1.5 billion in September 2026.Open the full entry organized a medical faculty that became the first medical school in the British North American colonies, an early step in Penn’s expansion into professional education.⁠[1][4]

During the American Revolution, Pennsylvania’s government took over the College of Philadelphia and reorganized it as the University of the State of Pennsylvania. The restored college and university were subsequently united in 1791.⁠[1][6]

Legislation confirmed the union of the state university and the College, Academy, and Charitable School as The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania. The institution became private and is commonly known as the University of Pennsylvania or Penn.⁠[6][1]

The Law School was established in 1850, followed in 1852 by the School of Mines, Arts, and Manufactures, a predecessor of Penn Engineering. Dental medicine followed in 1878 and veterinary medicine in 1884.⁠[1][2]

Penn moved west of the Schuylkill River and expanded its laboratories and research facilities. The site remains its principal campus, reported at 299 acres in fall 2025.⁠[1][3]

Founded in 1881, Wharton is identified by Penn as the world’s first collegiate business school. It developed undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, doctoral and executive education programs.⁠[2]

According to the Penn & Slavery Project’s historical research, Penn long used 1749 as its founding year before trustees adopted 1740 in 1899, citing the earliest educational trust and building project it had inherited. The dates 1740, 1749, 1751 and 1755 thus describe different institutional milestones.⁠[5]

ENIAC, developed at Penn, became a major milestone in large-scale, general-purpose electronic digital computing in 1946. It reflected the links between federal wartime support and university engineering research.⁠[4][1]

Judith Rodin took office in 1994 as the first woman to lead an Ivy League university. Amy Gutmann followed in 2004 and Liz Magill in 2022.⁠[4]

Penn researchers Katalin Karikó and Drew Weissman received the 2023 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine. Their work on modified mRNA, including findings published in 2005, underpinned later mRNA vaccine technology. Penn’s announcement also disclosed financial interests arising from licenses held by the university and researchers.⁠[7]

J. Larry Jameson became interim president in December 2023. Since 2011, he had led Penn Medicine as executive vice president for the health system and dean of the Perelman School of Medicine.⁠[8]

Penn Engineering announced a BSE in Artificial Intelligence covering machine learning, algorithms, data analytics and robotics. Described as the Ivy League’s first undergraduate AI major, the program was scheduled to begin in fall 2024 and emphasized responsible use of the technology.⁠[9]

After serving as interim president, Jameson was formally appointed president in March 2025. His agenda includes the Quaker Commitment, interdisciplinary facilities and the Penn Forward initiative.⁠[8]

Jameson announced a resolution with the Education Department’s Office for Civil Rights concerning women’s swimming in 2021–22. Penn said it had followed NCAA rules at the time and agreed to align practices with current requirements, apologize to affected athletes and annotate swimming records under current eligibility standards. This was an administrative resolution, not a court judgment.⁠[10]

Six working groups examined education, research and operations, producing more than 30 recommendations. Nine initiatives were subsequently prioritized around trust, discovery and broader geographic and lifelong-learning reach, including Penn AI, Penn San Francisco and the Quaker Commitment.⁠[11]

Jameson stated that he would conclude his presidency as planned on June 30, 2027, continue work on Penn Forward and help trustees manage the transition. The university still listed him as president in October 2026.⁠[12][8]

Penn’s 12 schools span arts and sciences, business, communication, dental medicine, design, education, engineering, law, medicine, nursing, social policy and practice, and veterinary medicine. Fall 2025 enrollment was 29,384: 24,331 full-time and 5,053 part-time. Full-time students comprised 10,325 undergraduates and 14,006 graduate or professional students.⁠[2][3]

The Quaker Commitment expanded undergraduate aid in 2025–26. Families earning $200,000 or less that meet asset and other eligibility criteria can receive a package covering at least tuition. Current rules specify grants and work-study, with conditions concerning liquid assets, business ownership and additional property. Primary-home equity is excluded for qualifying families, and eligibility is reviewed annually.⁠[13]

Penn’s facts page reports a $24.81 billion endowment and $709.9 million in voluntary support for fiscal 2025, alongside $1.34 billion in sponsored-project awards for 2024–25. Its fiscal 2026 university-wide budget was $17.7 billion. Endowment assets, annual gifts, research awards and the operating budget represent different measures.⁠[3]

Penn is an official short form of the university’s name. The visual identity combines a shield, the Penn mark and the university name in traditional red and blue. Brand guidance specifies Perpetua for the Penn mark and ITC Stone Serif for the full name.⁠[6][14]

University of Pennsylvania: Official website: https://www.upenn.edu/ (opens in a new window).⁠[15]

Penn LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: Official website: https://www.linkedin.com/school/university-of-pennsylvania/ (opens in a new window).⁠[15]

Penn YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: Official website: https://www.youtube.com/user/univpennsylvania (opens in a new window).⁠[15]