Whether you are a new student in Philadelphia, or an experienced one, there is an event for you starting on Oct. 2. Campus Philly Kick-Off, sponsored by Campus Philly and the Philadelphia Department of Commerce, is a week long event starting with the much-awaited College Day on the Parkway celebration.
Come down to the Benjamin Franklin Parkway and receive free admission to eleven cultural meccas, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Franklin Institute, the Rodin Museum, and more.
You are questioning the free part, aren’t you? It’s true. Bring your student ID and experience the art and history Philadelphia possesses for free all day.
According to Adam Johnson, who coordinates the event every year, the Philadelphia Museum of Art attracted about 2,100 students last year.
“One of the goals is to definitely get students aware of the other institutions this city has to offer,” Johnson said, even with the large number of students who visit the art museum every year. This year, College Day on the Parkway coincides with the museum’s special exhibition “African Art, African Voices.”
All of the cultural institutions participating in the event are holding special exhibits. The Academy of Natural Sciences’ “Shell Show,” exhibits a large variety of seashells from all over the world.
Free shuttle service will continuously loop around the museums throughout the day. The University of Pennsylvania’s Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology is included in the shuttle’s route.
The excitement does not end there, though. After an exciting day expanding your mind, College Day ends with a blowout concert in front of the art museum.
Some of past headliners of the concert were The Roots and Busta Rymes. This year, Something Corporate takes the stage and many other local bands, like Tangible Truth, Mental Sharp and The Low Budgets.
By 3 p.m., the Parkway will be booming with exciting raffles, food, various giveaways and even voter registration. With this year an election year, there is more political excitement than usual.
“This is the first year we’ve made such a prominent focus on the political aspect of the city,” said Jon Herrmann, Campus Philly’s General Manager. Campus Philly has invited both the Democratic and Republican campaigns this year.
Herrmann said the goal of these events is to get students to think of themselves as Philadelphians.
This year the two biggest events are the Involvement Fair led by Idealist.org and the Skate Jam and Best Trick contest, where the city’s best skateboarders will be showing their stuff.
Campus Philly Kick-Off has many other exciting events throughout the week. Internship Web site CareerPhilly will be holding an internship fair on Wednesday, Oct. 6, at 30th Street Station from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. and there will be a Grad Students Mixer on Friday, Oct. 8 at the World Café Live from 4-6 p.m.
Whether you want Philadelphia to be your home after graduation, or you have no idea where you might end up, this event is a chance for everyone to come down and have a fun day getting to know the city.
Laura Johnston can be reached at cox@temple.edu.
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