Sophie Barkan

Luna Chen’s (C ‘26) passion for cooking emerged during COVID–19, when late nights of scrolling through YouTube cooking videos turned into hours spent in her home kitchen experimenting with new recipes for her family. Drawing inspiration from YouTube cooking creators, Luna brought this hobby to Penn, joining the entirely student–run dining pop–up, every now & then, where she helped create curated, home–cooked dinner parties for students across campus.

On a freezing January snow day, Max Annunziata (C ’26) spent his day skiing in Clark Park with his friends, ending the day with a snowball fight. For Max, moments like these have become a defining part of his time at Penn. Max is the first to admit that Penn is intense, describing his first few months here as a constant “what the fuck” feeling.

When I first met Dr. Katie Schuler, I immediately felt a sense of comfort. Her presence radiated genuine warmth and friendliness. I could easily imagine Schuler’s classroom being full of the same energy, creating a welcoming space where even intimidated or overwhelmed freshmen could feel at ease. Schuler is an assistant professor in the Linguistics Department at Penn and also runs Penn's Child Language Lab.