The Open Space Initiative

Current Open Space hours are

We have instituted a two-strikes policy. Each instance of failure to comply with any of the policies outlined below counts as a strike — two strikes and we will suspend your access to the reservation system; three strikes result in loss of access to the OpenSpace Program. If you have been suspended and would like to reinstate your account. In that case, you must contact the Executive Director for Wharton San Francisco ([email protected]) or the Associate Director of Operations ([email protected],edu).

The University requests that visitors not come physically to campus if they feel ill, have been exposed to a case of COVID-19, or if they are not fully vaccinated.

Wear your Lanyard

Wharton San Francisco and our landlord require all personnel to wear their Wharton lanyard while on our floor, including after you’ve checked in and are sitting down.  They need to be worn, not just on the desk near you.  This provides security an easier and quicker way to visually check if folks are authorized to be on the property in person and via the video security system. Lanyards allow us to see who has been checked into campus and who needs to be left with the front desk upon exiting the floor. This lets us know when guests leave and reuse lanyards for future reservations. There have been thefts and robberies in Hills Plaza, as well as on our floor – please help us keep you and your belongings safe by allowing staff to identify people who are authorized to be here quickly and visually.

Check-in

Please check in with the front desk upon arrival. You will have to ring the front desk upon arrival to our floor. Once allowed in, the front desk staff will have the reservation holder and your guests sign in at the kiosk. This will print badges for your lanyard and is how we verify your room and alumni status. Once you leave, please return your lanyards and badges to the front desk before leaving.

Lateness, Disappearances, Overstays, and No-Shows

If you’re going to be more than 30 minutes late to a meeting in a Group Study Room (GSR) or you can’t make it, email us at [email protected] or call us at 415-267-6300 to let us know your ETA. We will cancel your reservation for that day if you are late or missing and we haven’t heard from you.  Similarly, if you leave early or disappear for several hours in the middle of the day without notice, we may assume you left and cancel your reservation for the rest of that day. To avoid this, check-in at the front desk before leaving and/or leave your lanyard at the front desk to pick up upon your return.

Open Space closes promptly at 5:00 p.m., and all reservations end. We understand it may take a few minutes to gather your things and exit the floor, so we have a 15-minute grace period to allow for that. All Open Space users and guests must return their badges and exit the floor before 5:15 p.m.

Using Unreserved Space

If there’s a problem with your reservation, or someone is the space you reserved, please don’t just grab another empty room – this causes a cascade effect of people not being in the right place and can delay students who are often breaking out during class for group work. If you show up to campus, we can try accommodating you in empty rooms, but guests with prior reservations have precedence over those who do not.

Unattended guests

You must be present for your reservation. The Open Space program benefits Penn students and alumni, not their friends or family. You may work with partners or team members who are not affiliated with Penn, but you must accompany and remain with them. Unattended guests (e.g., leaving the facility while your guest is here) will result in a strike.

Food

We are currently unable to offer coffee and snack services. You can bring your food and beverages to consume in the GSRs. Eating is prohibited in all large classrooms and auditoriums. 

On days when a group in the space has catering at any level (which could include anything from coffee/tea/snack service to full meal service in the dining room), we ask that you not take food or beverages from those marked areas. It may cause the caterer to run out of food due to an unanticipated increase in headcount.

I am an alum of a certificate-granting or Executive Education program – is the Open Space Initiative open to me?

Due to the high demand for space, we’re currently only able to extend this pilot to alumni who have received a degree from our undergraduate, MBA, or PhD program.

I need more than one room or have more than six people. Can I reserve more than one room?

No. We cannot accommodate groups larger than six people as conferences incur costs on campus. We have limited reservations to one room per person daily to ensure the space is fairly distributed.

I have a larger group that is interested in using a larger conference room, classroom, or dining room/event space. How can I submit a request for this?

We are not currently booking third-party events. Demand for internal events from University departments is usually too high for us to accommodate outside groups. If you believe your request is academic, please visit the Wharton Events page to request space.

Can I use a landline? What about a fax machine?

Our breakout rooms are not equipped with landlines, nor do we have a fax machine for public use.

Can I print something?

Due to the volume of requests, we cannot accommodate printing and scanning for Open Space participants. Two blocks away, at 182 Howard, there is a UPS store that offers these services.

My co-founder or group consists of individuals who are not affiliated with Wharton. May I bring them with me for my meetings/reservations?

Of course.  Please include the names of your venture team members when you complete the Open Space registration form. We ask that you all sign in at the front desk upon entry each day.  To keep things fair for all participants, we require Penn alumni to be present at all times while a non-Penn guest is on the floor.

Can I extend this benefit to friends and family by reserving on their behalf?

Unfortunately, we don’t have enough space or resources to open the program this broadly. To ensure as much space as possible for alumni and students, you (the alum) must be present for the entire duration of any booking.

Can I have mail and/or packages delivered to the campus address?  Can I send mail from campus?

No.  We cannot accept mail or packages for groups, startups, or individuals using the space. If we receive mail or packages addressed to pilot users or startups, we will, unfortunately, have to refuse delivery and send the parcel back with the carrier.  We also are unable to send or hold mail for sending – there are two Post Offices nearby which we can direct you to.

I was a recent student at Wharton San Francisco. What will change for me when I transition to alumni status?

You’ll be required to reserve space and check in and out, and there are days when we won’t have space and can’t allow you on campus. Academic programs and students always get priority for our limited space.