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myHR: March 25, 2026

Events Shaping Up for Take Our Children to Work Day

father walking daughter to workIf you haven’t yet made plans to bring your kids to work and show them some of the wonders of working at a world-class university – get ready. Registration for Take Our Children to Work Day at Penn opens on March 31 at 9 a.m.

Take Our Children to Work Day takes place on April 23. This nationwide event benefits kids by exposing them to diverse career paths, fostering future career aspirations, and helping them understand the value of learning and professional life. Penn is a great place to let kids see a variety of occupations while they enjoy hands-on learning with researchers and professional experts.

Through partnerships with schools and centers, there are dozens of thoughtfully planned activities offered to inform and inspire staff and faculty participants and their young guests. Advance registration is required for many activities. Here is a sample of events planned by partners across the Penn community:

  • uCity Square Activities – Hands-on Science – Take part in uCity Square's concurrent Take Our Children to Work Day hands-on STEM special topic activities.
  • Explore the Penn Museum – Explore the Museum for free and enjoy 15% off Gift Shop purchases.
  • Kite Coloring and Flying with the Office of Information Security – Build and fly your own kites while learning about information security and renewable energy.
  • BioBlitz with Penn Biology Department and Penn Vet – Alongside experts, help spot and identify frogs, insects, birds, and other animals.
  • WXPN Interactive Studio Demonstration and Radio Station Tour – Tour a professional radio station with producers and on-air hosts as your guides.
  • Try Your First Case with Penn Carey Law – Argue your client’s case in a high-stakes trial against other “lawyers for the day.”
  • Pedal-Powered Snack Lab – Pedal on a “smoothie bike” while learning how food fuels our bodies.
  • Storytime at the Penn Bookstore – Join the Penn Bookstore team for children’s stories, crafts, giveaways, and milk and cookies.
  • Marshmallow Spaghetti Towers with the Penn Society of Women Engineers – Work with others under the guidance of engineers to design and build the tallest tower using only spaghetti and marshmallows.

Visit Penn's Take Our Children to Work Day webpage to preview the activities and mark your calendar to register on March 31 at 9 a.m.

Step Outside with Penn’s 30 x 30 Nature Challenge

woman in sunglasses reading book in hammock with small dogAre you ready to swap screen time for sunshine? Join Penn’s April 30 x 30 Challenge and turn 30 minutes outdoors each day into a powerful wellness habit and earn 500 points for the 2025-2026 Be in the Know annual wellness campaign at the same time.

This energizing month-long initiative runs from April 1 through April 30 and is available to benefits-eligible faculty, staff, and postdocs who are enrolled on the WebMD platform. If you would like to participate but have not yet enrolled, please visit WebMD to join. Registration for the challenge opens on March 25.

An Outdoor Boost

The April 30 x 30 Challenge is a partnership between Penn Sustainability and Human Resources. With this event, Penn encourages you to spend at least 30 minutes outdoors every day. How you choose to enjoy your outdoor time is entirely up to you. You can walk through your neighborhood, relax in a park, tend to your garden, explore a local trail, or simply sit outside with a good book.

Participation is easy: 

  • Log in to the WebMD wellness platform or mobile app.
  • Click on the April 30 x 30 Challenge card on WebMD’s MY HEALTH main page.
  • Mark “Yes” for each day you spend 30 minutes or more outdoors.
  • Record “Yes” for at least 21 out of 30 days to complete the challenge and earn 500 Be in the Know points.

The final deadline to track your progress is May 8 at 6 p.m. ET. Data submitted after this time will not be counted in your challenge results. While daily tracking is recommended, you may enter your data any time before the cutoff.

Time Outdoors Matters

The Environmental Protection Agency reports that Americans spend roughly 90% of their time indoors, which means many of us miss the restorative advantages of fresh air and natural light. Even short periods outside can lower stress, strengthen immunity, boost energy, and enhance creativity.

Remember, you don’t need a wilderness escape—nature is often right around the corner in local parks, community gardens, neighborhood green spaces, or scenic campus spots.

You can find more details about the 30 x 30 Challenge on the Penn Sustainability website.

Be in the Know Reminders

This year’s 2025-2026 Be in the Know annual wellness campaign will end on June 30, but there’s still time to make progress on your health and well-being goals, plus earn points and rewards! Earn up to $300 in cash rewards that are added to your paycheck on a monthly basis by completing your choice of the campaign’s wellness activities. This includes a biometric screening that provides you with valuable information about your health, as well as 1,000 points and a $50 cash reward if you are enrolled on WebMD.

If you still need biometric screening credit this year, schedule a free, fast, and convenient on-campus screening on Wednesday, April 1, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. in Houston Hall, Bodek Lounge. Signing up for an appointment is easy:

  1. Visit the Health Advocate website and log in with your PennKey and password.
  2. Click the HEALTH tab, then select Get a Health Screening.
  3. Choose Health Screening Event, click Schedule Now, and follow the steps to book your preferred time and location.

You’ll receive a confirmation email from Health Advocate, Penn’s biometric screening partner, once your appointment is set.

For more information about the 2025-2026 Be in the Know annual wellness campaign, visit
www.hr.upenn.edu/beintheknow.

Performance Goals and the Year-End Review

Goals concepts illustrations in front of woman holding smart phone

Goals are a key component of Penn’s staff performance review self-evaluations launching on April 1. Using Workday’s goal management tools allows staff and managers to track progress and understand the impact of their work over the past 12 months.

This helps every department make sure staff goal setting and professional development align with their school’s or center’s strategic plans and Penn’s broader mission.

Workday automatically adds goals to employees’ self-evaluation. This time-saving feature eliminates the need for totally manual entry. Goals will be added automatically based on:

  • Manager Approval. If a manager has not approved a new goal or an update to an existing goal prior to April 1, the goal may need to be added manually.
  • Due Dates. The goal due dates determine if goals are automatically included in the review or must be added manually.
  • Status. The marked status of a goal, including not started, in progress, completed, not applicable, or blank, also determines whether a goal is automatically included in the review.
  • Included in a Prior Review. A goal with a past due date or included in a prior review may be included automatically. 

Managers, employees, and even organizations can add or update goals in Workday. Guidance on identifying who performs the actual entry in Workday can vary by school, center, department, or manager.

With these conditions in mind, here are some frequently asked questions:

Which goals will appear in the year-end review?

Workday will automatically add goals to the employee’s self-evaluation if the goal’s due date is during the review period. For the upcoming review, the review period is May 1, 2025, through April 30, 2026. Goals with due dates within that time and with a status of not started, in progress, or completed will appear in the review automatically.

Which goals will not automatically appear in the review?

Some goals will not show up automatically. These include:

  • Goals due before May 1, 2025
  • Goals due after April 30, 2026
  • Goals marked not applicable

How can staff and managers prepare their goals in Workday for the year-end performance review?

Staff and managers should check that their goals in Workday have appropriate due dates. Managers should approve new goals or updates to existing goals before the review begins on April 1, 2026. This helps make the review process easier.

If you want to include a goal with a later due date (for example, June 30, 2026), you can add it manually during the review process.

When should goals be entered in Workday?

Goals can be entered at any time during the year by the staff member or manager. If goals are entered before April 1, 2026, and their due dates fall on or before April 30, 2026, they will appear automatically in the mid-year review. Updating goals throughout the year makes performance reviews easier.

Will I be notified if a goal is added or changed?

Yes.

  • If a manager creates or edits a goal, the employee will receive a notification.
  • If an employee creates or edits a goal, the manager will get a task to review and approve it. Timely update submission and timely manager action ease the process.

Can a goal be edited during the performance review?

When a goal is pulled into the performance review, it cannot be edited outside the review process. You must update the goal during the review process.

How can managers see all their team’s goals?

Managers can run the “My Team’s Goals” report in Workday to view their direct reports' goals at any time.

Helpful Workday Tips

Building Financial Security at Various Career Stages

financial management concept walking through maze of 100 dollar billsFor some young adults, money is no longer just a measure of success; it’s a tool for building stability, flexibility, and well-being. As people in their 20s and early 30s navigate rising costs, evolving career paths, and changing life milestones, they’re rethinking what financial security truly means. At the same time, conversations about money — especially in relationship contexts — are becoming more necessary and more complex.

Together, these shifts reveal a broader cultural change: financial wellness is less about following a traditional script and more about designing a life aligned with personal values, open communication, and long-term balance.

Two new articles by TIAA delve into these topics.

If you would like to ensure you are on track for financial security, a TIAA retirement plan counselor can help. You can schedule a meeting at TIAA.org/schedulenow.

Learn to Lead Effectively in Any Situation

leadership concept flexible arrowNo matter where you are on your leadership journey, you can build new skills and strategies to lead more effectively. No matter where you are on your leadership journey, you can build new skills and strategies to lead more effectively. Start by attending Adapting Your Leadership Style, a virtual workshop set for April 28 from 12:30 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.

Talent and Organizational Development Consultant Sam Sonet will lead a discussion that will help you learn to recognize style differences and develop motivational approaches for a variety of employees and organizational needs.

“Adapting Your Leadership Style is a one-hour webinar for everyone, regardless of their job title, because we are all leaders in some way, whether we manage a team or not,” says Sonet. “This workshop focuses on empowering Penn employees to get work done successfully by adapting their approach to the task and/or stakeholders as needed.”

Learning how to apply different leadership styles doesn’t mean changing who you are. The process is to invite participants to assess and build on skills they may already have and be able to apply them differently within different contexts. This proactive leadership approach allows you to relate to others and guide them more effectively. It gives you flexibility to successfully evolve.

Register for Adapting Your Leadership Style and discover how to keep your group productive and engaged in ever-changing environments.

For more professional development opportunities, visit the Learn and Grow section of the Human Resources website.

Discover more ways to Grow Your Penn Career with tools in Workday.

Healthy Meals: Sheet-Pan Roasted Salmon with Potatoes & Green Beans

one-pan salmon green beans and potatoWith just a few basic steps and one pan, you can enjoy a tender salmon dinner with wholesome sides. This recipe from Eating Well will satisfy your taste buds with zesty seasonings and fuel your health with powerful nutrients like omega-3 fatty acids as well as vitamin K and fiber. Sheet-pan roasted salmon with potatoes and green beans checks all the boxes for a weeknight meal, including easy clean-up.

Click here to send us your healthy recipes and tips.

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
  • 3 tablespoons lemon juice (optional)
  • 1 teaspoon dried thyme
  • 1/4 teaspoon ground ginger
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 (24-ounce) package baby Yukon Gold potatoes, scrubbed and halved or quartered
  • 4 (5-ounce) skinless salmon fillets
  • 1 (8-ounce) package trimmed green beans

Directions

  1. Preheat oven to 400°F. Line a large, rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper.
  2. Whisk the oil, lemon juice (if using), thyme, ginger, and salt in a medium bowl.
  3. Arrange potatoes in an even layer on the prepared baking sheet. Brush about a tablespoon of the oil mixture over the potatoes. Roast until beginning to soften and brown, about 30 minutes.
  4. Push the potatoes to one side of the baking sheet. Arrange salmon fillets and green beans in the empty space. Brush about 2 tablespoons of the oil mixture over the salmon. Roast until the potatoes are fork-tender, the green beans are tender-crisp, and the salmon flakes easily with a

Meet With a Registered Dietitian Today!

  • One-on-one, virtual sessions you can schedule at any time that works for you
  • 100% covered under many insurance plans
  • Available to spouses and dependents
  • Fill out the Ramp Health Nutrition Counseling Sign Up Form or call 800-484-7720.

Did You Know: April Student Loan Forgiveness Webinar

For up-to-date guidance on Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF), register for Navigating PSLF Through 2026 Student Loan Policy Changes on April 8 from 12 p.m. to 1 p.m. Representatives from PeopleJoy, Penn’s student loan forgiveness partner, will discuss how to get started. They will also share government updates impacting eligibility, ways to avoid common pitfalls, and more. Register today. For details visit the Student Loan Forgiveness Assistance website.