Become a Member

Family Center Membership 

The Family Center is a membership based facility, all University of Pennsylvania students and post-doctoral fellows with children are eligible to join and memberships are free.

Membership includes: 

To join the Family Center, fill out and electronically sign our Parental Consent & Release Form. A staff person will email you within 3 business days to verify your new membership and confirm benefit eligibility. Names of students who are registered with the Family Center are shared with Backup Care vendors so they can verify your eligibility. 

Read how Penn respects and protects your data. 

Join the Family Center

Family Center Guidelines

PLEASE NOTE: THE FAMILY CENTER IS NOT A DAYCARE CENTER. WE ARE NOT EQUIPPED OR AUTHORIZED TO PROVIDE CHILDCARE SERVICES, AND WILL NOT PROVIDE OR BE RESPONSIBLE FOR THE CARE OR SUPERVISION OF CHILDREN WHO ARE ADMITTED TO THE FAMILY CENTER.

The Family Center welcomes all Penn students and post-docs with children and their family members. Our mission is to create a space where student and post-doc families from the University of Pennsylvania community can access resources, information and supportive programming.

All families and children use the Family Center at their own risk and assume full responsibility for personal injury to self and family members, and further release Penn and the Family Center for injury, loss, or damage arising out of the use of the facility or other third parties. Each child's parent or other legal guardian must register and electronically sign the Family Center's consent and release prior to using the Family Center for the first time.

All children under the age of 18 must be accompanied and supervised at all times by his or her parent, legal guardian, or designated childcare provider (defined below). No adult may supervise more than three (3) children at one time at the Family Center. This includes designated childcare providers. In the event a child is left unattended, or an adult otherwise violates these requirements, the child and accompanying adult may be required to leave the Family Center immediately.

  • The Family Center reserves the right to refuse entry to any person, or require any admitted person to leave the Family Center immediately, in the event that a member of the Family Center's staff determines (in his or her sole discretion) that the person's behavior (or the behavior of a companion of such person) is overly disruptive or aggressive, and violates any Family Center rules, any University policy, or is otherwise inappropriate. If that person is caring for a child, the child will also be obligated to leave. One violation is enough to suspend privileges. Any staff decisions to revoke usage privileges may be appealed by writing a letter to the Director of the Family Center.
  • Each child admitted to the Family Center must be accompanied and supervised by the child's parent, legal guardian or Designated Childcare Provider. Each Designated Childcare Provider must be designated as such by the child's parent or legal guardian in a Family Center Parental Consent and Release. Parents and caregivers must accompany the child(ren) at all times while visiting the Family Center, Family Center staff are not authorized to supervise your child(ren) for you.
  • Family Center property is not to be removed from the facility. Violators will be assessed replacement costs for any lost or missing items. If it is determined that the removal of any item(s) was deliberate, the offender will no longer be admitted to the Family Center. Families must assume responsibility for damaged items caused by neglect, reckless, or willful actions, and pay for replacement or repairs. Families are responsible for cleaning up after themselves during their visit and must return all items to their proper locations.
  • The Family Center is not responsible for any property brought into the Family Center. A lost and found box may contain misplaced items.
  • In the case of an emergency, please notify the Family Center staff immediately and call 911 or the University of Pennsylvania Police at 215-573-3333. There is a first aid kit in the Family Center.
  • All violation of these rules or similar incidents (injury, theft, inappropriate behavior, etc.) must be promptly reported to the Family Center staff.