Kelly Writers House

The Kelly Writers House is a mixed-use programming and community space on the campus of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, PA. Founded in 1995 by a group of students, faculty, staff, and alumni of the University of Pennsylvania, the Kelly Writers House (3805 Locust Walk, Philadelphia) hosts more than 300 events and projects per year, such as readings, art exhibits, lectures, seminars, film screenings, manuscript exchanges, tutoring programs, and literary celebrations. Most events are open to the public and live-streamed on the internet for worldwide viewing via KWH-TV. All Writers House events are free. Writers House also sponsors or hosts several publications, including student run magazines such as Penn Review, Penn Appetit, and F-word, as well as the international online magazine of poetry and poetics Jacket2. Partially funded by the Provost's Office of the University of Pennsylvania, Writers House is also supported by "Friends of the Writers House" — alumni, Penn parents, Philadelphians, and other literary-minded and generous people interested in creative enterprise. The Writers House is also sustained by members of the Writers House Planning Committee (known as "the Hub"), the core group of writers and writing activists who plan events, offer ideas for new initiatives, and dedicate their time to literary activities.

In 1995 Professor Al Filreis and a group of volunteers made up of faculty, students, staff and alumni of the University of Pennsylvania founded the Kelly Writers House. The group, the Writers House Planning Committee (also known as the "Hub"), aimed to create a central space where students of the University of Pennsylvania and members of the greater Philadelphia writing community could “organize, promote, and share” creative writing activities. Penn alumnus Paul Kelly funded renovations to the house itself, a cottage built as part of a Victorian suburban development project in 1851. The renovations transformed the house, which had for many years been the home of a university chaplain, into a unique multi-purpose community space. What had once been the parlor became the Arts Café, a south-facing room with large windows where classes and many Kelly Writers House events are held. The house also features a publications room, an office for the Kelly Writers House Hub, classroom space, and a dining room and kitchen, all open for events and student and Writers House community use.

In 1997, Paul Kelly, a University of Pennsylvania alumnus (C'62, WG'64), provided the initial grant the Writers House needed to flourish. Kelly funded renovations to the house itself, a Victorian cottage built in 1851. When the Writers House reopened after the renovations, the planning committee dedicated the reopening to Kelly's parents Thomas and Rita. Since his initial 1997 contribution Kelly has continued to support generously the house and its programs, including the Kelly Writers House Fellows Program, an annual project which brings eminent writers such as Susan Sontag, John Ashbery, T. Coraghessan Boyle, David Sedaris, Joyce Carol Oates, and Art Spiegelman to the Writers House for readings and discussions with students and members of the public. Kelly also continues to make major annual gifts to the house which ensure that the house will be a permanent fixture.

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