Highlights from the Trustees Meeting

At last Wednesday's Stated Meeting of the Trustees, John B. Neff, H '84, the former chairman of Penn's Investment Board, was made an Emeritus Trustee. Three other resolutions of appreciation were also passed for Trustees Jerome Fisher, W '53; Edward W. Kane, C '71; and Thomas F. Lang, Sr., W '66, WG '68.

Christopher H. Brown, C '69, a Trustee since 1991, was elected a Charter Trustee. Jon M. Huntsman, Jr. C '87, was reappointed as a Term Trustee for a five-year term. L. John Clark, W '63, WG '68, the new chair of Budget and Finance Committee; John C. Hover II, C '65, WG 67; David S. Pottruck, C '70, WG '72; David L. Cohen, L '81; and Shaun F. O'Malley; were elected Term Trustees for five-year terms, effective January 1, 2001. L. John Clark and Judith Roth Berkowitz, CW '64 were elected to the Executive Committee.

President Judith Rodin noted that Penn students seem to have a "renewed sense of activism" concerning national politics as the unresolved presidential election is still on everyone's mind. She spoke of the recent Nobel Prize winners in Chemistry, praising Dr. Alan MacDiarmid and his co-recipients whom she said would be here for an event in spring 2001. Dr. Rodin mentioned the significant awards received by the Cancer Center and LRSM. The latter, being instrumental in facilitating the interdisciplinary work that led to the Nobel Prize.

Dr. Rodin said Penn is conducting a national search for Tom Seamon's replacement. Penn is "forging ahead in e-commerce" with P2B getting new ventures off the ground. She also said that Penn has reached an "amicable settlement with the family of Jesse Gelsinger."

Provost Robert Barchi echoed the President's remarks about how this is "truly a Penn Nobel" and how LRSM stimulated their research. He spoke about efforts to enhance the atmosphere on campus with several initiatives including the Provost's Lecture Series, Provost's Spotlight Series--which co-sponsored the Sister Carrie 100th anniversary celebration, and the Provost's Council on Arts and Culture.

In the financial report, EVP John Fry noted that the University's endowment "under performed in fiscal year 2000 due to the value orientation in its domestic equity allocation of the A.I.F. as well as our under allocation in private equity." The Health Services component "continued to make progress in reducing its liability to the University." University revenue for the 12 months ending June 30, 2000, increased over the prior fiscal year, with sponsored research activities being the largest contributor to this growth. The growth in contributions was 31.4 percent over the prior period.


Almanac, Vol. 47, No. 12, November 14, 2000

| FRONT PAGE | CONTENTS | JOB-OPS | CRIMESTATS | SENATE: Proposed Policy: Copyrights & Commitment of Effort for Faculty | PENN LAW: Sesquicentennial | BENCHMARKS: Law School History | PENNs WAY 2001: Week 2 | TALK ABOUT TEACHING ARCHIVE | BETWEEN ISSUES | NOVEMBER at PENN |