April 11, 2002

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• Record-setting gift goes to bioengineering

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Record-setting gift goes to bioengineering

Thanks to a $10 million gift from Penn Trustee and Engineering School Overseer J. Peter Skirkanich (W’65) and his wife, Geri, Penn’s Bioengineering Department will be moving to a new home, Skirkanich Hall. The gift is the largest by an individual donor in SEAS history.

The 58,400-square-foot facility, to be built near the School of Medicine, will be part of the School of Engineering and Applied Science.

Founder and president of Fox Asset Management, a New Jersey-based firm, Skirkanich said investments in bioengineering and biomedical engineering will further advances in medicine and health.

“Engineers and physicians working together will have a direct impact on the health and welfare of individuals,” he said. “With aging populations around the world, that work takes on added significance.”

The gift is part of Penn’s $57 million bioengineering initiative to expand the department over the next five years with seven new faculty and an additional 17 graduate students.