Trustees name VP of finance

In his new position, Stephen Golding will be responsible for a budget which exceeds that of the entire state of Delaware. On Friday, the University Board of Trustees appointed Golding to the position of vice president for finance. Golding, who was formerly executive director of resource planning and budget for the University, replaces Selimo Rael, who resigned in June. Rael was a consultant to the University for about a month after his resignation, but Executive Vice President Janet Hale acted as vice president for finance after his departure. Deputy Director of Resource Planning and Budget Benjamin Hoyle will take over Golding's old post until the President's Office names a replacement. Golding was Delaware's secretary of finance before coming to the University in 1991. Now, as vice president for finance, Golding will oversee the offices of the Treasurer, Student Financial Services, Purchasing, Risk Management and Research Administration. Golding said he looks forward to the "exciting challenges" his new post will offer. "As you look out into the future, the economics of higher education are only going to get more complex," he said. He added that much of his work will concentrate on restructuring the University to be more cost effective and efficient. "I think the University has to remain financially stable and has to live within its mean," Golding said. "We have to continue to search for alternative revenue streams to reduce pressure on tuition and some of our historical revenue bases." Golding likened the University to a small city, saying "Penn is a very broad and expansive enterprise, and is larger than a lot of Fortune 500 companies." The search committee, which was formed to find a new vice president for finance, accepted applications from across the country and from within the University, Hale said. "We clearly wanted the best individual, but Steve [Golding] did bring an existing knowledge of Penn and of the budget we couldn't find elsewhere," Hale added. Fagin said she was also pleased that the position was filled from within the University. "He has a very strong sense of our academic needs, and outsiders may not know the difference between a corporation and a university," Fagin said. "He's really a superb, creative person," she added. "I think he'll provide a lot of continuity."