Trustees laud Shoemaker's contributions

Ready for Vagelos to begin Members of the University's Board of Trustees had nothing but praise last night for Alvin Shoemaker, who will step down as the board's chairperson this month. With Shoemaker as chairperson of the board, the University has raised $1.3 billion for its endowment and established the Penn Club of New York, which opened six months ago. Trustee Chris Browne said Shoemaker did "an absolutely fantastic job" as chair. "He singlehandedly completed the most successful campaign in higher education, and well above what our goals were," Browne said. "And he was the driving force behind the Penn Club." While Trustees said they will miss Shoemaker's leadership, they also hailed Trustee Roy Vagelos as an excellent choice for a successor. The Trustees are expected to elect Vagelos at their October meeting. Board of Trustees Vice Chairperson Susan Catherwood said it was a "wonderful time" for the change of hands to take place, especially with the recent success of the Campaign. "[Shoemaker] was a major part of that," she said. "It's not as though he's resigning -- he's stepping aside. "And it's really exciting that Roy will be succeeding Al as chairman," she added. "This is an absolutely perfect choice." Trustee Gloria Chisum, who is also vice chairperson, said Shoemaker has had "a number of significant accomplishments. "I am sorry to see him step down," she said. "But I think Dr. Vagelos will also be an outstanding chairman, because he's a superb human being and will work hard on behalf of the University, just as Mr. Shoemaker has done." Chisum added that the duration of Vagelos' chairmanship at Merck was "an extraordinary period for that company." Vagelos, who graduated from the University in 1950, has served as chairperson of Merck & Co., the world's largest pharmaceutical company, since 1985. He recently resigned and plans to officially retire on November 1. Vagelos, 64, has been with the company for 19 years, and is retiring because the company has a mandatory retirement age of 65. Since Vagelos has been chairperson, Merck has developed and implemented new drugs and new strategies for dealing with health care issues. As chairperson, Vagelos dealt with several international issues, including the decision to send technology and expertise to China for the production and use of the hepatitis B vaccine. In addition, Merck developed Mectizan, a drug that can treat river blindness, a disease mostly concentrated in Africa. Last year, Vagelos was paid a salary and bonus of $2.4 million, plus a long-term incentive payment of $1.3 million in 1993, according to the Houston Post. As a Trustee, Vagelos most recently served on the consultation committee for the presidential search, which ended in University President Judith Rodin's appointment last December. Shoemaker chaired the Presidential Search Committee. Browne said Vagelos will bring "a wealth of experience" to the position of chair. "He is the ideal choice to help steer Penn to its next challenges," he said. Rodin said last week that an official announcement about the appointment will be made this week. Vagelos was unavailable for comment yesterday.