Trustees focus on science

After last year's focus on improving undergraduate education at the University, the Board of Trustees is looking forward to devoting much of its energy this year to scientific research, according to Board of Trustees Chairperson Roy Vagelos. Vagelos said the National Research Council's annual rankings -- which placed 15 of the University's graduate departments in the top 10 nationwide -- provided an excellent starting point from which to launch a drive to improve all aspects of the University's scientific research programs. And beginning in late October with the groundbreaking ceremony for the Institute for Advanced Science and Technology on the former site of Smith Hall, the University will be refurbishing old science facilities and formulating plans to construct new ones, Vagelos added. "The University is in position to move forward aggressively to support very nice progress being made in the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and in the School of Arts and Sciences' Chemistry department," he said. "[The University] is flexing its muscles. Muscles need more space." Vagelos said the trustees will support major initiatives this year to expand the physical space devoted to science on campus, including the IAST. "We have great leadership already in place," he said. "We need to support them with additional people and facilities." He added that most of the University's physical research facilities are more than 20 years old and can no longer support the quality of research that University faculty members and graduate students are capable of pursuing. Vagelos said the trustees have asked University President Judith Rodin for long-term campus real estate planning so the University can improve its research infrastructure as soon as possible. Rodin said her administration has been active in such long-range planning since her inauguration. She pointed to projects such as the Perelman Quadrangle as the first step in a continuing process of campus development. She added that the trustees could probably expect a master plan from the administration some time next spring. University Secretary Barbara Stevens -- whose office acts as liaison between the administration and the trustees -- said the board expects the IAST to act as a springboard for scientific efforts at the University. She said the groundbreaking ceremony for the IAST will be held during the trustees' annual fall meeting. "It provides an important opportunity to talk about the sciences at Penn," she said. "Science is very important to the future of the University. The trustees' interest in science is very focused on interdisciplinary efforts among all the major sciences at Penn." Vagelos's concerns with science did not first begin with his appointment as a trustee in 1988. He served as chief executive officer of Merck & Co. -- the world's largest pharmaceutical manufacturer -- from 1985 until November 1994. He said this year's focus on science will directly complement last year's work on undergraduate education at the University. "The quality of graduate programs immediately reflects onto the undergraduate experience," he said. "Science and engineering ought to be an integral part of that experience. Graduate students have good experience in areas that go hand in hand with undergraduate education."