Prof named computing vice provost

Classical Studies Professor James O'Donnell, co-chairperson of the Computer Restructuring Task Force at Penn, will assume the position of interim vice provost for Information Systems and Computing. This appointment will take effect on March 1, when current Vice Provost for ISC Peter Patton's five-year tenure is complete. In addition to O'Donnell's new appointment, the School of Arts and Sciences announced that Ira Winston, executive director of the School of Engineering and Applied Science computing, will also head up computing for SAS. Winston's appointment took effect Friday morning when former director Ben Goldstein left for a new position in California. Patton said he accepted the position of vice provost five years ago after the administration searched unsuccessfully for two years for a person to do the job. "No one would touch the job with a 10-foot pole," he said. Patton said the administration asked him to work specifically on the runaway cost of mainstream computing. "In the first two years I came here, we traded in our mainframe computers for one new computer system," he said. "Consequently, we saved the University a million dollars." He added that in the past five years, the University had engineered a massive computer restructuring which is still ongoing today. Patton said he enjoyed his job as vice provost, adding that he feels it is time to move on to a new challenge. Since his tenure is ending, he said he has been looking in to other job possibilities. "I've had offers from other schools, but I'm also looking into the possibility of getting a job in the industry and remaining here at Penn to teach," he said. "I've also thought about going back into the consulting business." Fry said Patton informed him that he was looking into other jobs, creating an imminent need to find a replacement. "The most important thing was to keep the momentum we've had so far," he explained. "Jim was the co-chair of the Task Force, so he knows where we are better than anybody." Gerry McCartney, director of Wharton School of Business computing, agreed that O'Donnell is an excellent choice for the job. "Given his academic background, he's in a position to move the entire University forward," he said. And O'Donnell himself said he is pleased and excited to have the chance to fill this position. Patton also said he has enjoyed working with the people in the computer systems here at Penn. "The people in our departments are some of the finest in the world," he said. "They're certainly the finest I've ever worked with." As executive director of Computing and Educational Technology Services in SEAS and SAS, Winston will be in charge of computer support for students and faculty in the schools, as well as computer labs and e-mail operations. Winston said he sees computers becoming more and more important to academic studies at the University. "I think the approach is to take mundane things out of the classroom and improve the overall quality of class time by putting things on the web," he explained. "Class time will be devoted to actual discussion." O'Donnell agreed, explaining that the Task Force has to deal with computing in a "new world." "Computers are strategic to everything everyone does," he said. "Computers aren't just for people with pocket protectors anymore."