Top Rodin aide will leave Penn

University Vice President and Chief of Staff Steve Schutt will step down from his position this summer, Penn officials announced yesterday. Schutt will assume the presidency of Lake Forest College, a small liberal arts school just north of Chicago. Schutt will remain at Penn through the academic year, and he and his family will leave the Philadelphia area for Illinois at the end of June. According to Schutt, the administration will use the remaining five months of his tenure to decide the best way of replacing him. "We'll spend a lot of time this spring taking time to analyze the structure of the president's office," he said. In a memo addressed to senior administrators sent out yesterday, University President Judith Rodin expressed mixed feelings about Schutt's impending departure. "On a personal level, I am very pleased that Steve has been given this opportunity, but I will miss him greatly," Rodin wrote. Schutt has been heavily involved in many of Penn's major projects, aiding in the development of the Agenda for Excellence and the Penn-assisted pre-K-8 school, among other things. According Penn spokeswoman Lori Doyle, the fact that there are five months between now and Schutt's departure will ease the transition by providing ample time for a successor to be found. "That's the nice thing about having him here through June, because it will provide for a smooth transition," Doyle said. The development of the Penn-assisted school has been led by Schutt, but the outgoing chief of staff said he feels confident leaving the project. Groundbreaking on the new school is slated for March 1. "The school venture is going to be well on its way," Schutt said. "A lot between now and [the end of June] will have taken place." Schutt has been a part of Rodin's administration for six years, with Rodin bringing him to the University shortly after she became Penn's president. Schutt's resignation is the latest in a series of administrative departures. Last summer, former University Director of Communications Ken Wildes stepped down from his post, and then-University Secretary Rose McManus left Penn soon after. Rodin's former director of external affairs, Jennifer Baldino, also left Penn this year. The Lake Forest Board of Trustees unanimously elected Schutt as their new president last Thursday, but Schutt says Rodin has known about the possibility of his departure since early December. In a letter addressed to the Lake Forest community, Lake Forest Board of Trustees Chair David Mathis said that Schutt would be visiting the campus on February 23 to "meet with the community." Mathis claimed that Schutt's commitment to liberal arts was one of the key reasons that he was chosen for the job. "His passion for the liberal arts, as evidenced by his ties with Earlham College and senior leadership role at the University of Pennsylvania, appealed to the community," Mathis wrote. The chairman also said that the decision to elect Schutt came after an extensive search process. "Yesterday's vote concluded an eight month-long national effort conducted by our Presidential Search Committee," Mathis said in the letter. The committee was composed of members from the board of trustees, alumni, students and faculty. Schutt said that the work he has done with the West Philadelphia community while at Penn is one of his favorite projects. "I've taken special pleasure in the work we've done in West Philadelphia," he said. "I'll miss the entire institution," he added. "It's a wonderful place." Schutt will be succeeding David Spadafora, who has been president of Lake Forest for eight years. Spadafora will vacate the post in June. Before coming to Penn, Schutt had worked as chief of staff for former U.S. Sen. Harris Wofford (D-Pa.). Schutt is a 1983 Penn Law School graduate and worked in state government as an attorney before joining Wofford's staff. He also holds degrees from Earlham College and the University of London.