Two other officials plan departures

In addition to School of Social Work Dean Ira Schwartz's announcement last week that he would be leaving Penn, two other University officials have decided to leave in pursuit of other projects as well.

Vice President and General Counsel for the University Peter Erichsen announced his upcoming departure earlier this week, and Director of Fire and Occupational Safety Harry Cusick left his post altogether.

As of September, Erichsen will assume the role of vice president and general counsel for the J. Paul Getty Trust, a private cultural and philanthropic organization in Los Angeles.

"This is something that's wonderful for Peter so I am happy for him," University President Judith Rodin said. "This is a new opportunity for him, and I think that he looks forward to new challenges."

Erichsen came to Penn in 1997, and, as vice president and general counsel, he was the primary legal advisor to both Rodin and the CEO of the University of Pennsylvania Health System, as well as to most senior administrators.

During his time at Penn, Erichsen had to respond to such legal challenges as the restructuring of the Health System and the 1999 death of a volunteer during a clinical trial at the University's Institute for Human Gene Therapy.

Before coming to Penn, Erichsen served as associate counsel to the President of the United States for almost two years, as well as the deputy assistant attorney general from 1993 to 1996.

Replacing Erichsen is Wendy White, who previously was the deputy general counsel for the University. White will officially assume the position when Erichsen leaves at the end of the summer.

"We're all very sad that Peter is leaving and we'll miss him desperately," White said.

Also moving up in the ranks of the Office of the General Counsel is Lee Dobkin, who currently serves as deputy general counsel for compliance. He will take over the post being vacated by White.

Rodin noted that the kind of staff the OGC had already recruited made it unnecessary to look elsewhere for Erichsen's replacement.

"We have been building depth and leadership amongst the team to be able to promote from within," she said.

"[Wendy and Lee] are outstanding and were recruited through extensive searches. We know how fortunate we are to have their skill and balance," Rodin added.

White also noted that she, Erichsen and Dobkin would be working closely before Erichsen leaves to ensure a smooth transition.

The other notable departure from Penn is that of Harry Cusick, director of fire and occupational safety.

Cusick accepted a job offer at a private consulting firm. He had worked in consulting often before coming to Penn.

"In between the [Philadelphia] fire department and Penn he was in private consulting and also working for some other consultants, and had kept ties with that world," Vice President for Public Safety Maureen Rush said.

The Division for Public Safety is the umbrella group under which fire and occupational safety is housed.

"A lucrative proposition came his way. He needed to make some decisions as to consult or to work full time at Penn, and his choice was to consult," Rush added. "Harry is back in the consulting business, and I'm sure will do quite well."

While there are no official plans to fill the position left vacant by Cusick just yet, Rush has indicated that it is one of the priorities on her list.

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