The University Board of Trustees will convene on campus tomorrow and Friday to discuss campus security, student dining and the Health System.
About 65 members of the full Board of Trustees, the University's main decision-making body, will participate in committee meetings both days at the Inn at Penn.
The meetings will culminate with the celebration of the 125th anniversary of women at Penn on Friday afternoon. The trustees will attend the Locust Walk generational bridge dedication ceremony and a luncheon honoring alumnae and administrators.
The trustees will likely be greeted with promising news about the University's endowment. Early numbers show that while the endowments of many schools have felt the effects of the economic slowdown, Penn's endowment has grown by about 6 percent over the past year.
University Secretary Leslie Kruhly said that the budget and finance committee would be discussing the details of the new figures tomorrow afternoon.
"At this time last year, our endowment was not that favorable," Kruhly said. "The holdings that we have have fared a lot better this year than other schools who invested in technology stocks."
The Board of Trustees convenes for meetings each fall, winter and summer. The board is chaired by Wharton graduate James Riepe, the vice chairman of the investment management consulting firm T. Rowe Price Associates, Inc.
In addition to the budget and finance committee, members of the neighborhood initiatives committee will meet tomorrow to discuss public safety on campus. The trustees will speak about the recently proposed changes in the University's ID policy and West Philadelphia initiatives including the new Penn-assisted school.
The student life committee will convene to discuss, among other issues, the college house system and Dining Services.
The full board will convene on Friday morning to hear updates from the individual committees and approve resolutions. Provost Robert Barchi will speak about the academic progress that has been made this semester, and Executive Vice President John Fry will present the financial report.
The new governing structure of the Health System will be one of the issues discussed during the full board meeting. Medical School Dean and Executive Vice President Arthur Rubenstein will report on the progress made since he took over last summer.
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