Though they work in different fields, Rosemary Mazanet and Andrea Mitchell now have something in common. The two accomplished women are the newest additions to the Making History Campaign leadership team.
Mazanet was selected as chairwoman of the Campaign for Penn Medicine after former chairman Henry Jordan passed away, Penn President Amy Gutmann announced in June. In this position, Mazanet — who earned her doctorate and medical degrees from Penn Med — is responsible for overseeing the medical school’s fundraising efforts.
“Everything I do is healthcare related,” Mazanet said of her current pursuits. “My M.D. and Ph.D. have given me an extensive background to expand into other disciplines.”
Indeed, though Mazanet trained in hematology and oncology, over the years she has also undertaken a number of entrepreneurial endeavors. She is currently Chief Executive Officer of Diabetes America, a group of diabetes management centers, and a general partner of Apelles Investment Management, a New York financial advising firm.
Mazanet has an equally extensive background at Penn.
Initially, Mazanet involved herself with medical alumni, becoming chairwoman for the Medical Alumni Leadership Council. She has also helped fund scholarships and occasionally acts as a guest preceptor in Penn Med’s M.D. and Ph.D. programs.
“It’s a lot of fun to come back and learn all of the interim information and updates,” Mazanet said.
In 2002 Mazanet was appointed to the Penn Medicine Board of Trustees, also serving on its Executive Committee, and in 2006 she won the School of Medicine’s Alumni Service Award.
As Mazanet often worked with the Penn Medicine development team as a trustee, she said assuming the role of chairwoman was “a natural progression.”
Penn Med Chief Advancement Officer of Development and Alumni Relations Kate Griffo agreed that Mazanet was an easy choice to assume the role of Campaign co-chairwoman. She is “terrific, funny, smart [and] energetic,” Griffo said. “She takes the history and legacy of Penn very seriously.”
Mazanet’s fellow chairwoman, NBC correspondent Andrea Mitchell, is the network’s chief foreign affairs reporter. She also hosts the daily Andrea Mitchell Reports segment on NBC.
She has won such recognition as the Goldsmith Career Award for Excellence in Journalism from Harvard University’s Kennedy School of Government.
Mitchell, who graduated from Penn with a bachelor’s in English literature, succeeded former Campaign chairman Christopher Browne, who passed away last winter.
In 2002, Mitchell earned the Alumni Award of Merit, though her involvement extends beyond simply being an active alumna.
“It’s a major commitment in my life,” Mitchell said of her long-standing engagement with the University.
In 2007, Mitchell and her husband — former Chairman of the Federal Reserve Alan Greenspan — funded a Penn Integrates Knowledge professorship.
For the past 18 years, Mitchell has sat on Penn’s Board of Trustees. Currently, she is also on the Annenberg School for Communication Advisory Committee.
Mitchell said her newest role as Making History Campaign chairwoman is a way for her to give back to Penn. “I feel it’s an extraordinary place that needs the support of engaged alumni, and I want to do my part,” she said.
Vice President for Development and Alumni Relations John Zeller said that Mitchell, along with Mazanet, is a “wonderful selection” to serve as chairwoman.
Mitchell was equally enthusiastic about assuming the role. She said the University is special because of its urban setting, interdisciplinary focus, “superb faculty, great president and her team [and] ground-breaking research.”
“And we’re feisty,” she added. “We don’t have as much money as some other Ivies but we have done more with less.”
Zeller, Mitchell, Mazanet and the rest of the leadership team are progressing toward increasing Penn’s funds. Last week the Campaign reached 81 percent of its goal, having raised $2.83 billion.
“Given the success we’ve enjoyed in the past two years, which have been two of the most difficult fundraising years in general, this bodes very well going forward,” Zeller said.
