Sara Bachman has been reappointed as dean of Penn’s School of Social Policy and Practice, extending her term to June 30, 2031.
The announcement, made by Penn President Larry Jameson and Provost John Jackson, acknowledged Bachman’s leadership over the past six years. Bachman’s term extension, which pends approval by the Board of Trustees, comes amid divided student opinions on her first-term performance.
“Dean Bachman has led SP2 through a period of remarkable growth, innovation, and resilience,” Jameson wrote in the announcement. “Over the past six years, she has demonstrated calm, principled, and effective leadership. Her steady presence has not only sustained the SP2 community but has also enriched it intellectually and programmatically, all while remaining deeply committed to academic excellence and the social good.”
On May 13, Jameson and Jackson announced the formation of an ad hoc consultative committee to review Bachman’s potential reappointment. The committee was chaired by Sarah Banet-Weiser, dean of the Annenberg School for Communication, and included seven faculty members across Penn‘s schools, but primarily from SP2.
The review committee gathered input through interviews with the dean, meetings with SP2 faculty, staff, and students, confidential feedback, and a review of internal reports and data.
In the announcement, Jameson described Bachman’s “steady leadership” as the culmination of various initiatives, including “the Practice Doctorate in Nonprofit Administration, certificate in Applied Data Ethics, Law, and the Social Good, and advanced curricular initiatives in philanthropy and climate resilience.”
Under Bachman’s direction, according to Jameson, SP2 has “doubled its sponsored research revenue,” decreased “tuition dependency” among students, grown faculty membership, and “advanced academic excellence.”
“Dean Bachman has led SP2 through a period of remarkable growth, innovation, and resilience,” Jameson added.
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In June, multiple SP2 students expressed mixed reactions to the prospect of Bachman’s reappointment.
In a written statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian at the time, Stephanie Marchese — a third-year SP2 student in the school’s Doctorate in Clinical Social Work program — described “several reasons” for not supporting Bachman’s reappointment. Marchese noted an introductory meeting with Bachman, during which the dean “stated that she would never hire a DSW graduate for the [SP2] community.”
She also referenced Bachman’s “bias against clinical social workers,” along with the school’s need for “a visionary leader who understands the powerful connection between front line clinical work combined with original research.”
Bachman assumed the role of SP2 dean in 2019, succeeding Jackson, who led the school for four years before becoming the University’s provost. Prior to Penn, Bachman served as the inaugural director of the Center for Innovation in Social Work and Health at Boston University.
