Jameson updates campus community on ‘Penn Forward’ initiative progress

Penn President Larry Jameson provided an update to the University community on the progress of the “Penn Forward” strategic framework on Wednesday. 

In the April 15 email, Jameson announced that the University will proceed with nine key initiatives centered on building trust, strengthening Penn’s discovery efforts, and extending its global reach. These nine programs were chosen from a pool of 30 ideas put forward by the strategic framework’s six working groups. 

“With Penn Forward, we asked our community to think ambitiously and practically about how Penn can evolve for continued excellence,” Jameson wrote. “We are seizing this moment to shape the future of our exceptional University.”

An accompanying website listed all nine initiatives: the Penn Experience, Penn Quaker Commitment, Penn Health Advantage, Penn Works Better, Penn Partners for Impact, Penn AI, Penn Learning for Life, Penn San Francisco, and Penn Global. 

The projects outline efforts to redesign tuition and financial aid, position Penn as a “national leader in artificial intelligence,” and expand the Wharton School’s San Francisco campus. 

Penn Quaker Commitment is aimed at reinforcing trust between Penn and its students and families by simplifying costs and providing “clear” and “predictable” tuition costs. The emphasis comes after the University first announced the Quaker Commitment in 2024, raising the income threshold for families eligible to receive full tuition scholarships from $140,000 to $200,000 with typical assets.  

Penn Learning for Life, Penn San Francisco, and Penn Global are all aimed at expanding the University’s reach to beyond West Philadelphia.

In September 2025, Jameson unveiled “Penn Forward” as a strategic framework designed to guide the University through a period of mounting pressure on higher education institutions. The framework is his first institutional initiative as the University’s president. 

Over the past few months, the University sought feedback from the framework’s six working groups. Each group was designed to address a specific aspect of Penn’s operations — including Undergraduate Education and Innovation, Graduate and Professional Training, Research Strategy and Financing, Global Opportunity and New Markets, Operational Transformation, and Access, Affordability, and Value. 

Jameson wrote that the working groups brainstormed “with remarkable energy and creativity,” and incorporated feedback from the Penn community into their proposals. He added that leaders of the chosen projects are already working to develop “clear operational planning and tangible outcomes.”

In a press release published alongside the University-wide message, Jameson described Penn Forward as “comprehensive, future-focused and … action-oriented,” and added that the plan will continue to be re-evaluated to ensure self-improvement. 

“There is significant public distrust in institutions, including universities,” Jameson wrote. “There is less certain funding for our missions at a time when the opportunities have never been greater. Penn Forward empowers us to proactively shape our future and restore trust in the value we bring to society.”

---