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(12/02/98 10:00am)
Every day, three of the four University undergraduate deans and several other senior administrators exchange the scaffolding and wailing car alarms of University City for greener pastures -- those of the posh Main Line and its surrounding communities. Currently, the University is actively engaged in a community revitalization effort, with two cash-incentive programs designed to lure faculty and staff to the area and a new cinema, supermarket and hotel on the horizon. But while the programs have brought dozens of Penn faculty and staff members to the area, almost no high-level University administrators reside in West Philadelphia, according to a recent Daily Pennsylvanian investigation of federal tax filings by the University, county government records and on-line telephone databases. Instead, most top officials choose the wide open spaces, strong public schools and lavish homes common to the wealthy suburban towns just west of Philadelphia. Do the locations of the officials' homes disrupt their connection to the students they serve? Not according to the administrators. A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood Ever since University President Judith Rodin took office in 1994, there have been rumors that she has a secret residence tucked away in the suburbs -- a regular hideaway from her official residence, the stately Eisenlohr Hall at 3812 Walnut Street. The campus residence, built in 1912, has about 14,000 square feet of space, according to a Web site on Penn buildings. In addressing such speculation, Rodin said, "There are rumors that I don't live in the President's house, but I don't know where else I would be living. They're absolutely untrue." But while no Pennsylvania telephone directories list a residence under Rodin's name anywhere in the state, she and her husband, Paul Verkuil, dean of the Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University in New York City, do indeed own additional homes -- a residence in New York City's Greenwich Village and a house in Queenstown, Md. Rodin's home in the Chesapeake Bay community, which she said she occasionally uses on weekends, has a current market value of about $769,750. Rodin added that she only stays at her New York residence when she is in the city on University business or visiting her husband. "I spend all of my time" in Philadelphia, she said. Interim Provost Michael Wachter said he wasn't concerned about the lack of top administrators living in West Philadelphia, stressing that administrators' commitment to their jobs is more important than where they choose to spend their evenings and vacations. "I think it's important that administrators be accessible -- period," Wachter said. Wachter and his wife Susan, who chairs the Wharton School's Real Estate Department, have lived in their Berwyn, Pa. home for 30 years, and the senior administrator says he is too busy to even think about moving. Berwyn is just one piece of the Main Line. The strip, which got its name from its proximity to the Paoli local railway, consists of more than 20 towns, including Bala Cynwyd, Narberth, Haverford, Ardmore, Boothwyn, Radnor and Bryn Mawr. Devoted Suburbanites Health System CEO and Medical School Dean William Kelley lives in the town of Bryn Mawr, about 15 minutes east of Wachter. Kelley, who earned more than $1.1 million in salary and benefits in 1997 and is the University's highest-paid employee, put down about $880,000 for his home in April 1990, shortly after he came to Penn. The current market value for the home is about $770,000. Executive Vice President John Fry lives about 10 minutes to the east of Kelley in Haverford. His home is worth about $730,000 on the current market. Fry, who bought the home in August 1995, a few months after Penn hired him, earned $326,219 last year -- a 22.4 percent climb from 1996. Outgoing Wharton Dean Thomas Gerrity and his wife Anna also reside in Fry's neck of the woods. Their six-bedroom home in Haverford, complete with four bathrooms, a fireplace and a pool has a total market value of about $1.2 million. Other devoted Main Liners include School of Arts and Sciences Dean Samuel Preston, who lives in Radnor, and Nursing School Dean Norma Lang, a resident of Broomall. College Dean Richard Beeman lives just outside of the confines of the Main Line in Wallingford. Preston said Radnor's strong public-school system and tight-knit community lured him and his family to the area 19 years ago. Still, other deans prefer the fast-paced city life -- as long as it's not West Philadelphia city life. Interim Engineering School Dean Eduardo Glandt's Society Hill condominium is valued at about $283,000. And outgoing Law School Dean Colin Diver bought his home in the tony Northwest Philadelphia community of Chestnut Hill for about $424,000 in August 1995. Diver said he was particularly impressed by the beauty of Chestnut Hill during his house-hunt 9 1/2 years ago. "I was looking for a little more land and more trees," Diver recalled, adding that he also recognized the importance of contributing to the city. And Diver, who will continue as a full-time member of the Law School faculty member after he steps down as dean next summer, said he does not envision himself relocating. "I spend such a tremendous amount of time [at Penn] as it is," he said. "I don't see any particular need for administrators in general, or me in particular, to live on campus." 'Round Here But sprinkling faculty and staff members throughout West Philadelphia helps stabilize the community, according to Penn Managing Director of Community Housing Diane-Louise Wormley. Last spring, the University unveiled two programs that provide loans and monetary rewards resembling grants to University faculty members and staff opting to live in the surrounding neighborhood. Under the Home Ownership Incentive Program, those who agree to live in a University City home for at least seven years receive either $3,000 for seven years or $15,000 up front for housing costs, regardless of personal income. And those who already own homes in University City can receive up to $7,500 in matching funds for exterior home improvements under the Home Improvement Loan Program. The University also continues to operate a guaranteed mortgage program that allows for 105 percent financing for homes in West Philadelphia and 100 percent financing for those located in certain parts of the city. It built upon this program in January by offering, in association with Commerce Bank, 120 percent loans to Penn faculty members and staff buying homes in University City. The loans take into account purchase price, housing renovations and closing costs. Since January, the program has successfully relocated 63 University faculty members and staff to University City. Non-faculty University employees, from clerical workers to top executives, comprise about 60 percent of the total sales. And as of last spring, there were 979 Penn faculty members and staff living in West Philadelphia. Wormley was unable to provide a figure that included Health System employees. One newcomer to the neighborhood is Omar Blaik, the University's vice president for facilities services. Blaik, his wife Hazami Sayed and their 3 1/2-year-old son Mazin moved in August to their home at 46th Street between Cedar and Hazel avenues. The administrator, who came to Penn as an associate vice president in March 1997, said he enjoys living in an ethnically diverse neighborhood and believes it is a safe environment for his child. "There is a contradiction between the way the community is perceived and reality," he said. Although the family initially looked at the Center City and Society Hill areas, Blaik noted that homes in West Philadelphia were selling for half the price of their downtown counterparts and offered twice the square footage. The Blaiks paid about $200,000 for a home with about 3,500 square feet, and will receive $3,000 annually for seven years under Penn's incentive program. Now Blaik shops at Thriftway and occasionally walks to work. His one gripe: His Penn-affiliated neighbors occasionally complain to him about facilities issues if a car alarm happens to awaken the block at 3 a.m. Yet Blaik said he is satisfied with the trade-off. "If I need to be effective in my job, I need to experience the campus 24 hours a day. I'm not just a suburbanite spending eight or nine hours in the Franklin Building and then leaving for the day." Self-described "city boy" Jack Shannon, the University's chief economic-development official since the summer of 1997, is also reaping $3,000 from the University over seven years. He paid over $150,000 for his home at 46th Street and Larchwood Avenue. The home has about 3,000 square feet with six bedrooms and a library. "Not only do you buy housing as shelter, but you're also buying a community," Shannon said, adding that he believes University City is on the upswing. Other top administrators residing in the area are Director of University Relations Ken Wildes, who lives on South 48th Street, and Vice Provost for University Life Valarie Swain-Cade McCoullum, who lives in Penn's Mayer Hall, a dormitory that primarily houses graduate students. Although Wormley was unable to provide an estimate of the number of senior administrators taking advantage of the program, she said she was not disheartened by those who retreat to the suburbs. "The goal of the program is to increase home ownership," she said. "It's not to increase the number of vice presidents living in University City." She added that the program is not intended to target any particular income level, since West Philadelphia offers modest homes for $50,000 just blocks away from restored mansions selling for over $250,000. But for administrators accustomed to living in homes valued at double or triple that amount, the West Philadelphia housing stock may not appear to be extraordinarily diverse. "The reality is that someone who's making a huge income is not going to buy an inexpensive home," said Yale University spokesperson Tom Conroy. He added that of the 319 Yale faculty members and staff who have purchased homes under Yale's similar home ownership initiative, only 65 were classified as managerial or professional employees. Rodin stressed that Penn's program is best suited to those University faculty members and staff who are new to the area. "The proof and the test will be, as we recruit more administrators, whether they decide to move to West Philadelphia," she said.
(11/05/98 10:00am)
The donations offer a window into the issues and causes that concern top University officials and decision-makers. When newly reelected U.S. Sen. Arlen Specter (R-Pa.) delivered his victory speech late Tuesday night, he should have included a special thank-you to the kind folks at Penn who have funneled tens of thousands of dollars into the 1951 College alumnus' campaign over the past five years. Members of the University community -- particularly the top doctors working in the Health System and the high-profile corporate bigwigs serving on the University Board of Trustees -- often dig into their deep pockets to donate money to various political campaigns. While the contributors do not consistently align themselves with any one party, they do have their favorite candidates, according to Federal Election Commission records obtained from the Center for Responsive Politics. Although such donations do not violate any University policies --Eindeed, Penn spokesperson Ken Wildes said that "what someone does with their own resources and on their own time is their business" -- they do offer an interesting window into the issues of concern to Penn's top officials and decision-makers. Specter's name appeared most frequently as the Republican of choice for University-affiliated contributors in 1997 and 1998, while newly elected U.S. Rep. Joe Hoeffel (D-Abington, Pa.) also received several donations in 1998. Former U.S. Sen. Harris Wofford (D-Pa.) reaped a significant number of donations in 1994, especially from Health System employees. Wofford, who won office in a special election in 1991, lost his bid for re-election in 1994 to Republican U.S. Rep. Rick Santorum. While in office, Wofford put health care on the national agenda, spurring President Clinton to champion the cause in his own campaign in 1992. Public Health and Preventive Medicine Professor William Kissick donated a total of $1,500 to the Wofford campaign in 1994. He said Wofford's varied experience -- in the spheres of academia, public service and health -- made the former Bryn Mawr College president a suitable benefactor. Although Kissick did not contribute to Specter, he cited the senator's support for enlarging the National Institutes of Health budget as one of the reasons University-affiliated individuals rallied behind him in the most recent election cycle. Penn received $217 million in NIH funding last year, ranking third in the nation. The most popular national party committees that received a slice of University-affiliates' paychecks were the Democratic National Committee, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, the National Republican Senatorial Committee and the Republican National Committee. Emily's List, a donor network that supports pro-choice Democratic female candidates, was also a popular choice for Penn-affiliated donors. In speculating what compels some educators to give to political campaigns, Kissick said, "We're responsible citizens as well as professors. And if you believe in the democratic process, you have to put your money where your mouth is." Top Administrators University President Judith Rodin is notably absent from the FEC filings, along with her husband, Paul Verkuil, who is dean of the Cardozo School of Law at Yeshiva University in New York. That doesn't mean, however, that Rodin never doles out funds to politicians, something she refuses to directly confirm or deny. The FEC only lists contributions made to federal candidates and committees that exceed $200, and it cannot track the majority of so-called "soft money" donations, unrestricted gifts that go to the major parties but cannot be used for specific campaigns. In addition, the commission only deals with federally registered committees, excluding a number of professional associations that lobby on behalf of their University-affiliated members. This may further explain why only about 250 of the approximately 36,000 administrators, faculty and staff working for the University or its health system arm, and fewer than half of the 90 trustees, were listed as contributors. For example, Carol Scheman, the University's top community and governmental affairs official, admitted that she had given donations above and beyond the two listed by the FEC. Similarly, Trustee Ronald Perelman's $250,000 donation three years ago to a Bob Dole-sponsored think-tank also does not appear in FEC records. Kissick explained that many members of the faculty and administration also make smaller donations at open-house parties for candidates. The Penn Lobby Despite the individual donations, the University as a whole has to be careful about its political alignments, Wildes said. According to the Internal Revenue Service's Form 990, a tax document containing all of the University's key financial information, Penn spent more than $185,000 in lobbying activities in the 1997 fiscal year, which ended June 30, 1997. About $101,000, or 54 percent, is in the form of grants to professional groups and lobbyists. For example, the National Association of Independent Colleges and Universities lobbies for student aid, while the Association of American Universities is concerned with research funding. Additionally, S.R. Wojdak & Associates, a consulting firm with offices in Philadelphia and Harrisburg, Pa., identifies state issues that affect Penn while acting as a University mouthpiece in discussing legislative initiatives with politicians, Scheman said. The remaining $75,000 in lobbying expenses supports Scheman and her staff in their frequent excursions to Harrisburg and Capitol Hill to tout the University's importance to the community and to the national government. A portion of the money also pays their salaries. Scheman noted that since Penn receives about $35 million annually in state appropriations, it is important for the institution to communicate its desires to higher authorities. She added that the University's primary purpose is not to influence policy, but to convey information. "It is more appropriate [for candidates] to get money from law firms or businesses," she said. Scheman herself occasionally sends a dime a candidate's way. The top University official, who makes her living lobbying politicians on behalf of Penn, gave $250 to the campaign for Democratic congressional candidate Ruth Katz in 1996. Katz, a Penn alumna, ran in southern New Jersey and lost to incumbent Frank LoBiondo. Scheman also donated $250 in 1995 to her childhood friend John Murtha, a Democrat who represents the 12th Congressional District in Southwestern Pennsylvania. In dismissing concerns that such gifts might constitute a conflict of interest, Scheman contended that "just because I do a lot of work for the government doesn't mean I lose my right to make private contributions." The High Rollers The number of zeros in a donation, however, often depends on an individual's position along the University and corporate food chains. "We don't make a huge amount of money," said Law Professor Stephen Burbank, who gave $250 in August to his Harvard Law School classmate Daniel Feldman's congressional campaign. Feldman, a Democrat, lost the September primary for the 9th Congressional District of New York, which includes Brooklyn and Queens. Kissick reinforced Burbank's point: "I'm not a high roller. I'm not the tobacco companies who can contribute hundreds of thousands of dollars in soft money." But Philip Morris isn't the only one wooing political bigwigs. University Trustee Ronald Perelman, who gave $20 million and his name to the Perelman Quadrangle project in 1996, is consistently at the head of the pack in soft- and hard-money contributions. Under federal law, the maximum an individual can contribute to a national party committee is $25,000. The limit is lowered to $5,000 when the donation goes to political action committees, and no more than $2,000 can be earmarked for an individual candidate in one election cycle. But any individual can make unlimited contributions in soft money, which is not regulated by federal election laws. Several years ago, Perelman, the chairperson and chief executive officer of New York-based MacAndrews & Forbes Holdings Inc., gave $250,000 to Bob Dole's Better America Foundation, a non-profit think-tank for Republican issues. The organization closed its doors in 1995 after Dole had been accused of indirectly using a total of $4.9 million in donations for his presidential bid. Perelman also donated $170,000 to then-Arkansas Gov. Clinton's campaign in 1992, $200,000 to former New York Gov. Mario Cuomo's campaigns in 1988 and 1994 and more than $100,000 to both Democratic candidate Michael Dukakis and former President George Bush for their presidential campaigns in 1988. Within the past five years, Perelman has also contributed over $110,000 in hard-money contributions to both parties, including a $25,000 donation to the Democratic National Committee in 1996. While single donations made by Penn administrators and faculty rarely topped the $1,000 mark, several other University Trustees contributed upwards of $10,000 to a single cause. Trustee Charles Heimbold, the head of New York-based drug- and consumer-products-maker Bristol-Myers Squibb Co., gave $25,000 to the NRSC in November 1997. He also gave $10,000 to New York Salute, a fund-raising committee for state Republicans in 1996. All told, he made $85,000 worth of hard money contributions in the last five years. Trustees Ralph Landau and David Mahoney also gave individual contributions of $10,000 to the NRSC. Landau, a chemical-engineering technology expert with Listowel Inc., ranked third on the list of top Trustee contributors, with donations totaling more than $73,000 since 1993. Contributions made by administrators and faculty are small potatoes compared to those made by the 40 trustees who filed with the FEC. Topping the list of total contributions is Reproductive Biology and Physiology Professor Emeritus Bayard Storey, who gave more than $33,000 to Democratic candidates and causes. Storey declined to comment on his contributions, saying his political affiliations are a private matter. Second to Storey is Medical School Dean William Kelley, who is also the CEO of the Penn Health System. Kelley donated more than $7,000 within the last five years, offering repeated contributions to the Specter campaign and to the Republican National Committee. He could not be reached for comment.
(06/18/98 9:00am)
New details are coming out in the June 8 suicide of College and Wharton senior Shalini Narwani. As family and friends mourn the loss of Shalini Narwani, a bright, soft-spoken woman bound for the international arena, new details have surfaced about her suicide. Narwani, a College and Wharton senior, shot herself in the chest last week in her Center City apartment. She was 21. Sharmila Narwani, Shalini's sister and a first-year design student at the Art Institute of Philadelphia, found her sister dead the morning of June 8 and immediately alerted police, according to Philadelphia Police Detective Sean Brennan. Police arrived on the scene at 10:52 a.m. and quickly ruled the death a suicide. Narwani left a note that "stated she was depressed," Brennan said. He declined to comment on the contents of the note or on the details of the incident. Although friends and professors said they were shocked by the circumstances surrounding Narwani's death, several said Narwani appeared to be disenchanted with life after studying abroad in India last fall. Narwani, who was concentrating in Hindi and Finance through the Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business, first journeyed to Pune, India in the summer of 1996 under a PennAbroad program, and returned to the country last fall under a Wharton School program. "The genesis of the problem lay there," Penn-in-India Director Surendra Gambhir said, noting that Narwani stayed for the duration of the summer program but left the Wharton program mid-way through the fall semester. College and Wharton senior Jessica Polansky, who shared a room with Narwani freshman year, said her friend had problems with the strict curfews and cultural differences she encountered in India, which translated into a noticeable difference in her personality upon her return to campus. "She had always been quiet, but now she was quiet and depressed," Polansky said. "She kept on saying that she needed to get into the swing of things." Narwani spent the remainder of the fall semester with her family in Trinidad. But according to College and Wharton senior Cherianne Clarke, her friend's experience in India had "broken her spirit." That spirit, according to those who knew her, was embodied by a studious, sweet and articulate woman nicknamed Shal, who was destined for the corporate world. "Whenever I saw Shalini, I used to imagine her interacting in the corporate worlds of the United States and India," said Gambhir, a senior lecturer in South Asian Languages and Linguistics who taught Narwani in a first-year Hindi class. "She was one of the best on campus," he added. College and Wharton senior Katherine Winquist said Narwani impressed her entire history seminar with her motivation and eloquence. "When she spoke, you listened," Winquist stressed. And Polansky recalled a smiling Narwani who enjoyed dancing at the Diwali celebrations sponsored by the South Asian society. Narwani, a Hindu of Indian descent, developed an interest in Hindi and Indian culture early in her Penn career, Polansky noted. Narwani took a leave of absence from the University last spring and had been living with her sister at the Wanamaker House, located at 2020 Walnut Street. "She said she wasn't feeling well... and I told her to take care of her health," said Gambhir, recalling the conversation he had with his former student about her intended leave. Narwani had switched to a vegetarian diet in India and had not been eating properly since her return to the states, Clark said. Last month, Polansky, who is currently studying in Buenos Aires, Argentina, received an e-mail from Narwani in which her friend acknowledged that she was depressed. "She's not the type of person that would say that," Polansky said, adding that the message disturbed her. Narwani's family could not be reached for comment yesterday. The Huntsman Program will hold a memorial service for Narwani in the fall. A date has not yet been scheduled.
(06/11/98 9:00am)
Despite initial predictions that the University would take out a mortgage on the Sansom Common complex, Penn officials have now decided to deplete a University reserve fund by $66 million to finance about 83 percent of the project's first phase. Although officials remain confident that the retail and hotel complex currently under construction on the 3600 block of Walnut Street will "pay for itself," they opted to handle the bulk of the financing internally in an effort to maximize profit, according to Vice President for Finance Kathy Engebretson. The University Treasurer's Office will make an internal loan to Penn Business Services -- the department in charge of the complex -- to be paid back over 30 years at an interest rate of about 7 percent, Engebretson said. The remaining funding includes $8 million from the transaction between the University and Barnes & Noble College Bookstores Inc., which gave the company control of the University Book Store, $3 million in donations and $3 million in interest income. The move will save the University an estimated $1.3 million a year, since it will not have to pay the hefty 8 percent annual interest rate, an up-front fee of 1 percent and legal fees imposed by institutional investors, she added. Engebretson noted that while the University may borrow at an interest rate of about 5 percent for uses "specifically tied to its academic mission," such as residential renovations or academic buildings, a loan for the Sansom Common complex does not qualify for this rate under Internal Revenue Services regulations and constitutes taxable debt. The University, therefore, was faced with the choice of borrowing at a higher interest rate or keeping the loan in-house. The loan amount will be taken out of a University reserve fund -- pegged the temporary investment fund -- which is used to pay for facilities and deferred maintenance projects. The fund hovers around $200 million in any given year and is largely maintained by tuition revenue. While the University often relies on the reserve fund to make loans for campus-wide projects, the fund is rarely used for a loan of this magnitude, Engebretson said. But she added that the loan will not, in effect, cut the reserve fund by one-third or force students to foot the bill, because the money will be lent out over a period of years and the complex will generate revenue for the University to be funneled back into the fund. As part of the first phase of the project, the Barnes & Noble bookstore is scheduled to open July 15. Four retailers, including Xando coffee shop and Urban Outfitters, should also be in business by late August and the 250-room Inn at Penn should be completed by August 1999. Although officials said in September that the first stage of the project would cost about $73 million, the decision to move the Faculty Club from 36th and Walnut streets to the Inn at Penn has since bumped up the figure to $80 million, Engebretson said. The total cost for all three phases of the project, however, is still about $120 million, she added. When retail rent, as well as income from the new bookstore and the Inn stabilize in 2003, officials project that the building will produce about $7 million in annual income for the University. Approximately $4.8 million of that will be allocated toward debt and interest payments, leaving the University with an annual profit of $2.2 million. Engebretson said the excess funds will most likely be plowed into on-campus academic and facilities projects and into subsequent phases of Sansom Common. Phases two and three of the project, which include signing on more retailers, are scheduled to be completed by August of 1999, according to Managing Director of Real Estate Tom Lussenhop. While Engebretson acknowledged that it is impossible for the University to eliminate all of the risk when financing such an expensive project, she said she was "very comfortable" with the new financing strategy. Executive Vice President John Fry failed to return repeated phone calls over a period of several days.
(06/11/98 9:00am)
College and Wharton senior Shalini Narwani killed herself early Wednesday morning. College and Wharton senior Shalini Narwani was found dead of a self-inflicted gunshot wound Tuesday morning in her Center City apartment, according to a Philadelphia medical examiner. The examiner, who requested anonymity, said the single-bedroom apartment at 2020 Walnut Street appeared to be "well-maintained" to police who arrived on the scene at 10:52 a.m. Narwani, who journeyed to the University from Trinidad, was in the Huntsman program in International Studies and Business with a concentration in Hindi. Funeral services were held today in Atco, New Jersey. "This is a tragic experience and a sad time," Associate Vice Provost for University Life Barbara Cassel said. Cassel declined to comment on the details of the incident. Detectives in the Philadelphia Police Department also declined to comment, noting that it is an ongoing investigation. The family could not be reached for comment yesterday. The University's Counseling and Psychological Services is offering assistance to friends and family members, Cassel said. The last reported suicide of a University student was in March 1997, when 26 year old Wharton MBA student Elizabeth Kelsey killed herself by overdosing on medication. And last April, two University students attempted suicide in isolated incidents. One student drank a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and the other, a freshman, slit her wrists. Both survived the attempts. At the time, Counseling and Psychological Services Director Ilene Rosenstein stressed that students can be of assistance to friends who seem to be suffering from depression. "People often don't know how to respond when people are depressed," Rosenstein said, adding that it's important that students take it seriously when people talk about suicide. Narwani's death comes barely a month after the killing of first-year Wharton doctoral student Shannon Schieber, also in a quiet Center City neighborhood. Police have not yet made an arrest in connection with Schieber's May 7 murder.
(06/04/98 9:00am)
Sixteen people had to be evacuated from the building on the 4300 block of Spruce Street. An act of arson set off a one-alarm fire yesterday afternoon in an apartment building at 4311 Spruce Street -- a four-story building that houses a number of University graduate students and area employees. While no one was injured in the fire, a total of 16 people were evacuated as residents and neighbors looked on in disbelief. Fire fighters used ladders to rescue several people trapped inside the building, Philadelphia Fire Department Capt. Earl Hutz said. A second-floor hallway of the building became engulfed in flames after a mattress was set on fire around noon, according to Philadelphia Fire Department spokesperson Capt. Henry Dolberry. He added that 40 fire fighters helped extinguish the blaze in under a half an hour. Dolberry noted that the matter is under investigation, adding that an arsonist has not been identified and there are no suspects or witnesses. He explained that security in the building may have been compromised yesterday when many newly-signed tenants were busy moving into their apartments, leaving the building vulnerable to trespassers. Diane Tarbuck, a spokesperson for University City Associates -- the company that owns the building -- conceded that a tenant may have propped open the building's front door for easy move-in, but said the scenario was unlikely given the obvious threats to security. Visitors to the building must be buzzed in by owners in order to gaining access to any one of the 55 apartments in the building. Tania Chozet's visit to the building, however, ended when she was placed on a ladder and hauled from her friend's second-floor apartment. Chozet, a graduating senior at Yale University, said she remembered hearing the fire alarm wail for only a minute before it stopped. After hearing sirens outside and seeing smoke envelope the hallway, she started to panic. "At first I thought it was something straight out of the movies," she said. Chozet was staying with Bianca Torrez, a recent Penn graduate. Torrez subletted the apartment from another Penn student and had moved in two days before the fire. Tarbuck was unable to provide an estimate of the number of University students currently leasing apartments in the building. Torrez was working at the University City Science Center when she received a call from her frazzled friend. "[Tania] called me and said the place is burning down," Torrez recalled. Chozet said it was the ringing of the fire engines more than the alarms that clued her in to the blaze. Another tenant Glen Dowell, 27, who works in Jenkintown, also said he remembered that the alarm only rang for a few minutes before it stopped and the building went black. But according to University City Housing Development Manager Bill Grobes, the alarms did not falter and continually rang for the duration of the fire. Hutz noted that this was the first "serious" fire to hit the building, though several smaller ones have occurred in the past.
(06/01/98 9:00am)
Haverford High School '95 Havertown, Pa. The October 8 outsourcing agreement affected about 160 employees in the Physical Plant and Residential Maintenance departments, along with those in non-managerial positions at University City Associates, Penn's for-profit real estate arm. Approximately 122 employees were offered jobs by the company. The University entered into the agreement in an effort to streamline its operations while boosting efficiency. The deal took effect on April Fool's Day, but it was no joke to employees who had to get accustomed to new supervisors, new titles and remodeled office space. "It was just strange," Assistant Controller Flo Griffin said at the time. "I walked out on Tuesday as a Penn employee and I walked in on Wednesday under Trammell Crow." The deal was temporarily called into question last year when the Internal Revenue Service announced new "management contract" restrictions regulating joint ventures between non-profit and for-profit corporations. Under the original non-binding letter of intent, the University agreed to pay Trammell Crow $5.25 million per year for managing building operations, maintenance, utilities, planning, design and groundskeeping across campus for a 10-year term. The company, in turn, would give Penn $26 million up front and another $6 million later for helping it start its higher education venture, Trammell Crow Higher Education Services. But IRS regulations threatened the tax-exempt status of the University buildings to be managed by the company, spurring administrators to sign a revised agreement in February. Since the deal is unprecedented in higher education, administrators chose to play it safe and secure the IRS' stamp of approval before locking itself into a decade-long agreement. The newly-restructured contract includes a one-year preliminary term with a stipulation for a second, nine-year term. Once the IRS gives Penn the go- ahead on the nine year extension, the University will be entitled to its $26 million payment. "The whole thing is technical," Vice President for Facilities Services and Contract Management Omar Blaik said, adding that the regulations merely involved an adjustment to the "packaging" of the deal. Blaik said he expects a favorable ruling within the next several months. Penn and Trammell Crow have already received one positive sign. In February, U.S. District Judge Ronald Buckwalter dismissed a suit filed against the University by three employees and one of their wives, alleging that Penn and Trammell Crow officials violated the federal Employee Retirement Income Security Act, which regulates employee benefits. The plaintiffs accused both parties of conspiring to avoid providing University employees with benefits such as vacation days and tuition reimbursement, and of intending to implement reductions in employees' pensions and health coverage. The judge, however, ruled that no such violation had occurred since Trammell Crow had not yet taken over. The plaintiffs, Richard Cipollone of Swarthmore, Lisa Karnincic of Philadelphia and Donald Calcagni and his wife Linda of Levittown, have yet to announce whether they intend to refile the suit. The initial suit erupted out of mounting concern over the tight-lipped negotiations characterizing the Trammell Crow deal and a perceived lack of consultation between officials and the University community before the deal was made public. The deal shocked many long-time employees, who only learned that they would have to reapply for their positions the morning of the announcement. University Council, comprised of administrators, faculty, staff and students, called a special session one month later and passed a resolution by a three-to-one margin asking the Board of Trustees to reject the deal. Council serves as an advisory body to the president and provost, and meets monthly to discuss campus issues in a public forum. The Trustees, however did not heed Council's advice, and voted unanimously to approve the deal.
(05/15/98 9:00am)
Alumnus Jon Huntsman Sr. gave the largest-ever gift to a business school, with no strings attached. Wharton alumnus Jon Huntsman Sr., a philanthropist who made his fortune in part from the plastic foam in fast-food clamshells, has pledged $40 million to his alma mater with no strings attached, Wharton officials announced Tuesday. The gift is the largest single donation ever received by a business school and contributes to a record-breaking fundraising year at Wharton. The school has raised more than $100 million in donations over the last 12 months -- $35 million more than its fiscal year 1998 goal. Penn Vice President for Development Virginia Clark noted that it was "unusual" for the donor of such a substantial gift to place the money under the jurisdiction of administrators. But Huntsman, 60, said he felt "uncomfortable" designating specific uses for the donation, adding that officials are better versed in the financial issues confronting the school. Huntsman's only specification was that the gift be used to advance the school's overarching "strategic priorities," University Board of Trustees Chairperson Roy Vagelos said. The new 300,000-square-foot Wharton building -- set to occupy the current Book Store site at 38th Street and Locust Walk -- has already been pegged as a priority. With a $100 million price tag, and construction on the building scheduled to begin this fall, the Huntsman gift may have come at just the right time. Last month, Taiwanese businessman Chen Fu Koo and his two sons, Chester and Leslie Koo, pledged $10 million to fund planning and construction of the building. Wharton Dean Thomas Gerrity and University President Judith Rodin will consider how the school will spend the Huntsman gift over the next couple of months, Wharton Vice Dean of Executive Education and External Affairs Robert Mittelstaedt noted. Funneling the money into the building is a possibility, he said. Wharton spokesperson Chris Hardwick added that the donation was a "pure gift," noting that there was no stipulation that whatever the gift is used for bear Huntsman's name. Huntsman, who earned an undergraduate degree from Wharton in 1959, is the founder, chairperson and chief executive officer of Huntsman Corp., the largest privately held chemical company in the United States. And he is no stranger to Wharton's Development Office. Last January, the entrepreneur donated $10 million to endow a joint international studies and business degree program between Wharton and the School of Arts and Sciences. The program -- the first of its kind in the country -- combines international studies, foreign language and business education. Huntsman also made a $4.4 million gift in 1993 while co-chairperson of the Campaign for Penn, the University's five-year fundraising effort. And in 1989, he established the Huntsman Center for Global Competition and Leadership, a Wharton research program. Huntsman, who lives in Salt Lake City, has also donated $100 million to establish the Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah. "The Huntsman family is truly one of the great 'Penn' families," Rodin said in a statement Tuesday. Huntsman currently holds a position on Wharton's Board of Overseers and served as a University Trustee from 1987 to 1994. His son, Jon Huntsman Jr., is a current Trustee. Huntsman, who came to Penn from his native rural Idaho in the late 1950s, said that his time at the University "set the stage for every moment" in his life. After leaving Penn, Huntsman revolutionized the fast-food industry by adapting polysterene products for the now-familiar clamshell containers that used to house Big Macs and Whoppers. Until the Huntsman gift, the University of Southern California boasted the largest single business school donation, a $35 million gift.
(05/15/98 9:00am)
Breakfast with a cabinet secretary, lunch with a congressman and dinner with President Bill Clinton. Both the croissants and the conversations are heated. As a member of the President's Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology -- hailed as the premiere advisory group in the sciences -- University President Judith Rodin implores the federal government several times a year to continue funneling dollars into research institutions like Penn. In addition to her University duties, Rodin also divides her time between the three corporate boards and five non-profit or governmental commissions on which she serves. As part of PCAST, Rodin treks to Capitol Hill three times a year, exercising her political clout to save the University millions of dollars. While hobnobbing with the nation's movers and shakers is hard work, it is a prerequisite for a university president whose visibility helps pay the bills, experts say. "If you're not out in the world, you never meet any of the people who can help you," according to Wharton Public Policy and Management Professor Elizabeth Bailey. Both Bailey and Rodin criss-cross the worlds of business and academia through their involvement on corporate boards and research-oriented committees. Rodin sits on the board of directors for Electronic Data Systems -- a consulting and management firm owned by billionaire and former presidential candidate Ross Perot -- and AMR, the holding company for American Airlines. Over the course of a year, Rodin only participates in about six board or commission meetings, either in person or by phone. While she does not receive compensation for her services on non-profit or governmental boards, the three corporate boards pay her a retainer ranging from $2,000 to $5,000 per meeting. She also serves on the board of directors for insurance giant Aetna, Inc., another of whose directors, health-care tycoon Leonard Abramson, recently donated $100 million to Penn. Last December, Abramson and his wife donated the hefty sum -- the second largest in Penn's history -- to create the Leonard and Madlyn Abramson Family Cancer Research Institute. Abramson sold U.S. Healthcare to Hartford, Conn.-based Aetna in 1996. He currently sits on Aetna's board of directors and does consulting work for the company. The University also uses Aetna-U.S. Healthcare as its sole provider for student insurance plans. Rodin said her corporate and University interests are aligned, adding that corporations also desire more money for university research since it benefits their products. And according to Bailey, who currently serves on the Honeywell Corporation's board of directors, among others, it is a reciprocal exchange. "Businesses are ahead of academia in certain issues," Bailey said, adding that she uses discussions from the boardroom of the control technology company to fuel debates in the classroom. Even though her corporate involvement may benefit the University, Rodin must seek approval from the Board of Trustees before accepting any invitation to join a board or committee. Board of Trustees Chairperson Roy Vagelos noted that the board considers how a given committee pertains to Penn and whether Rodin has enough time for the additional responsibilities. "If there's anything like a conflict of interest, [Rodin] would step out," Vagelos said. When asked how Rodin's involvement in Aetna relates to the University's mission, Vagelos replied that it is important for Rodin, as the manager of a large institution, to have "a knowledge of health care and insurance." Rodin receives dozens of invitations to serve on boards and committees -- a professional burden shared by nearly every member of her peer group. "All university presidents are expected to have a national impact and a national profile," Rodin said. In deciding whether to serve on a committee or board, Rodin said she asks herself three key questions: Does it serve Penn? Does it serve higher education? Do I bring something unique to the table? And through "direct access" to President Clinton, Rodin has a hand in policy-making beyond the Penn campus. Established by Clinton in 1993, the PCAST's overarching goal is to advise the president on issues of science and technology. The committee also assists the National Science and Technology Council -- a cabinet-level body -- in shaping science, education and environmental policies. The group has been re-established by every president since Dwight Eisenhower. The 19-member committee -- appointed by the president -- is composed of Nobel prize winners, chief executive officers, scientists and 2 university presidents -- Rodin and Massachusetts Institute of Technology President Charles Vest. Rodin and Vest's presence on the committee has helped Clinton understand the reality of research at universities, according to Penn Vice President for Government, Community and Public Affairs Carol Scheman. "Federal science agencies are always trying to do more with less," Scheman noted, adding that Rodin and Vest successfully warded off major threats to decrease research grants, stipends and tuition support for graduate students. Before Rodin joined the committee's ranks in 1993, Penn had lost about $68 million because of the need to adapt to the "inconsistent" administrative procedures of federal institutions like the National Institute for the Humanities and the National Science Federation, Rodin said. "For the last five to 10 years, each [federal] agency that regulates what we do has changed the rules," she added. As a result of the committee's work, in 1996, President Clinton instituted the Presidential Review Directive, an initiative that compelled all federal science agencies to create more uniform administrative policies for university funding. This year, Rodin joined the Council of Competitiveness -- a group of business, labor and university leaders who believe that university research will propel the U.S. to the forefront of a global economy. She also works for two non-profit groups -- the Greater Philadelphia First Corp. and Catalyst, a research and business advisory organization that conducts studies and formulates policy on women in the workplace. As the first female president in the Ivy League, Rodin said she is particularly sensitive to the topics addressed by Catalyst. "I do [it] because I'm a woman," she said. And in the spirit of tradition and public policy, Rodin holds a membership card with the Brookings Institution, an independent think-tank that allows academics to influence the performance of national-level American institutions. "There has always been a Penn president on the Brookings board," Rodin noted. Brookings recently joined forces with the Wharton Financial Institutions Center in launching an annual forum and journal on financial services policy issues.
(04/29/98 9:00am)
Although the University may stress corporate ethics in the classroom, many critics assert that the phrase "social responsibility" is missing from Penn's investment policy. Penn created the Trustee Proxy Subcommittee in 1996 to address concerns about socially sound investments, but the committee has yet to recommend restricting investments on humanitarian grounds. You just can't "run a portfolio" by basing investment decision on moral and political ideologies, according to University Trustees Investment Board Chairperson John Neff. But some students and faculty members question the investment ethics of a University holding stocks in companies that manufacture tobacco or have equity ties to repressive military regimes. The University currently invests $3.2 billion in equities, bonds and real estate, according to Managing Director of Investments Landis Zimmerman. Penn's $3 billion endowment comprises about 94 percent of the total figure, with the A-3 support staff pension fund filling in the remainder, he added. According to the Web site of the Free Burma Coalition -- a student group that has criticized Penn's investment policy -- the University invests in nearly 200 companies on the Fortune 500 or Global 500. Penn administrators confirmed that the list is a representative sample of the University's holdings. As of June 30, the total market value of investments in these companies represented about one-fourth, or $818 million, of the University's total investment portfolio. Penn currently holds stock in 200 to 300 U.S. companies and more than 1,000 international corporations, Associate Treasurer of Investments Lucy Momjian noted. One such company is Philip Morris Cos., the nation's leading cigarette maker. The corporation ships 230 billion cigarettes every year, including Marlboro, Virginia Slims and Parliaments. At a market value of roughly $2.7 million, the University's investments in the company represent about .08 percent of its total investment base. Penn also invests in RJR Nabisco Inc., the parent company of R.J. Reynolds. As of last June, the total market value of the University's investments in the company was around $8.8 million, about .27 percent of Penn's total investment base. The corporation trails only Philip Morris in tobacco production, and manufactures such popular cigarette brands as Camel, Winston and Salem. Although its sales are split evenly between tobacco and foodstuffs, profits reaped from last year's approximately $17 billion sales total are largely attributed to tobacco purchases, according to RJR Nabisco's Web site. Prior to 1995, when Penn handed over management of its portfolio to about eight outside managers -- including City of London Investment Management Co. and Sanford Bernstein & Co. -- no investments were made in tobacco companies, according to Neff, who singlehandedly managed the University's entire investment portfolio until 1995. "I never invested in tobacco," he said. "[Manufacturers] were getting away with killing people." But Penn is not the only school holding onto its tobacco stock. Just last week, amid much controversy, the Yale Corporation, a 16-member board which controls that university's investments, voted not to divest nearly $17 million in tobacco holdings. Although Penn's managers must comply with the University's investment guidelines and overall social policy, they generally have free reign, according to Neff, who still manages $50 million of the University's portfolio. "If you cut down the number of potential investments, it's like playing a sport with one hand tied behind your back," he added. Penn's official social policy on investments categorizes the University as a "particularly fragile institution which could be harmed irrevocably by efforts to make it an advocate for partisan views," according to Zimmerman. It further states that the "exercise of free inquiry and expression by proponents of differing passions" would be jeopardized if the University chose to take an institutional position on social issues, he said. Indeed, in managing a portfolio, "you try to make as much money as possible," Neff said. And University Vice President for Finance Kathy Engebretson stressed that there are more "appropriate" vehicles by which socially-aware individuals can get their message across. Instead of questioning or protesting Penn's investment strategy, for example, students can write to their respective congressmen, she said. But according to Sociology Professor Jerry Jacobs, Penn should capitalize on its role model status rather than fret about making waves. "The University should be responsible investors and help lead the way," he said. Jacobs conceded that "[officials] can't sit there and make moral judgments about every country in the world and every product on the market." But Free Burma Coalition President Peter Chowla, a Wharton and Engineering senior, said he believes that officials can and should -- given the proper impetus. "The University should scrutinize all investments using a set of socially responsible criteria," he said. Chowla, one of the campus' most-outspoken social activists, has been battling the upper echelon of the University for months in an effort to rid Penn of investments in companies with equity ties to the Southeast Asian country now called Myanmar. According to Chowla, Hyundai, the Korean conglomerate known in America for its cars, along with Unocal and Atlantic Richfield -- both natural-gas companies-- provide funds to help build up a Burmese military junta that condones forced labor and ethnic cleansing. The military generals have prevented a democratically elected government from taking office, spurring democratic leader Aung San Suu Kyi to urge foreign investors to immediately divest in the country. As of June, the market value for the University's investments in these companies hovered around $7.8 million, or 0.25 percent of Penn's total investment base. Last month, the Trustees Proxy Subcommittee voted not to support a shareholder resolution that called on Unocal to withdraw its investments in Myanmar. Unocal is currently building a natural-gas pipeline through the country. As outlined in the University's investment strategy, Penn's No. 1 investment priority is to maximize investment returns "consistent with appropriate levels of risk." Exceptions are granted only in situations of the "greatest social concern," that deal with "the most fundamental human rights," Executive Vice President John Fry said in a statement issued in February. By contrast, the University of Wisconsin at Madison adopted a "socially responsible" investment policy last month that cites "substantial social injury" and discriminatory corporate policies as important divestment considerations. In 1996, Wisconsin sold off its shares in Texaco, in part, because of the company's involvement in a natural gas project in Myanmar, according to university spokesperson Peter Fox. Several other institutions, including the University of Minnesota and Harvard and Stanford universities have recently opted to divest or have refused to invest in companies tied to Myanmar. Penn, in fact, deviated from its professed fiduciary goal in 1987 -- the year that it sold off about $30 million worth of holdings in companies that refused to withdraw from South Africa. At the time, the Trustee Committee on University Responsibility called on companies to cease their operations in the country as a result of the firmly-entrenched legal structure of apartheid. Penn selected to reinvest in January 1994, one year after Nelson Mandela asked the international community to lift all economic sanctions against the country. For Chowla, the University's decision to take a stance regarding South Africa constitutes an undeniable precedent. Nobel Peace Prize winner Archbishop Desmond Tutu has described Myanmar as "the South Africa of the '90s," according to Chowla. "[The decision regarding South Africa] was not a precedent; that was a disaster," Neff retorted, adding that it was an imprudent move from a business perspective. "There's lots of countries in this world run by despots," he added. And Trustees Proxy Subcommittee Chairperson Nathalie Koether contended that there is no parallel between the situation currently plaguing Myanmar and that which existed in South Africa in the 1980s.
(04/24/98 9:00am)
Officials are aggressively seeking ways to boost the University's endowment within a few years. NEW YORK -- Last December, Joanne Hanna journeyed to the Big Apple for a day trip and brought back $150,000 worth of promises. Her mission: "To tell the story" of a University struggling to recruit top-notch freshmen under the strain of a $2.89 billion endowment that while being the 12th-biggest in the nation is just the 65th-largest in per-capita terms. As director of development for Penn financial aid, Hanna has made her pitch to prospective alumni, foundation and corporate donors countless times before. But changing times necessitated a more aggressive approach. One by one, several of the University's Ivy League rivals have announced revamped financial aid packages designed to benefit lower- and middle-income students -- further pressuring Penn, which had already embarked on a seven-year campaign to increase the endowment for undergraduate financial aid by $200 million. To date, officials have raised $40 million, or 20 percent of the goal. Of the $50 million Penn allocates annually for aid, only $2.3 million, or 4.6 percent, is covered by its endowment, landing Penn at the bottom of the Ivy League in terms of endowment-financial aid ratio. "This may be the only area where there's a clear and significant disparity between Penn and its Ivy League peers," University President Judith Rodin noted. And according to University Board of Trustees Chairperson Roy Vagelos, the meager portion of the endowment earmarked for financial aid serves as an "enormous handicap" to a school competing for the best and the brightest students. "The University is woefully underendowed for undergraduate financial aid," he said. The overall endowment operates like a mutual fund, with money invested primarily in stocks and bonds that yield a total return on the investment fund. Hanna recounted a series of visits she had on that day in December. In one, she conversed with a married couple -- both Penn alumni and first generation college graduates. The husband, a former financial aid recipient in his early 30s, was interested in giving, and Hanna was determined to close the deal. "They know what I'm coming to ask for," she said. Hanna waited for the appropriate time to pose "The Question" -- "Would you consider making a $50,000 gift?" The potential donor agreed to make the transition to donor status. Encouraged by the success of signing-on a first-time donor, Hanna next visited a former Wharton graduate who owns a small investment firm. "You came at the right time," she quoted the man as replying. He pledged $100,000 for the financial aid cause. Hanna's next stop: A Penn parent in his late 50s. He had already donated $50,000 to the University in term money -- money that is spent every year and not part of the endowment -- but the fundraising official hoped he'd consider funding an endowed scholarship. The latter would fund one or more student scholarships in perpetuity. She was met with a cool reception. "He said he appreciated that I came, but said no," Hanna recalled. Hanna crams in about three or four meetings with donors during each biweekly excursion. While the process of soliciting donations may appear simple on the surface, all strategic planning -- right down to the phrasing of the all-important "question" -- is governed by a four-step fundraising master plan. In the beginning stages, officials identify how much potential donors would be willing to pay by utilizing a large base of public information, including the Dow Jones on-line federal tax filings, newspaper clippings and information obtained by the Office of Alumni Relations. After composing a profile of an individual's income, career and family, officials begin to "cultivate," or woo, a potential donor. The cultivation process could take anywhere from six months to a lifetime -- the latter in the case of a bequest -- and includes generic mailings, invitations to campus events and a series of informal conversations with Development officers, according to Hanna. "You have to be on the road meeting alumni," she said, adding that New York, California, Florida and Baltimore are popular fundraising sites. Hanna had already established a rapport with all of her New York prospects before meeting with them, and was careful to request amounts in line with their budgets. All three had been financial-aid recipients as undergraduates. And efforts continue even after an official procures a signature on the dotted line. "If someone says yes, you want to move on it," said Executive Director of Development for the Agenda for Excellence Bonnie Devlin. The last step -- labeled "stewardship" -- functions to keep donors engaged so they will continue to funnel their dollars into financial aid. Hanna explained that officials capitalize on a donor's competitive spirit by publishing names and gift amounts in a "honor roll." Additionally, some donors receive written biographies of the student or students on the receiving end of their gifts. Others meet the recipients in person at bi-annual scholarship dinners. "You have to make the gift come alive," Devlin said. At one such dinner held in New York earlier this month, Wharton and College alumnus and donor Ronald Moelis said that while donating to buildings may prove to be "ego-wise," giving to scholarships is a more "charitable" use of funds. Moelis recently donated $120,000 to fund one College of Arts and Sciences scholarship in perpetuity. At an average growth rate of 10 percent a year, a scholarship fund doubles every seven to 15 years, Devlin noted, adding that a portion of the interest generated from the fund is used for the actual scholarship. The principal remains untouched. "It's nice to do something with the student body so that I can feel young again," he added. Although Hanna said it would be impossible to construct a profile of the "typical donor," she stressed that alumni and Penn parents who have remained active in the University community are good candidates. In fact, individual gifts comprise 80 percent of total financial aid fundraising. And with the "turnover of wealth to the next generation," and a renewed entrepreneurial spirit, donors are now younger than ever, according to Hanna. While the majority of donors to the University's Capital Campaign -- a four-year long, University-wide fundraising push that kicked off in 1988 -- were over 40 years of age, officials are now seeing more donors in their early 30s, she noted. Gifts are ranked by monetary value, with "major" gifts totaling $25,000 and above, "principal" gifts $250,000 and above and "leadership" gifts $1 million-plus. An individual must pledge at least $100,000 to create a named endowment fund for undergraduate scholarships. December is a huge fundraising month, Vice President for Development Virginia Clark noted, explaining that both alumni and corporations revel in the thought of filing year-end, tax-deductible donations. Officials often "call in" Rodin and Vagelos to help secure gifts hovering near "leadership" status. Vagelos -- a former financial aid recipient -- is personally spearheading the effort to raise the endowment for financial aid. He is well-acquainted with the enemy. In January, Princeton University trustees voted to eliminate all student loans for families with incomes below $40,000, replacing them with grants. The program sparked a competitive drive in Vagelos. As a member of Penn's lightweight crew team in the mid-'50s, Vagelos recalls more Tiger victories than he'd care to admit. "There's no way Princeton's going to get ahead of us this time," he said. The Trustee Scholars Program, announced last month, represents the University's response to a string of similar announcements made by other top universities. Under the program, as many as 50 outstanding freshmen will receive financial aid packages entirely funded by grants and work-study earnings.
(04/23/98 9:00am)
The University's modest endowment affects Penn's tuition, financial aid resources and other key funds. It's a $2.89 billion Achilles' heel, some administrators say. The University's overall endowment ranks 12th in the nation and fifth in the Ivy League -- topping only Cornell and Brown universities and Dartmouth College. But when calculating in Penn's roughly 20,000-member student body, Penn's national endowment ranking plummets to 65 in endowment per student. And the modest figure allows administrators to justify consecutive tuition hikes, a lag in revamping financial aid programs and $200 million worth of bond issues in this year alone. The overall endowment operates like a mutual fund, according to Director of Development for Undergraduate Financial Aid Joanne Hanna. Labeled the "Associated Investment Fund," money is invested primarily in stocks and fixed income securities, such as bonds. About 5 percent of the total return, comprised of dividends, interest and capital gains -- profits from the sale of financial assets -- is earmarked for research, professorships and facilities projects. The remainder is plowed back into the endowment and the principal remains untouched in perpetuity. As of March 31, the endowment's one-year total return was 25.2 percent, Associate Treasurer for Investments Lucy Momjian said. Day-to-day operating expenses are covered by the Penn Fund -- a separate pool of money that is spent every year for the general support of the University. Development officials funnel about $11 million annually into the fund, raised through alumni, foundation and corporate donations. But some critics -- including 1976 University alumnus Erik Larson, who wrote a highly publicized March 1997 article in Time on the cost of a Penn education -- question the "look but not touch" philosophy governing the endowment, especially with the University's Board of Trustees recent approval of a 4.5 percent tuition increase for the 1998-99 academic year. In responding to these complaints, Hanna noted that the endowment provides a safety net for the University in "down years" -- when an ever-fluctuating stock market rears its unstable head. In the late 1970s, for example, financial problems forced Penn officials to dip into their meager then-$200 million endowment, which sparked a minor uproar. The endowment had only increased to $218 million, or by about 9 percent, when Sheldon Hackney began his 12-year tenure as University president in 1981. By contrast, Princeton's endowment had already reached the $1 billion mark in the same year, and Harvard tipped the scales at more than $2.5 billion -- about 13 percent less than Penn's current endowment. Harvard's endowment has more than quadrupled in the past 17 years, landing the Cambridge, Mass., school at the top of the fiscal year 1997 national endowment ratings. The Quaker way Hanna attributed Penn's modest endowment to a legacy of neglect stemming from a Quaker mentality which did not emphasize financial gain. "Penn has never been a wealthy school," she added, noting that Emory University's $4.3 billion endowment, ranked sixth in the nation, is largely a result of the Atlanta-based Coca-Cola Co. family donating a huge chunk of stock to the school. Another strike against the University is that its endowment was only established around 1809, 69 years after its founding. In addition, Penn did not launch significant fundraising efforts until the early 1950s. Princeton, by contrast, has been actively raising its endowment money since it was founded more then 250 years ago. The University retained the image of a local institution prior to that period, according to Vice President for Development Virginia Clark. Yet development officials have succeeded in reinvigorating the endowment in recent years. The University's Capital Campaign started the trend, sending the endowment over the $1 billion benchmark. The four-year-long attempt, which kicked off in 1988, has been hailed as one of the most ambitious projects in the University's financial history. Additionally, Penn's endowment totaled $2.5 billion at the close of fiscal year 1997, representing a $400 million, or roughly 20 percent, increase from the year before. An arduous climb Vice President for Finance Kathy Engebretson attributed the steady increase to a generally favorable stock market and the University's renewed emphasis on fundraising. Although the University experienced a $40 million loss in investments in the first five months of fiscal year 1998 -- which began July 1, 1997 -- the month of December brought the University a $90 million return. The overall $50 million gain constitutes a 5 percent return on investments in the first six months of fiscal year 1998, compared to a 23 percent return in the previous fiscal year's first half. About eight outside managers determine the University's investment strategy, including the Swiss Bank Corp.'s SBC Brinson division, City of London Investment Management Co. and Sanford Bernstein & Co. The West Conshohocken, Pa., investment firm of Miller Anderson & Sherrerd manages "pro bono" about $850 million of Penn's endowment, which is earmarked for fixed-income securities. University Trustee Paul Miller -- a former trustee chairperson -- was one of the founders of the firm, which donates its fees to the endowment. Prior to the University's decision to enlist the aid of outside managers, current Trustee Investment Committee Chairperson John Neff managed the equities without charge. Both Neff and Miller saved the University millions of dollars, according to Engebretson. Outside managers typically charge a fee of about 0.5 percent on the money they funnel into domestic equities, she added. The road ahead "Even schools with four times [Penn's] endowment still raise money," Clark said. "We'll never be able to raise enough because we always need to support faculty and facilities." Clark noted that raising the endowment to fund professorships and undergraduate financial aid are top priorities at present. At $2 million a pop, gifts for endowed chairs fund a top faculty member's hefty salary. The Development Office is looking to raise funds for 125 endowed chairs across all 12 schools, Clark said. Over the past 1 1/2 years, the office has raised funds for 13 chairs, she added. Additionally, Development has raised $40 million, or 20 percent, of its goal to increase the endowment for school-specific scholarships and overall undergraduate financial aid by $200 million. Of the $50 million Penn allocates annually for aid, only $2.3 million, or 4.6 percent, is covered by the University's $2.89 billion endowment. This percentage lands Penn at the bottom of the Ivy League in terms of its endowment-financial aid ratio.
(04/23/98 9:00am)
Report: Build new Gimbel, facility on campus' east side The University needs an additional 225,000 square feet of recreation space just to be adequate for an institution of its caliber, according to a long-anticipated report by an independent consulting firm. Washington, D.C.-based Brailsford & Dunlavey's report, released yesterday, recommends demolishing and rebuilding Gimbel Gymnasium on the west side of campus -- doubling its size to 175,000 square feet -- and tearing down either or both the Levy Tennis Pavilion and Class of 1923 Ice Rink to make way for a new indoor track and an "east building" housing team-oriented activities. The recommendations stemmed from a 1 1/2 year study in which the firm used focus groups and e-mail surveys to solicit student, faculty and staff input on Penn's current recreation facilities and prospects for the future. While officials said they agreed with the report's conceptual findings, they stressed that the recommendations were not intended to address economic or structural feasibility. "They are not engineers, they are marketing consultants," University President Judith Rodin said, adding that the University hired its own engineers to provide estimates on the proposed "east" building, which totaled $45 million --$27 million more than the firm's figure. The complete project, including both west and east end development, could total between $80 million and $100 million, according to Executive Vice President John Fry. And Rodin said the report represents "long-term" goals to be evaluated in the coming months. The firm suggested a two-phase overhaul of Gimbel, which, when completed, would include a weight and fitness training area, elevated running track, eight racquetball courts, a sport climbing wall and a 50-meter-by-25-yard competitive pool with an adjacent recreation pool. The first phase would consist of demolishing the gallery, offices and locker rooms on the west side of the building, allowing Sheerr Pool and the gymnasium to remain open while the west half is reconstructed. After completing the west half, the remaining part would be demolished and replaced. While Gimbel would host individualized activities and their support spaces, intramural and club sports teams would practice in the new east site. This "fieldhouse-type" building would include three-court and four-court gymnasiums which could be built on the existing ice rink site. In justifying the demolition of the 28-year-old ice rink, the firm noted that "there is not enough recreation demand, or a varsity hockey program, to warrant its continued operating expense." The firm further recommended the construction of an indoor track structure on the Levy site, as long as it proved to be cost-effective. In explaining location choices and a split-site strategy, the firm said location was key. The Gimbel site, with its close proximity to the bulk of Penn's student housing, offices and classrooms, is particularly suited to individualized activities, whereas the east building site would utilize the surrounding outdoor fields for team sports. In dealing with the east end project, however, Rodin made it clear that tearing down a building rather than starting from scratch would be extremely costly. The University has long had its eye on the 14-acre lot next to Levy Pavilion, currently owned by the U.S. Postal Service, Rodin noted. "We still believe that if all the stars are aligned in the right way at some point, that maybe it could happen," she said. Rodin declined to comment as to the status of negotiations with the Postal Service. A successful outcome would move the University one step closer toward achieving its overall Campus Master Plan. Announced in November 1996, the plan aims to push campus boundaries farther east and south toward the Schuylkill River. Participants in the firm's focus groups and surveys complained that space was limited for the the most popular activities on campus, including weight and fitness conditioning, indoor jogging and aerobics, according to the report. The study also reached the consensus that the Hutchinson Gymnasium fitness center is severely inadequate and too far from campus residences. Respondents said they would be willing to pay up to $200 a semester for high-tech facilities close to home. The report suggested that user fees would subsidize a portion of the total project costs for the proposed facility, which they estimated will carry a price tag of about $60 million. Bond issues and loans would fund the remainder. But Rodin was quick to highlight the firm's inadequacies in assessing funding and facilities needs, calling its estimates "inaccurate." Administrators will delay planning for the east end of campus, since they are currently focusing on immediate renovations to Gimbel Gymnasium, according to University spokesperson Ken Wildes. The $1.2 million project -- to be completed by the end of the summer -- will transform the west half of Gimbel into a fitness center complete with aerobics, isolation and free-weight equipment. Fry categorized Gimbel as a "down payment" on a future multi-million-dollar, state-of-the art facility. He declined to provide a timetable. In order to use the new fitness center, students, faculty and staff will have to pay the same $125 per year fee that currently grants access to Hutch's workout room. The fee will grant access to both facilities. While the lower fee represents a departure from the firm's recommendations, Rodin said the project was "sorely needed by the community," and "means nothing about any decisions" as to the future implementation of the report. Although the University has hired firms to compile recreation reports as far back as 1973, Athletic Director Steve Bilsky expressed confidence this time around. "Now, for the first time, not only do we have a good conceptual plan, but it's already started [with Gimbel]," he said. Rodin added that "[the University doesn't] commission reports we're not going to use."
(04/22/98 9:00am)
The program will link televisions and computers to allow courses to be taught outside a classroom. A Wharton professor lectures on the stock market to a video camera, his image transmitted to a screen watched by hundreds of students thousands of miles away. They reside in designated "sites," and peck away at their respective keyboards. Perhaps one student is puzzled by long-term financing. Not to fear -- he or she simply e-mails his question to the "home site," which houses the professor and a "content specialist," a futuristic teaching assistant who evaluates the question for interest value and universal appeal. If the question passes the specialist's inspection, it is flashed on the professor's computer screen -- alerting him or her to devote additional video time to the topic. Look out, Sally Struthers --EPenn is invading the long-distance learning market. A subcommittee of the University's Academic Planning and Budget Committee recently released its report on distributed learning -- formerly called distance learning -- highlighting critical issues involved in the program's implementation. Among them: how the University will define admission standards for students, identify sources of funding and preserve its reputation in the process. Distributed learning includes pre-college, master's, executive education and professional certification and recertification programs that use video teleconferencing technology, along with audio-conferencing and asynchronous learning -- where student and teacher need not interact at the same time or place. Some of the benefits cited in the subcommittee's report include greater flexibility for students and the ability to access an international market. After dissecting the topic for over five months, the subcommittee is ready to unleash a series of initiatives over the next several years, Interim Provost Michael Wachter said. Within days, Penn will announce a certificate program founded on distributed learning methods. Wachter declined to comment as to the specifics of the program. He did note, however, that Penn hopes to offer a video-teleconferencing version of Advanced Placement Calculus BC as early as the fall. Designed for high school seniors, the course will carry Penn credit and will be broadcast in high schools around the country. A pre-freshman anthropology course is also in the planning phase. Distributed learning masters' programs across the 12 schools will pop up within the next several years in accordance with each school's strategic plan under the overarching Agenda for Excellence, according to Wachter. In an effort to connect the program to University President Judith Rodin's five-year strategic vision for Penn, Wachter invoked goals seven and four of the Agenda -- which state, respectively, that the University "will creatively deploy new technologies" and will make "strategic investments" in new programs across the arts and sciences. Although Wachter declined to provide a cost estimate for the program, his committee's report stressed the need for an "internal venture capital fund" which will subsidize startup costs accrued by individual schools. Additionally, the University will collaborate with for-profit institutions and other universities in order to gain access to costly computing equipment and personnel. Wachter said Microsoft has already approached the University about the possibility of collaborating with Wharton in a business-certification program. Other for-profit candidates include Motorola and Caliber Learning Network. Potential university partners have not yet been determined, he said. Wachter insisted that the for-profit partners will not exercise control over course content and will simply provide the University with technical expertise and state-of-the-art sites. The Internal Revenue Service's "management contract restrictions," which restrict ventures between non-profit and for-profit corporations, will compel administrators to closely monitor the situation, he added. The regulations -- announced last year -- call into question a non-profit's tax-exempt status when collaborating with a for-profit corporation. The IRS is currently evaluating the University's newly restructured agreement to outsource facilities management to Dallas-based Trammell Crow Co. A ruling is expected as early as the fall. Distributed learning also raises legal and accreditation issues, stemming from how Penn decides to use its brand name. Again, Wachter advocated strict scrutiny in this regard, adding that all business and legal complications will be evaluated by the offices of the General Counsel and Executive Vice President. While undergraduates and doctoral students may relish the thought of distancing themselves from their professors, distributed learning is not scheduled to affect them any time soon, according to Wachter. "No matter how much we network the network with routers and switches and the like, there is no network like the human network," he said. But the essential value of the "human network" may not be applicable to masters' programs. For the past four years, the Nursing School has offered a 16-month midwifery program that utilizes two-way video teleconferencing. The program represents the University's first attempt at a comprehensive distributed learning master's degree. Participants earn a master's degree in Nursing and a Certificate in Nurse Midwifery. Additionally, the School of Engineering and Applied Science is busy converting its master's program in Telecommunications into a Web format, Wachter noted. Individual Web-based courses, however, are currently more prevalent than degree or certificate programs. Web courses enhance the "24-hour classroom we're building at Penn today," Wachter said. Students enrolled in the History of Western Music, for example, may discover the wonders of Mozart by listening to his compositions over the Web, supplemented with spoken commentary and diagrams. Undergraduate Music Chairperson Norman Smith, who teaches the course, added the Web component last spring. "It wasn't particularly easy," Smith said, noting that it took a significant amount of time just to get all of the materials together. But some faculty members expressed concern as to whether distributed learning techniques will complement their disciplines. Communications Professor Joseph Turow said his "Mass Media and Society" course, with more than 100 undergraduates enrolled every semester, would have to be "fundamentally changed" if he chose to incorporate a Web-based approach. Several faculty members declined to comment on the matter, saying they knew little to nothing about the issue. But administrators assured concerned parties that distributed learning programs will undergo an extensive approval process. After submitting to a thorough review by the Academic Planning and Budget Committee, a degree-granting distributed learning program must face the University's Board of Trustees for final approval. Additionally, the majority of Penn's distributed learning programs will be geared toward white collar workers entrenched in ever-changing fields like computer science or business that require recertification. And they'll be willing to pay for it, according to Wachter. "Higher education is an expanding market," he said, adding that Penn's early foray into the world of distributed learning will propel it to the top. While about 700 accredited universities are currently engaged in some form of distributed learning, most of the programs are adult continuing-education programs operated by state universities. Penn's competition may lie in the new distributed learning master's degree programs offered by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Duke, Cornell and Stanford universities. Yet Wachter insisted that the University's "entrepreneurial" spirit and recognized strengths in Engineering, Health and Business will contribute to its ultimate success. "[Distributed learning is] like an express train running down the tracks," he said. "Penn can reach the very best students."
(04/17/98 9:00am)
Steve Murray died of cancer, leaving a void in Penn's Business Services. Vice President for Business Services Steve Murray, a veteran of the University who was the architect of initiatives ranging from the redesigned PennCards to the new Inn at Penn, died Wednesday after a long battle with cancer. He was 51. Murray served the University community for nearly 25 years, leaving behind an extensive list of accomplishments, along with a number of devoted colleagues committed to keeping his memory alive. After earning a bachelor's degree in political science from the University of New Hampshire, Murray journeyed to Penn to become its director of transportation and communications in 1974. He earned a master's degree through Wharton's Executive M.B.A. program in 1982. Murray quickly moved up the ranks of the University and was promoted to vice president for business services in 1992, a post he held until his death. "He was a mentor and a leader," said Laurie Cousart, director of Penn's telecommunications and campus services. "He taught us how to do things and then gave us the freedom to try them." Executive Vice President John Fry, who oversaw Murray's office, said last night that he was "incredibly sad" about Murray's death. "He was just the best of friends," he added. Under Murray's leadership, the University decided to keep Dining Services under Penn management while contracting out dining operations in the new Perelman Quadrangle to the Menlo Park, California-based Bon Appetit. Additionally, Murray helped iron out plans for the 250-room Inn at Penn, scheduled to open in the new Sansom Common retail complex in fall 1999, and was instrumental in equipping the PennCard with new cash chip functions last fall. His department deals with many facets of the University community, including The Book Store, Dining Services, telecommunications and Penntrex. But many of his colleagues say Murray's influence extended far beyond the confines of number-crunching and funneling millions of dollars into the University budget. Murray's "long and tireless efforts on behalf of the University will continue to benefit generations of students, members of the faculty and the staff," Fry and University President Judith Rodin said in a joint statement yesterday. "He continually demonstrated a unique ability to accept responsibility for areas in financial and organizational distress and make them successful, in spirit as well as in a fiduciary sense." The letter -- which was distributed to employees and posted on Almanac's Web site -- described Murray as a "gifted colleague" and "wonderful friend." Vice President for Finance Kathy Engebretson echoed this sentiment, noting that Murray was "one of my very favorite people at Penn." Cousart stressed that it will be difficult to find a replacement for Murray, who she said possessed a special blend of financial savvy and genuine compassion. "There's a very big hole without him here," she said. "I know I wouldn't be the professional I am today without him." Associate Vice President for Business Services Marie Witt has been named interim vice president for business services, and administrators will soon begin to search for a permanent replacement, Fry said. Although Fry said Witt is "cut in Murray's mold," he added that "there's no silver lining in this." Witt could not be reached for comment last night. Murray is survived by his wife Barbara and son Craig. Murray's family could not be reached for comment, and no information on his funeral arrangements was available last night.
(04/10/98 9:00am)
More money may be needed if the IRS delays Trammell Crow funding. If the Internal Revenue Service doesn't act fast, debt service may become the latest University catch phrase. Although administrators originally hoped to fund part of the University's 10-year, $200 million residential-renovations plan with money reaped from the agreement to outsource facilities management to Trammell Crow Co., the company's decision to delay its payment may force officials to rely on other sources of funding for the long term. Both parties are anxiously waiting for the IRS to approve a newly restructured agreement that would preserve the tax-exempt status of University buildings operated by Trammell Crow. The company took over last week. In addition to the funds obtained from the Trammell Crow payment, most of the renovations' cost will be financed through bond issues -- or borrowed funds which the University must repay -- Executive Vice President John Fry said yesterday. A sizable chunk of the University's recent $200 million bond issue -- purchased by investment giant Merrill Lynch in January -- will fund most of the project, according to Vice President for Finance Kathy Engebretson. She added that the University may issue additional bonds within the next three to five years. Described by Engebretson as the "biggest project we've ever done," part of the 10-year renovation plan includes painting the interiors of certain dormitories, replacing heating and cooling systems and upgrading plumbing and alarm systems. Penn will fund these long-term initiatives with a large portion of the $26 million the University is getting from its October 8 outsourcing agreement with Trammell Crow and through debt service, Fry said. But administrators may have to press the IRS for a ruling if they want to maintain steady cash flow. Trammell Crow has opted to defer its payment to the University until after the IRS approves a newly structured deal, which includes a one-year preliminary term with a stipulation for a second nine-year term. The company pledged to pay the University $26 million up-front under the original 10-year agreement. But a new set of IRS restrictions concerning joint ventures between for-profit and non-profit corporations spurred both parties to restructure the deal and submit it to the IRS in order to "play it safe," according to officials. The IRS will inform both parties as to the possibility of a tax violation as early as the fall, Engebretson said. Once Penn secures a favorable ruling from the IRS -- a likely prospect according to administrators -- the University will be entitled to payment. But Engebretson stressed that the IRS is not tied to a "timetable." She emphasized that several residential projects will be funded through other sources. Engebretson noted that the University's reserve fund for capital projects will subsidize immediate plans, such as about $300,000 to replace furniture in Hill House and a new exercise facility to debut this fall in High Rise South. Next year's 3 percent increase in room rates will also supplement funding for these initiatives, according to Associate Vice President for Campus Services Larry Moneta. The launching of the first phases of the renovation plan coincides with the implementation of the college house residential system -- a program designed to reorganize dormitories into multi-year residential communities with added staff and academic support. All 12 college houses will be fully functional this fall. Distinguished from the 10-year plan for residential renovations, projects under the college house system include renovations in order to implement enhanced programming such as apartments for new faculty masters and house deans, and a new dining facility in High Rise South. The first year of the program carries an estimated cost of $500,000, which will be largely funded by the Reserve Fund.
(04/07/98 9:00am)
Penn's outsourcing deal with the company went into effect last week. Physical Plant employees have marched down the hallway leading into their offices countless times before. But as they filed into their department last Wednesday, the corridor's T-shaped curves represented more than just an architectural oversight -- they seemed to also symbolize the first letter of the name of their new employer, Trammell Crow Co. "It was just strange," Assistant Controller Flo Griffin said. "I walked out on Tuesday as a Penn employee and I walked in on Wednesday under Trammell Crow." But this was no April Fool's Day prank -- the new "Facilities Services" sign adorning the doorway, coupled with a week-long orientation period, were designed to help employees acclimate to the facilities management take-over. Covering her ears to block out the roar of sanding machines and dodging half-empty paint cans, Griffin met her new supervisors, added the company name to her title and prepared for what she feared would be an awkward transition period. About 115 other Penn employees went through similar motions. One was Controller Bruce Craig, who said his loyalties lie with both Penn and the company. "I still feel as if I'm working at Penn," said Craig, a 1975 College graduate. "I'm just working for another company. I haven't felt as though my legs have been cut out." But Griffin, who befriended five employees who did not receive offers to work for the company, explained it is difficult to "re-create bonds so unique to Penn [management]." "You come to Penn and find a family at Penn and all of a sudden something comes along and threatens that family tie," she said. Craig said the interim period was an emotionally draining experience. "I went through the whole gamut of emotions," he said. "When it was time to say goodbye, it was like saying goodbye to your parents as a freshman -- you try to make it quick and painless." Several other employees declined to comment on the transition, citing fears of being fired for talking. Marred by controversy, the October 8 agreement to outsource management of most Penn facilities to Dallas-based Trammell Crow affected about 160 employees in the Physical Plant and Residential Maintenance departments, along with those in non-managerial positions at University City Associates, Penn's for-profit real estate arm. Trammell Crow has managed University City Associates since August 1996. Abiding by a Penn requirement to hire at least 70 percent of the 151 employees interviewed, Trammell Crow initially made offers to 122 people, or 80 percent of its applicants. Only 116 of those employees accepted the offers. . Trammell Crow also retained 21 non-Penn employees to assume various managerial positions. Several were Trammell Crow employees who were lured away from other projects, Penn Vice President for Facilities Services and Contract Management Omar Blaik said. That brings the total number of the company's on-campus employees to 137, according to Ty Chilcote, Trammell Crow general manager for facilities services. But former Physical Plant administrative assistant Linda Belton, who did not receive an offer from Trammell Crow last semester, said "it's not fair" for the company to recruit its own people to fill positions previously occupied by Penn employees. "[Trammell Crow] messed up my whole world," said Belton, who has since accepted a position as an administrative assistant in the Biology Department after spending 13 years as a Physical Plant employee. Chilcote said the company searched outside of the University community for senior project managers, facilities managers and facilities directors because there were no available Penn employees that had the necessary "skill sets" for the jobs. One of these new hires, Senior Facility Manager Pam Casey -- who previously handled Trammell Crow's management of PNC Bank Corp. buildings in New Jersey -- described the combination of employees as "a real good mix," adding that "morale doesn't seem to be an issue." Griffin said morale has improved from last semester's climate of "anger, mistrust and confusion." She also said employees must adjust to several policy and procedural changes during the transition period. For example, Trammell Crow adheres to an eight-hour work day, whereas Penn caps the number of hours at seven per day. In addition, the company abides by a different reporting structure, asking employees to travel through alternate chains of command, Griffin said. In an effort to promote employee cohesiveness and enhance communication among departments, Penn is renovating the second floor of the Franklin Building so that it will eventually house all three subsidiaries of Trammell Crow Higher Education Services: Residential Maintenance, Physical Plant and UCA. Construction should be completed by the end of the month, Chilcote said. He added that, in the interim, the company will focus on matching up employees with schools across the University so they can communicate on upcoming projects. And employees who are dissatisfied under Trammell Crow management have 90 days to claim severance packages, Griffin said. Nevertheless, she added that"everyone here has made an individual commitment to make it work."
(04/03/98 10:00am)
Each of the University's schools is actively pursuing donors for facilities, endowed chairs and aid. Every timetable has a deadline. But while the 12 University schools rapidly check off academic, research and facilities goals before the Agenda for Excellence wraps up in 2001, administrators have granted an extension for Agenda fundraising. "Fundraising will never be completed," said School of Arts and Sciences Dean Samuel Preston. "There is always more to do." Nevertheless, officials say such a lag does not necessarily inhibit the goals of the Agenda -- University President Judith Rodin's five-year campus master plan, released in late 1995 -- because as Penn may begin projects without funds in hand. According to Rodin, administrators will continue efforts into 2003 to locate private donors to fund the Agenda's approximately $1.5 billion price tag. In fact, the Agenda's Goal 3 justifies its own fundraising efforts, stating that, "The University will manage its human, financial and physical resources effectively and efficiently to achieve its strategic goals." And Rodin said she has faith that deans and administrators will succeed in meeting their annual benchmarks. "I am confident that we will continue to aggressively make an effort to accomplish [our goals]," Rodin said. "But there are a lot of external variables not under our control, such as funding, federal money and new tax structures." First aid Vice President for Development Virginia Clark, who oversees all Penn fundraising, said progress is steady on the funding front. Her office has already raised about $200 million for the agenda, she said. Clark said one of Penn's top fundraising priorities is to increase its endowment for school-specific scholarships and overall undergraduate financial aid by $200 million -- initiatives that are also a part of the Agenda. Of the $50 million Penn allocates annually for aid, only $2.3 million, or 4.6 percent, is covered by the University's $2.89 billion endowment. This percentage lands Penn at the bottom of the Ivy League in its endowment-financial aid ratio. By comparison, Princeton University currently spends $24 million a year on financial aid, 95 percent of which is covered by its $4.8 billion endowment. Penn development officials have already raised about $40 million, or 20 percent, of their overall goal, Clark noted. She added that alumni, foundation and corporate support comprise the bulk of the donations. For example, the extra $40 million will help fund the University's new Trustee Scholars program, which will aid as many as 50 outstanding freshmen with need-based aid packages funded exclusively by grants and work-study earnings, instead of loans. The program will dispense a total of about $125,000 a year. The development office is also looking to fund at least 125 endowed chairs across all 12 schools, Clark said, adding that officials have raised funds for 13 chairs in the past 1 1/2 years. Ecah endowed chair is established with a $2 million gift to the University, part of which subsidizes a top faculty member's hefty salary. Officials also began fund-raising for five of the six academic priorities released 10 months after the original Agenda. Clark declined to provide specific figures. But she said fundraising efforts have yet to begin for the "Management, Leadership and Organizations" priority, which will deal with improving management and business strategies in a global market. Also, funds derived from cost-cutting programs aimed at saving the central administration $50 million over the next five years will not be fed back into Agenda priorities. Rodin stressed that administrative restructuring measures -- including outsourcing, cost-efficiency projects and streamlining employee benefits -- only fund initiatives outside of the scope of the Agenda, such as the $6.5 million, multi-phase lighting project begun last spring. The project includes improving lights on major campus walkways and an architectural lighting program to illuminate University buildings. Fundraising across schools In addition to University-wide funding priorities, all four undergraduate schools have laid out yearly and long-term funding goals in their individual strategic plans released last year. The plans highlight as priorities facilities construction and renovations, raising schools' endowments for undergraduate financial aid and funding endowed chairs. SAS set an ambitious five- to 10-year goal of $100 million to fund a $40 million to $45 million new Biology facility and a $30 to $35 million new Psychology building, along with renovations to the English Department's Bennett Hall. Preston said the school has already raised about $5 million, or 5 percent of its facilities goal. The school has also raised about $6 million for endowed chairs under an overarching $200 million fundraising goal, which includes funding chairs, student aid and start-up funds in the sciences. Although Preston was not able to provide figures on financial aid, he cited master's degree programs in Bioethics, Biotechnology and Environmental Science as generating additional revenue. The School of Engineering and Applied Science set a five-year goal of $50 million, half of which will fund the computer science and cognitive laboratory facilities under the second phase of the Institute for Advanced Science and Technology project. The first phase of the project was completed last November with the unveiling of the Roy and Diana Vagelos Laboratories. The building houses labs for chemistry and chemical and medical engineering. Funding for endowed chairpersonships, undergraduate financial aid and undergraduate and graduate programming absorbs the other half of the pie, according to Engineering Dean Gregory Farrington. He said the school raised $10 million for these initiatives in fiscal year 1997. The Nursing School has already raised 62 percent, or $22 million, of its five-year fundraising goal of $35.3 million, Nursing spokesperson Susan Greenbaum said. Nursing's own agenda plan cites endowed chairs, student aid and support for research and clinical practice as top fundraising priorities. Nursing Dean Norma Lang stressed that any successful fundraising campaign must take an active approach to courting donors. "We are aggressively communicating our needs to individuals, foundations and corporations," she said. Wharton School administrators have a similar strategy and big expectations. The business school has embarked on a $350 million, six-year fundraising initiative for endowed chairs, student aid and facility costs. Although Fiscal Year 1996 figures were not available, Wharton spokesperson Chris Hardwick said the school raised $57 million in Fiscal Year 1997 -- 43 percent more than its original goal of $40 million for the year. The fiscal year runs from July 1 to June 30. And although blueprints have yet to be finalized for the new Wharton facility -- to be built on the current bookstore site at 38th Street and Locust Walk-- the University has already raised $35 million, or 29 percent, of the $120 million "school-specific priority," Clark said.
(04/02/98 10:00am)
The schools have seen improvements in minority hiring and research, but limited action on facilities. Although Penn's four undergraduate schools are struggling to fulfill the expectations of a University-wide wish list, the ever-ticking Agenda for Excellence clock may wind down before the projects are completed. University President Judith Rodin and Interim Provost Michael Wachter consistently sing the praises of the Agenda, a five-year strategic plan which governs nearly every stage of campus development. And all four of Penn's undergraduate deans agree, lauding the Agenda as a comprehensive navigation tool for the next millennium. The four schools released individual strategic plans last year, identifying as key issues minority faculty recruitment, endowed chairs, interdisciplinary and master's degree programs, facilities development and increased funding for research. But members of several departments, while admitting that they have not been marginalized by the all-encompassing agenda, say progress is nevertheless stalled on some key endeavors, such as facilities renovations. Rodin, however, responds that since the plans take on a slew of complex issues, prioritizing is vital to their success. Balancing the scales In an effort to diversify departments, each school has pledged to recruit more minority faculty members. Only 9.4 percent of the School of Arts and Sciences' 460 faculty members are minorities. SAS has hired a total of nine minority professors since 1996, SAS Dean Samuel Preston said. The school hires about 20 professors each year. Following the Agenda's release in 1996, the School of Engineering and Applied Science, which has a standing faculty of 96, hired its first two black professors, according to Engineering Dean Gregory Farrington. And the School of Nursing recruited two new minority faculty members in 1996, part of its standing faculty of 50, Nursing Dean Norma Lang said. Fewer than 9 percent of nursing professors nationwide are black, prompting Penn to create a program with Hampton University -- a historically black institution in Virginia -- designed to increase the number of black nursing professors with doctorates, Nursing spokesperson Susan Greenbaum said. The University will allow Hampton faculty members to enroll in doctoral courses and participate in research opportunities at Penn, and will help Hampton create its own doctoral program. The Wharton School's efforts to recruit minorities have been undermined by faculty attrition in the last two years, Wharton spokesperson Chris Hardwick said. The school has added four new minority faculty members to its standing faculty of 189 since 1996, but the appointments did not actually increase the number of minority faculty because of retirements and resignations. Criss-crossing disciplines Under Agenda directives, administrators and faculty members urge students to cross departments, schools and the Locust Walk divide to take advantage of a proliferation of graduate and interdisciplinary programs. SAS, which has already established master's degree programs in Bioethics, Biotechnology and Environmental Science, is in the process of developing a graduate program in Museum Studies, Preston said. And on the heels of last fall's announcement of the $10 million Vagelos Scholars program in molecular life sciences, Engineering will debut this fall an interdisciplinary undergraduate program in Digital Media Design with the Graduate School of Fine Arts and the Annenberg School for Communication, Farrington said. Nursing has also successfully implemented several joint initiatives, including a Health Care Management program with Wharton last fall and a Nursing Informatics computer science program with Engineering this fall. Next year, the school will announce an International Studies program with SAS, Greenbaum said. And Wharton will kick off a dual concentration in Marketing and Communications with the Annenberg School this fall, building on existing joint-degree programs such as the Huntsman Program in International Studies and Business with the College and the Management and Technology program with Engineering. The school is also exploring a joint minor with Engineering in Business and the Environment and a Health Care Systems and Biological Basis of Behavior minor with SAS. The waiting game Although a long list of accomplishments may qualify the Agenda as an administration success story, the emphasis on some priorities inevitably leaves others ignored. For example, refurbished facilities for the Psychology, Music and English departments are all cited in SAS' strategic plan as top priorities. But an unforeseen domino effect, spurred by a tragic fire, has forced the Music and English departments to linger in sub-par facilities. The Graduate School of Fine Arts was destined to move to the Charles Addams Fine Arts Hall last August, following renovations to the former Asbury Methodist Episcopal Church at 33rd and Chestnut streets. But the March 1997 four-alarm blaze, which destroyed the building, seriously complicated matters. GSFA lost its bid for the space after the University decided to demolish the building over winter break, citing excessive renovation costs. And the Music Department, set to occupy the recently vacated Morgan building after GSFA's relocation, remains in inadequate facilities with no indication of the University making good on its promises any time soon. "There have been no plans made" to relocate [the department]," Music Department Chairperson James Primosch said For more than two decades, administrators have assured members of the Psychology Department that they will be moved out of their dated facilities, which are currently dispersed around campus. But Psychology Professor John Sabini said that although blueprints were drawn up for a new $30 million to $35 million Psychology facility last year, "everything came to a dead freeze in August." According to Sabini, administrators told members of the department -- now housed in three buildings -- that the new building would occupy the northeast corner of 34th and Chestnut streets, next to the now-demolished church. But the fire intervened. Preston, however, said SAS is already spending $40 million to $50 million on a new Biology facility, and will wait until the building is on "firm footing" before it begins to consider relocating the Psychology Department. He added that the Biology Department has blueprints in hand. But while Sabini complained that administrators "have been telling us how much they love and respect us for at least 20 years," Rodin stressed that "there is only so much that a University can bite off at any particular moment." She added that SAS established a facility-granting hierarchy in its strategic plan: Chemistry, Biology, then Psychology. The Roy and Diana Vagelos Laboratories of the Institute for the Advancement of Science and Technology completed the first rung of the ladder. The building, which opened in November, houses labs for chemistry and chemical and medical engineering. And Preston said SAS has already raised several million dollars for the renovations to the English Department headquarters in Bennett Hall -- a facility SAS' strategic plan says is in "deplorable condition." He added that officials have not yet determined a timetable for renovations. But English Professor Paul Korshin said he doubts that Bennett Hall is a top priority, noting that faculty members have been bombarded with strategic plans for more than 30 years. Strict timetables are also not characteristic of the new Wharton classroom building planning process. Last year, the school hired architects to draw up blueprints for the building, to be built on the current bookstore site at 38th Street and Locust Walk. But repeated retreats back to the drawing board have delayed construction. Discoveries on home turf While the thought of financing multi-million dollar facilities leaves some administrators dazed, officials have made considerable progress in increasing Penn's research dollars. A combination of federal, foundation, industry and corporation research grants account for all of the University's research funding. SAS has seen a 7.7 percent increase in its research dollars since the adoption of the agenda, while Nursing has seen a 17 percent boost since 1996. Wharton's funding has remained constant.
(04/01/98 10:00am)
The new millennium is fast approaching, and administrators are working hard to recruit several professor in Korean Studies before the Agenda for Excellence expires and the famed ball in Times Square plunges to its ultimate fate. Administrators say they are confident of being able to appoint at least one professor by fall 1999 as part of the Agenda's goal of globalizing Penn's curriculum. And unlike so many other academic initiatives stymied by a lack of funding, money is the least of their worries. Working with a $5 million pledge, the School of Arts and Sciences is organizing a search committee for an assistant professor in Korean Studies, SAS Associate Dean for Arts and Letters Rebecca Bushnell said. Last spring, University President Judith Rodin and Korea Foundation President Joungwon Kim signed a historic five-year agreement under which SAS pledged to match the Foundation's $2.5 million contribution to promote Korean studies at Penn. A faculty committee, scheduled to begin meeting regularly this fall, will make recommendations to the Provost's office after conducting a national search, Director of the Center for East Asian Studies Cameron Hurst said. Although Hurst, a Japanese and Korean Studies professor, said the search will not be geared toward filling a position in any specific department, he conceded that "an economist couldn't offer four courses on Korean Studies each semester." SAS is intent on appointing one professor in the social sciences and another in the humanities, Bushnell said. She added that since the grant money is not awarded all at once, it is only possible to endow one professorship at a time. The first $1.5 million piece, contributed by the Foundation and SAS, is "enough to go ahead" with the first professorship, she said. While there will not be a new faculty appointment until next year, a minor in Korean Studies is likely to be approved by College faculty as early as next month, according to College Assistant Dean for Academic Affairs Kent Peterman. While not part of the Foundation grant, the interdisciplinary minor -- already approved by the Undergraduate Curriculum Committee -- will most likely be offered by the Asian and Middle Eastern Studies department and will include courses in language, political science and history, Peterman added. Currently, students interested in minoring in Korean Studies must petition their respective schools. Hurst said that the minor is long overdue, as Chinese and Japanese studies have essentially trumped Korean studies in recent years. He noted that Korea has garnered international attention in the last 20 years, spurring institutions of higher education to reconsider their offerings. Rodin's Agenda for Excellence also provides a broader justification for the minor, Peterman said. Additionally, a Korean Studies major could be a viable prospect in the future -- once Penn hires at least two full-time faculty members in the field.
