Despite the economic recession, Penn, as well as most Ivy League and peer institutions, have committed to retaining the quality of students’ experience in the face of budget cuts.

Given the economic downturn, scaling back on travel has become an effective method of cost containment for the University, according to Executive Vice President Craig Carnaroli.

The endowment is expected to report a loss of 15.7 percent for fiscal year 2009, but Penn President Amy Gutmann expressed relief at this number - "the lowest of any drop among peer institutions."