COUNCIL

Under the new Bylaws of the University Council, a stated meeting in each academic year "shall include extended reports by the president, the provost and other administrators selected by the president and provost or by the vote of the Council. These reports shall cover the state of the University, with particular attention to the activities of the University with respect to which significant problems are perceived." The second such annul report was delivered at the Council meeting held November 1, 1995. The following texts are based on the presentations made there by President Judith Rodin and Provost Stanley Chodorow, along with the administrative colleagues they invited to speak.

The State of the University

Reports of the President

The University and its Communities..............................S2

Safety and Security: Community Policing and the Campus..........S3

Penn and the Media..............................................S4

Reports of the Provost

Admissions Trends and Opportunities.............................S5

Academic Planning and the Capital Council.......................S6

The 21st Century Project and Undergraduate Education............S7

The Perelman Quadrangle Project.................................S8

Reports of the President

Introduction by Judith Rodin

Good afternoon. As you know, Council's bylaws provide us with this annual opportunity to talk about the state of our University. The intent in these annual reports is not so much to summarize the "state of the University," as to highlight for you those areas in which we face major challenges. It is also an important opportunity for us to hear your reactions, comments and questions.

Last year, the Provost and I focused on some of the major internal developments in the University and the major administrative initiatives we were undertaking. Since then, we have reported regularly and at length to Council on several of those initiatives: administrative restructuring, undergraduate education, public safety, and strengthening the Penn community. Later today, in his portion of our report, the Provost will continue that ongoing process by updating you on our plans for the development of the Perelman Quadrangle and the 21st Century Project for the Undergraduate Experience.

In my report, I would like to focus your attention on some of the very significant changes that have occurred in our external environment over the past year and the major challenges we face as we look outward to the world around us.

Many indices testify to the excellence of our University, including admissions data, U.S. News rankings, the National Research Council survey of doctoral programs, the positive comments of students and parents, and the loyalty of our alumni. These also suggest that Penn is poised for further achievements. However, whether Penn can fully realize that potential will depend, in part, on the environment in which we operate and the ways in which we respond to the very real challenges that environment poses. Fundamentally, these challenges fall into three categories:

First, there are the challenges, like cutbacks in Federal support for research, financial aid, and educational programs, which will require us to become more self-sufficient, more creative, and to imaginatively turn crisis into opportunity.
Second, there are the challenges, such as our relationships with the City, the Commonwealth, and the West Philadelphia community, which will require us to build stronger and deeper partnerships that serve both the University and our neighbors.
Finally, there are the challenges, such as the development of new forms of interactive communication and the emergence of a truly global institutional perspective, which will require us to make better and more efficient use of our existing resources; to turn the advent of new technologies into one of Penn's major competitive advantages; and to more effectively communicate to others what we all know to be true: This is a great and energetic University that is moving forward aggressively to grasp a leading role in every discipline we study or teach, among other colleges and universities, and in American and international society at-large.

I have asked several of my administrative colleagues to join us to- day to talk more specifically about these challenges and about our responses that fall within each of their areas. As I call upon each of them, I will highlight for you some of the most important areas they will discuss.

(To next page of reports.)

Almanac

Tuesday, November 14, 1995
Volume 42 Number 12

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