As the Trustees passed a capital budget of $352,057,000 for Fiscal Year 1996, Chairman Roy Vagelos linked its major components to an earlier statement by President Judith Rodin that the coming year would have research issues high on the agenda.
Both at Wednesday's Council meeting and in the Trustees' stated meeting Friday, Dr. Rodin said that after launching the undergraduate initiative last year it was time to turn to research, including its environment and infrastructure. Two of the three major construction items in the capital budget address this, Mr. Vagelos pointed out. The three are the Medical School's next biological sciences unit (known as BRB-2) at about $100 million; the Institute for Applied Science & Technology at about $50 million; and the Perelman Quadrangle, at about $60 million.
In other financial actions, the Trustees voted a $1.35 million
appropriation for Phase I of the renovation of Van Pelt-Dietrich
Libraries, and $1.22 million for the fifth and final phase of Franklin
Field's rehabilitation. They also approved the purchase of a 53.8-acre
parcel of land in Chester County adjacent to New Bolton Center, at
$1.15, million to be repaid by the School of Veterinary Medicine.
Health System Boards: With the completion of recent steps that make
the Presbyterian Medical Center an integral part of the University of
Pennsylvania Health System, the Trustees on Friday elected the initial
board and chair for the PMC as follows:
Chair: Myles H. Tanenbaum, Esq.
Members: David C. Auten, Esq.
W.W. Keen Butcher
William T. Foley (ex officio)
William N. Kelley, M.D. (ex officio)
Rev. Dr. William J. Shaw
Donald F. Snell (ex officio)
John P. Wynne, Jr. (ex officio)
Franklin Physician Services: The Executive Committee also approved the selection of Trustee Raymond H. Welsh as chair of the board of Franklin Physician Services, Inc., and filled vacancies on that board with the appointments of Dr. Kelley, Mr. Wynne, John C.S. Kepner and Leslie A. Dengler, all serving ex officio.