Tuesday,
January 12, 1999
Volume 45
Number 16


Death of Judge Higginbotham

The Honorable A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr., a distinguished and beloved emeritus trustee of the University of Pennsylvania, died of a massive stroke on Monday, December 14, at Massachusetts General Hospital at the age of 70.

"The University of Pennsylvania shares the nation's sorrow at the loss of Judge Higginbotham, one of the wisest men of our times," said President Judith Rodin. "It was a tremendous honor for Penn to have a long and rewarding association with him. We are grateful for his generous service to our University community, and very much the better for it. He is deeply missed."

Judge Higginbotham was of counsel at the New York law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, as well as the Public Service Professor of Jurisprudence at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.

A graduate of Antioch College and Yale Law School, he also taught as an adjunct professor at Penn's Law School. He served as a judge, chief judge, and senior judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit from 1977-93 and as a U.S. district judge from 1964-77.

At Penn, Judge Higginbotham served as a trustee of the University for over 30 years, from May 1968 until his death, bringing his wise counsel to the Executive Committee from 1978-80, as well as to numerous other committees, including the Academic Policy, Honorary Degrees and Awards, Student Affairs, and University Responsibility Committees.

In recognition of, and appreciation for, his "generous service to others, his judicious compassion, and his warm understanding of man's strengths and foibles," the Board of Trustees conferred upon Judge Higginbotham the Honorary Degree of Doctor of Laws in May 1975. Over the years, Judge Higginbotham also was a trustee of the University of Pennsylvania Press and former chairman of the Boards of Overseers of the Law School and the Graduate School of Education. Most recently, Judge Higginbotham served as a member of the 1993-94 Commission on Strengthening the University Community.

A 1995 recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom, Judge Higginbotham received national and international accolades and appointments during his stellar legal career, many of which have been recorded in obituaries published in The New York Times, the Los Angeles Times, The Washington Post, the Boston Globe, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, and many other newspapers.

The family has requested that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to either the NAACP Legal Defense Fund, 99 Hudson St., New York, NY 10013, or the Children's Defense Fund, 25 E St., N.W., Washington, DC 20001.

The University of Pennsylvania will hold a Memorial Service for Judge Higginbotham on February 24, in the University Museum's Harrison Auditorium, from 4 until 6 p.m. To be announced are memorial services for him in New York, Cambridge and Washington on dates to be determined.


MLK Celebration: January 18

To the University Community:

The theme for this year's celebration of the birth of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., is Keeping the Dream Alive.

We encourage all faculty, staff and students to participate in some of the many commemorative programs being held on January 18 and throughout the spring semester.

Release time has been authorized for staff to attend Martin Luther King Jr. Day commemorative programs on January 18, and supervisors are encouraged to be flexible in granting release time and making arrangements for coverage of responsibilities.

Likewise, faculty are encouraged to be flexible regarding class attendance to allow students the opportunity to participate fully in January 18 programming.

--Judith Rodin President

--Robert Barchi, Provost Designate

--John Fry, Executive Vice President

Note: for a list of events see www.upenn.edu/VPGE/mlk.html


COUNCIL Agenda

University Council Meeting

Wednesday, January 13, 1999, 4-6 p.m.

McClelland Hall, The Quadrangle

PENNCard required for entry to the Quad. To attend as observer, call the Office of the Secretary in advance, 898-7005.

I. Approval of the minutes of December 9, 1998 meeting (1 minute).

II. Status Reports of the President, Chair of the Steering Committee, Chair of the Graduate and Professional Student Assembly, Chair of the Undergraduate Assembly, Chair of the Penn Professional Staff Assembly, Chair of the A-3 Assembly (20 minutes).

III. Video monitoring policy recommendations from the Committee on Open Expression and the Committee on Safety and Security (15 minutes presentation; 15 minutes discussion).

IV. Faculty Senate Executive Committee Policy on Consultation (Almanac December 8, 1998) (15 minutes presentation; 15 minutes discussion).

V. Charitable giving and the decision-making process (20 minutes presentation; 10 minutes discussion).

VI. Adjournment by 6 p.m.


New Commonwealth Trustee

Senator Robert C. Jubelirer, President Pro Tempore of the Pennsylvania Senate, has appointed Robert A. Gleason, Jr. as the Commonwealth Trustee to succeed Edwin Krawitz, Esq. on the Board of Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania, according to University Secretary Rosemary McManus.

Mr. Gleason's term as a Trustee became effective immediately and will be coterminous with that of the President Pro Tempore.

Mr. Gleason, a 1961 graduate of the Wharton School, is the Chairman and CEO of The Gleason Agency, Inc., an insurance agency in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. A holder of numerous national and Commonwealth posts during his public service career, he served as Secretary to the Commonwealth during the Thornburgh administration and was more recently Secretary-Treasurer of the Pennsylvania Turnpike Commission.

At Penn, Mr. Gleason was vice president of the University of Pennsylvania Alumni Society from1989-1991 and has served on the School of Veterinary Medicine Board of Overseers.


Almanac, Vol. 45, No. 16, January 12, 1999

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