PCA Board of Directors: Mr. Bryan

In November 2014, Glenn Bryan, assistant vice president of community relations, was appointed to chair the Board of Directors of the Philadelphia Corporation for Aging (PCA). Mr. Bryan directs Penn’s comprehensive community relations program, representing the University in local engagement initiatives, especially those related to public education, healthcare and economic development. PCA is a private, non-profit organization serving as Philadelphia county’s Area Agency on Aging since 1973. One of the region’s largest non-profit organizations, PCA’s mission is to improve the quality of life for older Philadelphians and people with disabilities.

Penn-made President: Dr. Cramb

Alan W. Cramb, (EAS’79) has been elected the ninth president of Illinois Institute of Technology. Dr. Cramb will begin his term August 1, 2015. He is currently provost and senior vice president for academic affairs at IIT.

For additional Penn-made presidents, see www.upenn.edu/almanac/pennpres.html

National Academy of Inventors Fellows: Drs. Eberwine and Yang

James Eberwine, of the University of Pennsylvania’s Perelman School of Medicine and Shu Yang, of Penn’s School of Engineering & Applied Science, have been named Fellows of the National Academy of Inventors (NAI).

Election to NAI Fellow status is a high professional distinction accorded to academic inventors who have demonstrated a prolific spirit of innovation in creating or facilitating outstanding inventions that have made a tangible impact on quality of life, economic development and the welfare of society.

Dr. Eberwine is the Elmer Holmes Bobst Professor of Systems Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics and co-director of the Penn Program in Single Cell Biology. He is a molecular neurobiologist whose research focuses on understanding the function of individual neurons and subregions of neurons, called dendrites, by using molecular biological tools. His lab has developed analytical procedures to characterize the mRNA and proteins present in single cells. This basic biomedical research has implications for studying brain function and such neurodegenerative diseases as Alzheimer’s and ALS.

Dr. Yang is a professor in Penn Engineering’s department of materials science & engineering. Her work is focused on developing new materials with unique structures and functionalities inspired by biology. Her interest in self-assembled nanostructures and the self-organization process at surfaces and interfaces have several applications, including a colored or transparent superhydrophobic coating inspired by lotus leaves and butterfly wings, as well as solar energy collectors inspired by photosymbiotic giant clams.

Drs. Eberwine and Yang will be inducted on March 20, as part of the 4th Annual Conference of the National Academy of Inventors at the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena, California.

The academic inventors and innovators elected to the rank of NAI Fellow are named inventors on US patents and were nominated by their peers for outstanding contributions to innovation in areas such as patents and licensing, innovative discovery and technology, significant impact on society and support and enhancement of innovation.

Woman of Distinction: Dr. Flaherty

Therese Flaherty, director of the Wharton Small Business Development Center, has been named one of 33 Women of Distinction for 2014. Dr. Flaherty was chosen by the Philadelphia Business Journal because she “has been a valuable resource for the growth and success of Philadelphia’s small businesses. She has counseled more than 5,000 entrepreneurs while at the SBDC helm. She has expanded Wharton’s partnerships with leading organizations and championed economic development in the region. She’s also taught courses at Penn, Harvard and Stanford and led the Southeast Pennsylvania Partnership for Regional Economic Performance.”

Discovery Fast Track Challenge: Drs. George, Leu and Murphy

Three Philadelphia researchers—Donna George, associate professor of genetics, Julia Leu, research assistant professor of genetics, both from the department of genetics in the Perelman School of Medicine and Maureen Murphy, from The Wistar Institute—have been awarded a Discovery Fast Track Challenge grant from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK). This program is designed to combine the expertise of academic researchers with pharmaceutical specialists to accelerate the search for new medicines. The Penn-Wistar team will apply their work to cancer therapies as it relates to molecular pathways that govern protein quality control and cell survival pathways.

“The goal of our work is to identify compounds that can be developed as effective therapeutics for a variety of cancers,” said Dr. George. “We are very pleased to have been selected for this award. The new partnership with GSK provides us with access to valuable resources and scientific expertise to help move our basic research ideas into practical treatments.”

Fourteen proposals were selected from 428 entries across North America and Europe. The proposals covered a wide range of approaches and disease areas, from deciphering cellular mechanisms to serve as targets for antibiotics, antimitotics or antivirals to discovering new treatments for cardiovascular and kidney diseases.

The winners will work with GSK’s Discovery Partnerships with Academia and Molecular Discovery Research teams to test their hypotheses on potential disease pathways or targets against GSK’s extensive library of compounds.

Nightingale Award: Dr. Grube

Wendy Grube, practice assistant professor in the School of Nursing and director of the Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner program at Penn, received the Nursing Educator—Academia Award at the 25th Annual Meeting and Awards Banquet of the Nightingale Awards of Pennsylvania in October 2014. The award is given annually to an individual who is an inspiration to students and cultivates a supportive learning environment, with an emphasis on scholarly research and dissemination of research through education.

As director of the Women’s Health Care Nurse Practitioner program at Penn Nursing, Dr. Grube’s goals are to enhance the quality of education to meet the demands of current APN practice and expand students’ awareness of culture, health care disparities and systems of healing they will encounter in these new roles. Dr. Grube is Course Director for Health Care of Women and Primary Care, Complementary Alternative Therapies in Women’s Health and the Comparative Healthcare Systems: Thailand and the United Staters. She also contributes to the course on Well Woman Health Care on issues related to the gynecological exam, genital dermatology, management of abnormal cervical cytology, intrauterine contraception and care of the peri- and post-menopausal woman.

The Nightingale Awards of Pennsylvania is a statewide, non-profit foundation created to help recruit and retain nursing professionals. It is governed by a 24 member volunteer Board of Trustees, consisting of individuals who are leaders in nursing, business, industry and other health care fields.

CDC Grants to Advance Brain Health: UPenn PRC

Researchers affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania’s newly-created Prevention Research Center (PRC), have received two grants totaling over $860,000 from the Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC) Special Interest Project (SIP) to advance the CDC’s Healthy Brain Initiative.

The Penn PRC conducts innovative public health and disease management research aimed at preventing chronic disease and reducing health disparities in Southeastern Pennsylvania. In June, Penn received a five-year, $4.35 million grant from the CDC to establish the PRC at Penn as one of 26 in the nation and the first in Philadelphia. These most recent grants make it possible for Penn to become a Collaborating Center within the CDC’s “Healthy Brain Initiative Network.” Funding will also support the development of culturally-relevant messages and strategies to promote awareness about dementia, including Alzheimer’s disease. Both of these programs will exist within the PRC.

“We are thrilled that the CDC selected our proposals for funding,” said co-principal investigator Jason Karlawish, associate director of the Penn Memory Center, director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Center’s Outreach, Recruitment and Education Core and professor of medicine and medical ethics and health policy at the Perelman School of Medicine. “The Healthy Brain Initiative is an important national effort to promote brain health for older Americans. These awards are a great opportunity for people of Philadelphia, the state and region and will connect the many smart, talented and motivated leaders in Philadelphia and Pennsylvania with a national effort to promote brain health.”

The goal of Penn’s Healthy Brain Initiative Network Collaborating Center is to advance research and service in cognitive health and healthy brain aging and support doctoral and postdoctoral education and training in cognitive health and healthy aging. The Center will develop a course and a certificate program on the public health implications of cognitive aging within the Master’s in Public Health program and the “Healthy Brain Initiative Scholars” program for doctoral and post-doctoral students whose research focuses on cognitive health, cognitive impairment, Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.

iHEA ‘Best Paper in Health Economics’ Award: Dr. Kolstad

The International Health Economics Association (iHEA) has named LDI Senior Fellow Jonathan Kolstad winner of its annual Arrow Award for the Best Paper in Health Economics. Dr. Kolstad is an assistant professor of health care management at the Wharton School.

The honored work, “Information and Quality When Motivation is Intrinsic: Evidence from Surgeon Report Cards,” was published in the American Economic Review. The award will be presented at a ceremony this month.

The iHEA announcement noted, “This paper is important because clinical specialists, such as surgeons, lie at the heart of the health care system and their decisions shape the allocation of resources within the system.”

“Empirical evidence that enhances our understanding of their motives and behavior contributes to the debate on the merits of reporting schemes, the value of providing information on clinical quality and outcomes and how this is shaped by the market and regulatory environment.”

“The paper suggests that the impact of report cards is driven by the way clinicians view their own performance, relative to their peers, more than the way in which public release of the information influences patient demand.”

IWLCA Assistant Coach of the Year: Ms. Lehman

Sixth-year assistant women’s lacrosse coach Melissa Lehman, C’08, received the Division I Outstanding Assistant Coach Award at the Intercollegiate Women’s Lacrosse Association’s Annual Meeting in Orlando, Florida, in November 2014.

“I am honored to have received this award amongst a group of so many dedicated coaches,” Ms. Lehman said. “I am lucky every day to work at such an incredible university and I have learned so much working with both Karin (Corbett) and Kerri (Whitaker). To be able to coach at my alma mater–a place that gave me so much–is a dream and I am so grateful for the opportunity Karin and the athletic department have given me. Reflecting on this award I am reminded how rewarding being a coach truly is and how lucky I am to do what I love.”

Ms. Lehman has been a part of seven of Penn’s eight consecutive Ivy League championships and NCAA Tournament appearances–winning two as a player in 2007 and 2008 before serving as an assistant coach on the 2010-2014 squads.

Gold Medal Award for Distinguished Archaeological Achievement: Dr. Rose

C. Brian Rose, Peter C. Ferry Curator-in-Charge of the Mediterranean Section at the Penn Museum and the James B. Pritchard Professor of Archaeology in the department of classical studies, School of Arts & Sciences, received the Archaeological Institute of America’s top honor, the Gold Medal Award for Distinguished Archaeological Achievement. The award was presented at a ceremony on January 9 at the organization’s annual conference in New Orleans.

In announcing the 2015 award, the Archaeological Institute of America noted that the honor goes to Dr. Rose, “for his work in the field at Troy, the Granicus River Valley Survey Project, and Gordion [Turkey]; his visionary and energetic efforts to provide cultural heritage training to the members of the US military serving in Iraq and Afghanistan; and his highly influential role as an educator, formerly at University of Cincinnati and now at University of Pennsylvania.”

Founded in 1879, the Archaeological Institute of America, the oldest organization of its kind in the country, is 218,000 members strong and boasts a diverse community of professional archaeologists, students and members of the general public interested in the field. They promote archaeological inquiry and public understanding of the material record of the human past to foster an appreciation of diverse cultures and our shared humanity.

In his role as archaeologist, Dr. Rose has extensive field excavation and survey experience. Especially renowned for its role as the capital of King Midas, the site of Gordion was occupied for more than 4,000 years and remains one of the most important archaeological sites of the Near East. Dr. Rose is curating an upcoming Penn Museum exhibition of traveling art and artifacts from the famous site, with the cooperation of the government of the Republic of Turkey.

IMPACT Award: UCD

University City District (UCD) was one of nine local nonprofits to receive an IMPACT Award from GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) in recognition of “exceptional achievements in contributing to a healthier Philadelphia.” UCD’s award was given specifically for “our commitment to building a healthy, vibrant University City through major investments in public space development, public maintenance and public safety.”

National Design Award: Dr. Rybczynski

Witold Rybczynski, the Martin and Margy Meyerson Professor Emeritus of Urbanism in the School of Design, was recently honored for his “Design Mind” at the Cooper Hewitt 2014 National Design Awards Gala. The National Design Awards program was conceived by Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum to celebrate design as a vital humanistic tool in shaping the world and seeks to increase national awareness of design by educating the public and promoting excellence, innovation and lasting achievement.

Davey Award for Design & Functionality: Penn GSE’s Website

Penn GSE’s website has been recognized as one of the best designed and most usable in the world of education.

The School won a Silver Davey Award in the “Schools and Universities” category for its website’s design and functionality. The award comes after GSE unveiled a new website last year that was designed to be more attractive, easier to navigate and functional on all categories of devices.

The Davey Awards, presented by the Academy of Interactive and Visual Arts, recognize small and mid-size companies, agencies, universities and nonprofits from around the globe for creating stunning visual presentations online. 

Supporting Schools: Penn

Philadelphia City Council, on December 11, honored the University of Pennsylvania among more than a dozen local universities and colleges with an official citation of City Council acknowledging their vital support and services to the School District of Philadelphia.

The University of Pennsylvania was recognized for partnering with the School District of Philadelphia (SDP) as it “supports the Penn Alexander School and the Lea School via the Graduate School of Education to provide after-school programs, behavioral and social supports and professional development. Penn also offers support for workforce development out of the Barbara and Edward Netter Center for Community Partnerships and offers college preparatory services to high school students.” 

The City Council also honored Penn and a number of peer institutions for “working to improve the quality of education through the School District of Philadelphia and by increasing overall academic opportunities for the greater community by making higher education more accessible for all Philadelphians.”

The resolution, introduced by Councilman Curtis Jones and Councilwoman Jannie Blackwell and sponsored by every member of Council, praised the significant role Penn and many of the region’s colleges, universities and academic institutions play in strengthening the public schools, stating that the, “partnerships with institutions of higher education have helped numerous SDP students further their academic careers by pursuing higher education.”

Passed by City Council on November 20, 2014, the resolution further cites the impact and value of this support as vital to supporting the academic careers of the district’s students.

16th in the World: Penn

The University of Pennsylvania has been ranked 16 (14th in the US) in “The 100 Best Universities in the World Today” by TheBestSchools.org The universities were chosen by the “Shanghai Ranking” which is the 2014 Academic Ranking of World Universities. Rankings focus on various factors, including campus attractiveness, students’ satisfaction, alumni successes, extracurricular activities, affordability of tuition, expected income of graduates and more.

 In its description, TheBestSchools.org said, “Penn is extremely diverse. Of the class of 2017, 50 percent of the student body is black, Hispanic, Asian or Native American. The school also has just under 500 international students. The faculty include 84 Academy of Arts & Sciences members, 81 Institute of Medicine members, 33 National Academy of Science members, 31 American Philosophical Society members, 175 Guggenheim Fellowship recipients and 12 National Academy of Engineering members. These first-class thinkers power the school’s more than 100 research centers and institutes, and direct much of its more than $8 billion endowment.”

Silver Bicycle Friendly University Award: Penn

The League of American Bicyclists has recognized the University of Pennsylvania with a Silver Bicycle Friendly University (BFU) award. With this recognition, Penn joins a list of 100 BFUs in 37 states and Washington, D.C.

Through the relationship with the League of American Bicyclists, Penn will have access to a variety of free tools and technical assistance to become even more bicycle-friendly. Already an advocate for green transportation, Penn has in the past few years increased the number of bike racks on campus, installed two bicycle repair stations and created an interactive biking map, posted on the Facilities & Real Estate website, http://www.facilities.upenn.edu/maps

See http://www.facilities.upenn.edu/maps/bike-racks/bicycle-resources for Bicycle Resources such as routes, parking, policies and safety.

Best New University Building: Krishna P. Singh Center for Nanotechnology

Photograph by Marguerite F. Miller

The Krishna P. Singh Center for Nanotechnology (below) has been chosen as one of the 23 honores of the 2015 American Institute of Architects Institute Honor Awards for Architecture. It was also chosen as one of the nine best New University Buildings around the world by the Business Insider. The building was designed for Penn by the firm Weiss/Manfredi as a “striking three-story building with a transparent front façade and planted roof. Sensitive to the demands of biological research and the delicate equipment the building would house, Weiss/Manfredi worked to isolate vibrations and noise from a nearby subway line and mitigate other external environmental factors to create an efficient, beautiful research hub.” For more on this building see Almanac October 8, 2013.

Philadelphia TOBY Award: Steinberg Hall-Dietrich Hall

Photograph by Jeffrey Totaro

Steinberg Hall-Dietrich Hall (below) won the Philadelphia BOMA 2014 TOBY Award—Best of the Best for Green Practices. The Outstanding Building of the Year (TOBY) Awards were created in 1985 by the Building Owners and Managers Association (BOMA) to salute excellence in the office building industry. It remains the most prestigious and comprehensive program of its kind, recognizing quality in office buildings and awarding excellence in office building management.
Rafael de Luna, associate director of sustainability, Wharton Operations, calls Steinberg Hall-Dietrich Hall, “a great example of sustainability in the built environment and green operations.” Steinberg Hall-Dietrich Hall features two LEED Gold Certified areas, Joe’s Café and the SHDH West Tower Entrance. Wharton earned Penn’s first LEED for Commercial Interiors certification at Joe’s Café (named for the Wharton School’s founder, Joseph Wharton). Joe’s Café earned two innovation credits in Operations and Maintenance—one for green cleaning and one for sustainable cafe operations focused on waste diversion, composting and sourcing local/organic/healthy food options.
The new West Tower Entrance takes building performance a step further. The new office and classroom addition integrates advanced insulation techniques into the building’s limestone and glazed facades. Sustainable features include green roofs above the ground floor classrooms to help manage storm water runoff and reduce cooling loads, a white roof and light colored pavers to reduce the local heat island effect and chilled beam cooling technology to reduce energy use. A state-of-the-art demand ventilation system and high efficiency lighting complete the sustainable building system design. Steinberg Hall-Dietrich Hall has a comprehensive solid waste management plan for all waste streams, including e-waste and waste audits are performed annually to measure recycling rates and identify areas for improvement.