Penn Association of Senior and Emeritus Faculty (PASEF): President’s Annual Report for 2014-2015	Print Issue
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Jack Nagel, PASEF President 2014-2015 and Professor Emeritus of Political Science

Since its founding in 2004, PASEF has served Penn’s retired and senior (age 55 and over) standing faculty by providing information useful to those planning to retire or already retired, and by organizing programs that encourage retired faculty to maintain connections among themselves and with the intellectual and social life of the University. Although PASEF’s membership encompasses faculty from all Penn schools, the Perelman School of Medicine has its own Association of Senior and Emeritus Faculty (ASEF-PSOM), with which PASEF cooperates.

Events and Activities

PASEF regularly sponsors programs that offer members opportunity for intellectual stimulation and social interaction. As was also the case last year, most of these events were planned by a joint PASEF/ASEF-PSOM Program Committee (Lynn Lees, chair, Janice Bellace, Howard Goldfine and Peter Wilding).  
Monthly luncheon talks: The Committee organized seven talks by Penn faculty; an eighth was cancelled due to a snowstorm. Attendance ranged between about 20 and 40. For a list of speakers, see www.upenn.edu/emeritus under “Previous Events.”

Featured speakers: The Committee also recommended speakers for the Fall Lecture preceding the 25-year Club Dinner in October and the Spring Lecture and Reception in April. This year’s lecturers were PIK professors Adrian Raine and Sarah Tishkoff. Their well-received talks attracted audiences of about 60 and 50, respectively.

Spring outing: In May each year, PASEF organizes an excursion to a site of outstanding aesthetic, cultural and historic significance in the Philadelphia area. This year’s outing was an exploration of the Wissahickon Valley initiated and planned by David Pope, a PASEF Council member and former President of the Friends of the Wissahickon, leaders of which generously guided our tour. 

Facilitating the Transition to Retirement

For senior (not-yet-retired) members, PASEF offers informational resources to help in planning the transition to retirement and events assuring them that life after retirement can be stimulating and fulfilling.

Reception for newly emeritus faculty: Each fall, ASEF-PSOM and PASEF jointly sponsor a reception to honor faculty who have retired in the previous year. This year’s reception, organized under the leadership of Jeanne Myers, attracted 58 guests, including 11 honorees.

Road to Retirement programs: In March. four retired faculty spoke candidly about their own decisions to retire and their experiences in retirement. In April two staff experts on retirement, Vicki Mulhern and Hilary Lopez, explained Penn’s retirement options, benefits for retirees and other nuts-and-bolts aspects of the transition to retirement. About 50 people attended each event.

Hitchhiker’s Guide: Thanks to the editorship of Martin Pring, PASEF annually updates its Hitchhiker’s Guide to Faculty Retirement. Besides posting the Guide on our website, we also printed copies to distribute at Road to Retirement programs.

Information and advocacy about benefits: Members frequently contact the PASEF office with questions about health and other benefits. When a University policy is at issue, the PASEF president and David Balamuth, our representative to the University Council Committee on Personnel Benefits, take up the question with appropriate officials. 

New Initiatives

Report on retirement communities: Last year, a joint PASEF/ASEF-PSOM group led by Howard Goldfine and James Saunders gathered information on 14 continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) in the Philadelphia area where one or more retired Penn faculty reside. Tables summarizing their findings are posted on the PASEF website, providing a starting point for members who are thinking about moving to a CCRC.

Lifelong learning: In July 2014, a PASEF committee (Anita Summers, chair, Roger Allen, Peter Kuriloff and Howard Rosenberg) recommended that Penn establish a non-credit lifelong learning program that would involve (but not be restricted to) retirees as instructors and attendees. The committee developed their plan after studying similar programs at 15 universities. Following consultations, Vice Provost Allen proposed that PASEF operate a one-year pilot program and offered funding for added staff time and expenses. After careful consideration, the PASEF Council in January 2015 voted to decline Dr. Allen’s offer. PASEF had not envisaged assuming operational responsibility for the program; and the experience of other universities suggested that a larger budget, longer initial commitment and full-time director would be needed for a successful launch.

Speakers bureau: As a more modest alternative, the Council authorized a new committee to develop a plan for a speakers bureau—a list of retired faculty interested in speaking if invited by retirement communities, religious congregations, civic groups, etc. Vice Provost Allen subsequently authorized additional funds, if needed, to establish and maintain the speakers bureau. Our Speakers Bureau Committee is still at an early stage in the process of identifying speakers and community organizations. 

Library Tech Tools workshops: Working with Kimberly Eke and Anu Vedantham of Van Pelt-Dietrich Library, the PASEF Library Committee (Vivian Seltzer, chair, Steve Dunning and Rob MacGregor) sponsored a program of training sessions for retired faculty on such topics as Google tools, PowerPoint and iPad tips. The first four workshops were over-subscribed, so the Library offered a second series. The enthusiastic response to this initiative suggests that technology workshops should become a regular part of our programming, in cooperation with the Library.

Governance

Bylaws Revision: During the organization’s first decade, PASEF’s practice diverged from its Bylaws in several areas. To resolve those differences, a Committee on Bylaws Revision (Skip Rosoff, chair, Martin Pring and Neville Strumpf) submitted recommendations in December. Council adopted a final set of amendments in March 2015. The following decisions are particularly noteworthy:

• PASEF’s governing body, formerly the Executive Committee, is now called the Council.

• Council includes all chairs of standing committees and also chairs of active ad hoc committees.

• Council no longer automatically includes former presidents as voting members, except for the immediate past president and any others who have been elected to new offices or appointed to chair committees. Former presidents are welcome to attend Council meetings and contribute to deliberations.

• The Steering Committee consists of the President, Past President and President-elect.

• The potential role of Council in nominations and elections has been enhanced.

• Any of three groups may propose amendments to the Bylaws. Adoption of proposed amendments requires a two-thirds vote of Council.

Elections: Following procedures in the revised Bylaws, a Nominating Committee (Janice Bellace, chair, Lynn Lees, Martin Pring and Anita Summers) proposed a slate of candidates, which was approved by Council and then submitted to all PASEF members for an email vote. Although no positions were contested, 141 members cast votes—an increase from 120 in 2014 and 109 in 2013. All nominees were overwhelmingly approved: 

• President-elect: Paul Shaman (Wharton)

• Secretary: David Pope (SEAS)

• Representative to SEC: Martin Pring (PSOM)

• Council for 3-year terms: Joan Goodman (GSE), Roberto Mariano (SAS), Larry Palmer (PSOM)

• Council for a 2-year term (replacing Peter Dodson): Ann Matter (SAS)

• Council for a 1-year term (replacing Paul Shaman): Roger Allen (SAS)

Administrative Foundations

Administrative oversight and support: PASEF reports through the Vice Provost for Faculty, Anita Allen, and has benefited from her sympathetic attention. Besides speaking at the October receptions, Dr. Allen has met each year with the Council and confers with the Steering Committee when the need arises. We have also enjoyed excellent help from members of the Provost’s staff, especially Gearline Robinson-Hall, Julie Shuttleworth and Kathy Swartz.

Facilities: PASEF operates from a small but centrally located office in the Duhring Wing. The office is adequate as a workspace for our part-time coordinator and for meetings of four or fewer, but all other functions depend on locations elsewhere. The most important of these is the University Club, where we hold our monthly luncheon talks and Council meetings. Dennis Daly of the University Club and Daria DiCicco of the Inn at Penn have been consistently supportive. For larger events, we are grateful to Tanea Blake and Joseph Policarpo for their help in making arrangements at the Library and Law School, respectively. Thanks are also due Brian Anders of the Sweeten Alumni Center for enabling the October reception to be held again in that fine space.

Webmaster: For several years, the crucial task of managing PASEF’s website was ably handled by member-volunteers: Alan Myers and then Mitchell Marcus. It became evident, however, that the need for regular updates imposed an excessive burden. In March, Kayvon Nikoo agreed to work part-time as PASEF’s webmaster. Mr. Nikoo, a full-time employee of the Perelman School, knows PASEF well; he previously served as our staff person, and his current duties at PSOM include supporting ASEF-PSOM. The new arrangement is working well.

Coordinator: PASEF is supported by a half-time coordinator. From November 2012 through May 2015, Heidi George held that position. She served the organization with exceptional devotion, diligence and effectiveness. In April, to our regret, Ms. George announced that she would be resigning for personal reasons, effective June 1. Early in June, Jocelyne Waller began work as PASEF’s coordinator. Although new to Penn, Ms. Waller has substantial administrative experience at universities in the US and Canada. During the coming year, she will be working closely with PASEF’s President for 2015-2016, Anita Summers.