The Council meeting on September 16, via BlueJeans Events, was the first Council meeting since the pre-pandemic meeting, which had been held in person on February 19. The following months’ scheduled spring meetings had been canceled due to COVID-19.

At last week’s meeting, after calling the meeting to order and welcoming everyone, President Amy Gutmann appointed Melissa Wilde, professor of sociology, as the Moderator for this academic year. President Gutmann also announced that Lauren Steinfeld will once again serve as the Parliamentarian. 

Kathleen Hall Jamieson, chair of Steering, presented the focus issues for the upcoming Council meetings:

• December 2: Outcome and impact to research activities and academic instruction given COVID-19
• January 27: The engagement and support of our international students and scholars
• February 17: Campaign for Community and Penn Projects for Progress
• March 24: Climate and Sustainability Action Plan 3.0 and an Update on the Environmental Innovations Initiative (EII).

This year’s Open Forum sessions will be held on December 2 and February 17.

Secretary of Council Lizann Boyle Rode described the disposition of the Open Forum items from last February. She noted that several of the students who had presented have subsequently spoken with various members of the administration about their concerns.

The chairs of the 2019-2020 Council Committees each gave a brief report summarizing their respective year-end reports, which were published in Almanac in the April 28, 2020 issue. President Gutmann thanked the chairs and their committees for their work and said that their recommendations would be considered. She noted that changes, such as a reduction of air travel, which has decreased dramatically in the past several months, would be worth continuing. She also noted that a day where diversity officers from across the campus could connect would be a worthwhile endeavor.

The 2020-2021 Council Committees received their charges for this year, which had been approved by Steering at its last meeting. Dr. Jamieson also noted that Climate Week (September 21-25) is a way for the Penn community to become more aware how each person can make a difference, at Penn and at home. She cited the document, Bring it Home.

The next Coucil meeting will be on October 21 and it will include the presentation of the State of the University.