On September 22, when the Executive Committee of the University Trustees met, chair David L. Cohen presented a resolution which was passed to accept the findings of the Ad Hoc Committee on Divestment (see supplement in this issue). He responded to the members of Fossil Fuel Penn who had raised this issue at University Council last fall; he thanked the Ad Hoc Committee which reported their findings to the Trustees. The Trustees Executive Committee agreed with the Ad Hoc Committee and no action will be taken on divestment.

Penn President Amy Gutmann mentioned that this fall there are two projects that have been unveiled: New College House (Almanac September 20, 2016), Perry World House, and one more that will be dedicated, the Pennovation Center on October 28.

Provost Vincent Price reported that the number of enrollees for Penn’s online courses has surpassed 2 million with 100 Penn faculty teaching the courses. Three quarters of the learners are from outside the US.

Executive Vice President Craig Carnaroli gave the financial report for the 12 months ended June 30, 2016. For the Consolidated University, the total net assets were $14.5 billion, an increase of $1.02 billion over the prior year, largely driven by the integration of Lancaster General Health into the Health System and strong operating performance, but were $835 million below budget primarily due to the downturn in the financial markets and increased pension liability. Market volatility drove the AIF return of -1.4%; total investments were $12.5 billion, of which the endowment comprises $10.7 billion.

Larry Jameson, PSOM dean and EVP for the Health System, reported that Penn Presbyterian Medical Center was well prepared when it had to respond recently to mass casualties, treating several people including the UPPD officer who had been shot.