November 10, 2015 Volume 62 Issue 13

Patricia D’Antonio has been appointed director of Penn Nursing’s Barbara Bates Center for the Study of the History of Nursing. Dr. D’Antonio, the Killebrew-Censits Term Professor in Undergraduate Education and chair of the department of family & community health, previously served as the Center’s associate director. Her appointment was effective October 21.

“As a national and international expert in the history of nursing and nursing practice, Dr. D’Antonio is the ideal choice for this leadership role,” said the Margaret Bond Simon Dean of Nursing Antonia Villarruel. “Her research emphasizes how this history contributes to the current status of the discipline of nursing, health care and developments in the humanities and sciences.”

Dr. D’Antonio is a nurse and historian whose body of scholarship situates the profession’s work and worth in both American hospitals and health care agencies and in the fabric of families and communities. She is the editor of the Nursing History Review, the official journal of the American Association for the History of Nursing; a senior fellow at the Leonard Davis Institute for Health Economics; a core faculty member of Women’s Studies; and a member of the Graduate Group in the History and Sociology of Science. Dr. D’Antonio also has a strong international presence and serves on numerous advisory and editorial boards, including that of the UK Centre for the History of Nursing and Midwifery and Nursing Inquiry, among many others.

Dr. D’Antonio’s current research analyzes the critically important role nurses played in the early 20th century’s experimental health demonstration projects that sought to increase health care access and equity to poor, working class, immigrant and rural families. Her previous book, American Nursing: A History of Knowledge, Authority and the Meaning of Work, positions nurses as absolutely central to the larger interdisciplinary histories of institutions, clinical practice, health care policy and women’s care work. This book has been internationally recognized for its importance in creating a new intellectual paradigm for nursing’s history: one that analyzes nurses as members of families and communities, as well as clinicians in hospitals and health care agencies.

Dr. D’Antonio replaces Julie Fairman, the Nightingale Professor of Nursing and chair of the department of biobehavioral health sciences, who is stepping down as head of the Center after nearly ten years of leadership.

Francis E. Marchlinski has been named the inaugural Richard T. and Angela Clark President’s Distinguished Professor. As director of electrophysiology, Dr. Marchlinski has made the program at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania one of the largest on the east coast and one of the two largest single-hospital programs in the country.

The Clark President’s Distinguished Professorship will enable Dr. Marchlinski and his team of physicians to advance work in the area of ablation—among other projects—which he helped to pioneer and continues to improve through leading clinical trials and original research studies. Ablation, a strategic scarring of a small part or parts of the patient’s heart to treat irregular heartbeats, is a capstone to the cardiac rhythm management he initially introduced to Penn in 1981 with the implantable defibrillator.

“Dr. Marchlinski’s groundbreaking treatment for arrhythmia preserves life—and returns quality of life by reducing recovery time. His dedication to excellence in patient care is fittingly recognized by Dick Clark, whose tireless efforts on behalf of the Penn Cardiovascular Institute have benefitted so many individuals,” said J. Larry Jameson, executive vice president of the University of Pennsylvania for the Health System and dean of the Perelman School of Medicine. “I am tremendously grateful for Angela and Dick’s remarkable support, and look forward to seeing Dr. Marchlinski’s work reach greater heights.”

Mr. and Mrs. Clark established a President’s Distinguished Professorship with a $3 million gift. The Clarks chose to use the $750,000 freed up by the President’s Distinguished Professorship Fund match to establish an innovation research fund in the electrophysiology program. Mr. Clark is the former chairman and CEO of Merck and is chair of the Penn Cardiovascular Institute Leadership Council, as well as a Penn Medicine Trustee.

Dr. Marchlinski currently serves on the scientific advisory board for multiple medical device design and manufacturing agencies, and is a fellow of the American Heart Association and the Heart Rhythm Society (formerly North American Society of Pacing and Electrophysiology— NASPE). Dr. Marchlinski has authored and co-authored more than 350 original scientific articles and more than 200 book chapters, reviews and editorials on a variety of topics related to cardiac electrophysiology.

A $1 million endowment gift from Carol A. Kiryluk of Key Biscayne, Florida, will establish a new scholarship fund for students from northeastern Pennsylvania to attend the University of Pennsylvania.

The scholarship fund—named in memory of Ms. Kiryluk’s mother, Ann Mae Mankausky Kiryluk—will provide financial aid to academically qualified undergraduate students hailing from Wyoming County, Pennsylvania, or from the state’s other northeastern counties, including Lackawanna, Luzerne, Susquehanna, Bradford, Sullivan, Wayne, Pike, Monroe and Carbon.

Ms. Kiryluk, who graduated in 1968 from what was then known as The College for Women (now part of Penn’s College of Arts & Sciences), grew up in Nicholson, a small town in northeastern Pennsylvania. She credits attending the University of Pennsylvania with broadening her horizons and providing the base for her career in the international arena. With this endowment, it is her intention to support students from her home region in realizing their future successes as a result of attending Penn without undue financial burdens.

Penn’s commitment to all-grant financial aid and need-blind admission means that every Penn student is accepted without regard to a student’s ability to pay the costs of attending. Named endowed scholarships, such as the one Ms. Kiryluk has established, contribute to the University’s ability to honor this commitment.

“Ms. Kiryluk’s generosity is making it possible for promising young people from the state of Pennsylvania, who would otherwise not have the means, to receive not just an education—an incredible gift in and of itself—but an education at the University of Pennsylvania,” said Steven J. Fluharty, dean of Penn Arts & Sciences. “We are grateful to Ms. Kiryluk for her remarkable generosity and delighted we could help honor the memory of her mother, Ann Mae Mankausky Kiryluk, in such a meaningful way.”

The IRS has issued the annual retirement plan contribution limits for 2016. The limit for combined pre-tax and Roth contributions remains unchanged at $18,000 per person. If you are over 50 years old or will turn 50 at any time in 2016, you can make additional catch-up contributions up to $6,000.

Visit the Contributions page at https://www.hr.upenn.edu/myhr/benefits/retirement/
tdr/contributions/ for details or contact the Retirement Call Center at 1-877-PENN-RET (1-877-736-6738) for help determining the right weekly or monthly contribution amount to maximize your savings.

—Division of Human Resources

The Division of Business Services is pleased to announce that Angela Goldston has been named the new director of the PennCard Center. She has served as PennCard’s associate director since 2011. In that role, she handled finance, operations and customer service functions.

Before joining Penn, Ms. Goldston  held several corporate positions focusing on financial analysis. She also has experience in the education sector as both a professional tutor and an instructor.  

She holds a bachelor of business administration from the University of Pittsburgh and completed her graduate work at St. Joseph’s University, where she received her MBA. As director, she will take on the responsibility for managing all aspects of PennCard operations, such as leading the deployment and expansion of the new contactless card technology, adoption and application of the Blackboard Transaction system, marketing of the PennCash debit program and managing Penn’s marketing relationship with PNC Bank. 

She will also manage the day-to-day operations of the PennCard Center on the second floor of the Penn Bookstore. In addition to producing and managing PennCards, the University’s official identification card, the office provides other convenient amenities including notary services, stamps, passport photos and card reader rentals. A representative from PNC Bank is also located in the PennCard Center to help faculty, students and staff with their banking needs.

Arts & Sciences Online Learning offers faculty the opportunity to teach fully online credit-bearing courses. Proposals for credit-bearing summer 2016 online courses are due December 1.

All proposals will be reviewed by Arts & Sciences Online Learning, the director of Penn Summer Programs and the Curriculum Committee.

Faculty with successful proposals may be eligible for a development stipend to support transitioning their course content to the online format, in addition to a stipend for teaching. Additionally, faculty teaching online will receive course design support, digital content production and technical assistance from the Arts & Sciences Online Learning team throughout the development and teaching phases.

Please note that though all proposals will be considered, some proposals will not be accepted for rostering by LPS and not all instructors are eligible for a development stipend.

To begin the process, visit https://www.sas.upenn.edu/onlinelearning/faculty-resources

Basic Plan

This is a summary of the annual report of The University of Pennsylvania Basic Plan (Plan No. 028) sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania, EIN: 23-1352685, for the period January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014. This annual report has been filed with the Employee Benefits Security Administration, as required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).

Basic Financial Statement

Benefits under the plan are provided through unallocated insurance contracts and a trust fund. Plan expenses were $17,700,268. These expenses included $6,544 in administrative expenses and $17,693,724 in benefits paid to participants and beneficiaries. A total of 21,962 persons were participants in or beneficiaries of the plan at the end of the plan year.

The value of plan assets, after subtracting liabilities of the plan, was $687,608,139 as of December 31, 2014, compared to $609,530,638 as of January 1, 2014. During the plan year the plan experienced an increase in its net assets of $78,077,501. This increase includes net unrealized appreciation in the value of plan assets; that is, the difference between the value of the plan’s assets at the end of the plan year and the value of assets at the beginning of the plan year or the cost of assets acquired during the plan year. The plan had total income of $95,777,769, including employer contributions of $47,098,459, employee rollover contributions of $590,039, gains from investments of $48,018,453 and other income of $70,818.

Matching Plan

This is a summary of the annual report of The University of Pennsylvania Matching Plan (Plan No. 001) sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania, EIN: 23-1352685, for the period January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014. This annual report has been filed with the Employee Benefits Security Administration, as required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).

Basic Financial Statement

Benefits under the plan are provided through unallocated insurance contracts and a trust fund. Plan expenses were $180,008,758. These expenses included $64,499 in administrative expenses and $179,944,259 in benefits paid to participants and beneficiaries. A total of 23,982 persons were participants in or beneficiaries of the plan at the end of the plan year.

The value of plan assets, after subtracting liabilities of the plan, was $3,811,200,104 as of December 31, 2014, compared to $3,608,927,955 as of January 1, 2014. During the plan year the plan experienced an increase in its net assets of $202,272,149. This increase includes net unrealized appreciation in the value of plan assets; that is, the difference between the value of the plan’s assets at the end of the plan year and the value of assets at the beginning of the plan year or the cost of assets acquired during the plan year. The plan had total income of $382,280,907, including employer contributions of $57,124,606, employee contributions of $60,445,569, employee rollover contributions of $10,167,618, earnings from investments of $253,809,499 and other income of $733,615.

Supplemental Retirement Annuity Plan

This is a summary of the annual report of The Supplemental Retirement Annuity Plan of the University of Pennsylvania (Plan No. 002) sponsored by the University of Pennsylvania, EIN: 23-1352685, for the period January 1, 2014 through December 31, 2014. This annual report has been filed with the Employee Benefits Security Administration, as required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA).

Basic Financial Statement

Benefits under the plan are provided through unallocated insurance contracts and a trust fund. Plan expenses were $32,635,205. These expenses included $9,749 in administrative expenses and $32,625,456 in benefits paid to participants and beneficiaries. A total of 23,723 persons were participants in or beneficiaries of the plan at the end of the plan year.

The value of plan assets, after subtracting liabilities of the plan, was $900,779,777 as of December 31, 2014, compared to $803,192,948 as of January 1, 2014. During the plan year the plan experienced an increase in its net assets of $97,586,829. This increase includes net unrealized appreciation in the value of plan assets; that is, the difference between the value of the plan’s assets at the end of the plan year and the value of assets at the beginning of the plan year or the cost of assets acquired during the plan year. The plan had total income of $130,222,034 including employee contributions of $42,967,058, employee rollover contributions of $26,535,609, gains from investments of $60,574,563 and other income of $144,804.

Your Rights to Additional Information for Basic, Matching and Supplemental Retirement Annuity Plans

Under ERISA, you have the right to receive a copy of the full annual report, or any part thereof, upon request. The items listed below are included in that report for the Supplemental Retirement Annuity Plan of the University of Pennsylvania:

1. An accountant’s opinion;

2. Financial information;

3. Information on payments to service providers;

4. Assets held for investment;

5. Insurance information; and

6. Information regarding pooled separate

accounts in which the plan participates.

To obtain a copy of the full annual report, or any part thereof, write or call the office of the Plan Administrator, c/o Joanne M. Blythe, Retirement Manager, University of Pennsylvania, 3401 Walnut Street, Suite 527A, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6228, (215) 898-9947. The charge to cover copying costs will be $5 for the full annual report or 25 cents per page for any part thereof.

You also have the right to receive from the Plan Administrator, on request and at no charge, a statement of the assets and liabilities of the plan and accompanying notes, or a statement of income and expenses of the plan and accompanying notes, or both for the Supplemental Retirement Annuity Plan of the University of Pennsylvania. If you request a copy of the full annual report from the Plan Administrator, these two statements and accompanying notes will be included as part of that report. The charge to cover copying costs given above does not include a charge for the copying of these portions of the report because these portions are furnished without charge.

You also have the legally protected right under ERISA to examine the annual reports in the offices of the Employer at the address for the Plan Administrator, above, and at the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington, D.C., or to obtain a copy from the U.S. Department of Labor upon payment of copying costs. Requests to the Department should be addressed to: Public Disclosure Room, Room N-1513, Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210.

—Division of Human Resources

This is a summary of the annual report of the University of Pennsylvania Health and Welfare Plan for Retirees and Disabled Employees (Plan No. 530), sponsored by The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania, EIN 23-1352685 for the period that began on January 1, 2014 and ended on December 31, 2014. The annual report has been filed with the Employee Benefits Security Administration as required under the Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (ERISA). Please note that not all employees are eligible to participate in the Plan. Please consult your Plan materials for specific eligibility information.

Retiree benefits were provided through a combination of self-insured payments from the University’s general assets, payments from a trust fund established to fund retiree benefits and insurance contracts with third party insurance companies.

Medical, Dental and Prescription Drug Benefits Insurance Information

The Plan has contracts with Aetna Health, Inc., Keystone Health Plan East, Independence Blue Cross, Amerihealth and Metropolitan Life Insurance Company to pay medical and dental claims incurred under the terms of the contracts. The total premiums paid for the plan year ending December 31, 2014 were $1,075,191.

Basic Financial Information

The value of Plan assets, after subtracting liabilities of the Plan, was $352,166,486 as of December 31, 2014, compared to $321,585,059 as of January 1, 2014. During the plan year the Plan experienced an increase in its net assets of $30,581,427. This increase includes net unrealized appreciation in the value of Plan assets; that is, the difference between the value of the Plan’s assets at the end of the year and the value of assets at the beginning of the year or the cost of assets acquired during the year. The Plan had total income of $46,737,680 including employee contributions of $5,497,456, employer contributions of $23,074,740 and gains from investments of $18,165,484.

Plan expenses were $16,156,253. These expenses included $1,720,680 in administrative expenses and $14,435,573 in benefits paid to participants and beneficiaries.

Life Insurance Benefits

The Plan has a contract with Aetna Life Insurance Company to pay life insurance claims incurred under the terms of the contract. The total premiums paid under this contract for the plan year ending December 31, 2014 were $454,311.

Your Rights to Additional Information

You have the right to receive a copy of the full annual report, or any part thereof, on request. The items listed below are included in that report:

1. An accountant’s opinion;

2. Financial information;

3. Information on payments to service providers;

4. Assets held for investment; and

5. Insurance information.

To obtain a copy of the full annual report, or any part thereof, write or call the office of the Plan Administrator, c/o Joanne M. Blythe, retirement manager, University of Pennsylvania, 3401 Walnut Street, Suite 527A, Philadelphia, PA 19104-6228, (215) 898-9947. The charge to cover copying costs will be $5 for the full annual report or 25 cents per page for any part thereof.

You also have the right to receive from the Plan Administrator, on request and at no charge, a statement of the assets and liabilities of the Plan and accompanying notes, or a statement of income and expenses of the plan and accompanying notes, or both. If you request a copy of the full annual report from the Plan Administrator, these two statements and accompanying notes will be included as part of that report. The charge to cover copying costs given above does not include a charge for the copying of these portions of the report because these portions are furnished without charge.

You also have the legally protected right under ERISA to examine the annual reports in the offices of the Employer at the address for the Plan Administrator, above, and at the U.S. Department of Labor in Washington, D.C., or to obtain a copy from the U.S. Department of Labor upon payment of copying costs. Requests to the Department should be addressed to: Public Disclosure Room, Room N-1513, Employee Benefits Security Administration, U.S. Department of Labor, 200 Constitution Avenue, N.W., Washington, D.C. 20210.

—Division of Human Resources

Johannes (Hans) Pennings, the Marie and Joseph Melone Professor Emeritus of Management at the Wharton School, died on October 29 after a difficult battle with cancer. He was 74 years old.

Dr. Pennings studied at the University of Utrecht and the University of Leiden in the Netherlands before earning his PhD at the University of Michigan in 1973. He held appointments at Carnegie Mellon University and Columbia University before joining the Wharton faculty as an associate professor in 1983. From 1985 to 1988, he served as the doctoral coordinator for organization and strategy. In 2002, he was appointed to the Marie and Joseph Melone Professorship (Almanac October 29, 2002).

Dr. Pennings was a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences and had recurring affiliations with Erasmus University, Tilburg University, the Stockholm School of Economics, Seoul National University and INSEAD. His early work with collaborators (faculty known as “the Aston group”) on strategic contingency theory, which systematically examined the relationship between the power of organizational subunits and the uncertainty of their environment, was groundbreaking. Subsequently, he engaged in a number of lines of research including the evolution of professional service firms and the trajectory of firms diversifying abroad. In recent years, he explored issues related to entrepreneurship, innovation and organizational learning.

Dr. Pennings served on the editorial boards for Organizational Science, IEEE Proceedings, Academy of Management Review and Journal of High-Technology Management Research, among others. He authored or co-authored eight books and more than 100 articles and book chapters. He retired from Penn in 2010.

Anthony (Tony) Lyle, C’61, a former editor of The Pennsylvania Gazette who worked at Penn for more than three decades, died of a heart attack on October 27 at the age of 79.

Mr. Lyle graduated from the College of Arts & Sciences at Penn in 1961. During his time as an undergraduate, he edited The Daily Pennsylvanian and was a member of the Alpha Chi Rho fraternity. In 1963, he joined Penn’s development office, where he wrote and edited for publications including The Wharton Report and The Wharton MBA, the English department’s Newsletter and alumni publications for the Graduate School of Education and the School of Social Work. From 1966 to 1967, he taught English at the Episcopal Academy in Philadelphia. He returned to Penn as a writer in 1967.

In 1971, Mr. Lyle became editor of The Pennsylvania Gazette (Almanac February 12, 1971). Under his leadership, the magazine won the Robert Sibley Award for “Magazine of the Year,” the nation’s top prize in alumni publishing, in 1981, 1983 (Almanac October 4, 1983), and in 1995. The Gazette was consistently included in the top ten alumni magazines in the annual competition sponsored by the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) and Newsweek. Mr. Lyle retired from Penn in 1995 after 31 years of service, 24 of which were at the Gazette.

A funeral mass will take place today, November 10 at St. Patrick Roman Catholic Church, 242 South 20th Street, at 10:15 a.m., preceded by a viewing at 9 a.m. and followed by burial at noon at Laurel Hill Cemetery.

Mr. Lyle is survived by his sister, Teresa Lyle Kennedy; his niece, Alison Flowers and three great nieces, Katie Flowers, Amber Darnell and Brooke Darnell.

Edward Kehoe, managing supervisor of Penn Parking Services, died on November 1 of lung cancer at the age of 64.

Mr. Kehoe came to Penn in 1995 and was employed until the time of his death, having worked in Parking Services for 10 years. Mr. Kehoe was a Vietnam veteran who retired from the U.S. Air Force. He was a member of Stetser-Lamartine American Legion Post #281 and an avid photographer and woodworker.

Mr. Kehoe is survived by his wife, Denise; three children, Jennifer Giannattasio (Daniel), Laura McCafferty (Chris) and Edward, Jr.; three grandchildren, Alexander, Nicholas and Julia; three sisters, Nancy Kehoe-Trolio, Eileen Thorne and Patricia Gigliotti; one brother, Francis, Jr.; his mother-in-law, Lena Bozzuto; his brother-in-law, Daniel Bozzuto (Dorothy); and many nieces and nephews.

Gifts in Mr. Kehoe’s memory may be made to the LUNGevity Foundation, 6917 Arlington Road, Suite 352, Bethesda, MD 20814 (http://www.LUNGevity.org).

The following agenda is published in accordance with the Faculty Senate Rules. Any member of the standing faculty may attend SEC meetings and observe. Questions may be directed to Patrick Walsh, executive assistant to the Senate Office, either by telephone at (215) 898-6943 or by email at senate@pobox.upenn.edu

Faculty Senate Executive Committee Agenda, Wednesday, November 18, 2015 3-5 p.m.

Room 205, College Hall

1. Approval of the Minutes of October 21, 2015 (1 minute)

2. Chair’s Report (9 minutes)

3. Past-Chair’s Report on Academic Planning and Budget, Capital Council and

Campaign for Community (C4C) (5 minutes)

4. Update from the Office of the President (45 minutes)
        Discussion with President Amy Gutmann

5. 2016 Senate Nominating Committee (15 minutes)

    a. Ballot to elect non-SEC members to the 2016 Senate Nominating Committee (SNC)

    b. Nominations taken from the floor for SEC member to the 2016 SNC

    c. Vote (by voice or count) from those nominated to determine SEC member to the 2016 SNC

6. Ad Hoc Committee on Divestment (10 minutes)

7. New Business (5 minutes)

The Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania held their fall meetings last Thursday and Friday, in advance of Homecoming Weekend and the Alumni Award of Merit Gala. At Friday’s Stated Meeting, Chair David L. Cohen described the committee meetings as active and substantive.

The Trustees passed three memorial resolutions for Trustees who have passed away recently: Carolyn Hoff Lynch (Almanac October 13, 2015); Yotaro (Tony) Kobayashi (Almanac September 22, 2015) and F. Stanton Moyer (Almanac October 27, 2015). They also approved amendments to the Penn Medicine bylaws to modify the financial capital approval process.

Resolutions of appreciation were passed for three Trustees who have served Penn in many capacities for a number of years: Susan F. Danilow, Carol Elizabeth Ware and Ehsan (Nanou) El-Tahry Zayan.

Charles (Chuck) B. Leitner was elected for a second time as a Term Trustee; Scott L. Bok was elected as a Term Trustee and Julie Beren Platt was elected as a Charter Trustee.

Penn President Amy Gutmann presented a resolution of appreciation, which was passed, in recognition of Stephen D. Golding’s vision and leadership as vice president of finance and treasurer, which Dr. Gutmann characterized as ‘careful, understated oversight.’ Mr. Golding has announced his plans to retire by the end of the year.

Dr. Gutmann also forwarded the resolution the Trustees approved to reappoint Denis F. Kinane as the Morton Amsterdam Dean of the School of Dental Medicine for a second term, through June 2021 (Almanac July 14, 2015).

Provost Vincent Price noted that the Campaign for Community (C4C), launched last semester, is continuing to support dialogues that strive to understand and address topics through constructive conversations. He also noted that Penn frequently has interdisciplinary conferences and this week there was one focusing on sustainable urbanization worldwide, co-sponsored by Penn Institute for Urban Research and the Perry World House, even though it is not yet built.

EVP Craig Carnaroli gave the financial report, giving highlights for the three months ended September 30, 2015. He said that Penn’s total net assets were $14.1 billion, an increase of $1.2 billion over the prior September, driven largely  by the integration of Lancaster General Health into the UPHS and strong operating experience. On the Academic side, total contributions totaled $63 million, an increase of $13 million from the prior fiscal year’s first quarter.  The Health System’s operating margin totaled $77 million, $21 million above the budget and $4 million below the prior year-to-date.

Dean Larry Jameson’s Penn Medicine report noted the recently inducted Penn faculty members into the National Academy of Medicine (Almanac October 27, 2015). He also noted that the new Class of 2019 at the Perelman School of Medicine had the highest MCAT scores in the country (38).

The Academic Policy Committee reported that it heard from Vice Provost for Faculty Affairs Anita Allen at its meeting, where she spoke about the newly established Provost’s Arts Advisory Council and how after a three-year Arts and Culture Initiative, the arts are thriving. Dean of Admissions Eric Furda told the Committee that the number of applicants grew from 31,000 to more than 37,000 between 2011 and 2015 and Penn’s alumni interview program is robust, having interviewed nearly all applicants last year.

The Budget & Finance Committee (B&F) reported that they heard from Dr. Jameson how well positioned Penn Medicine is with HUP on the Top Ten Hospitals list and CHOP ranked #1 among pediatric hospitals. Both the Richards and Stemmler buildings are being renovated.

The Facilities Committee heard a presentation from Michael Mills, the architect who will be renovating Hill College House, the 1960 iconic residence hall designed by Eero Saarinen. Dr. Gutmann said that these long-overdue renovations will transform the building inside and out. They also heard about many of Penn’s educational components to the Sustainability Plan.

The B&F Committee presented six resolutions that were pertaining to renovations, restorations and leases: 1) Hill College House renovation for an additional $74.5 million (revised total budget $80.5 million); 2) new 20-year lease for 96,780 square feet of new space in the FMC Tower on the first through fourth floors, currently under construction at 30th and Walnut Streets ($59.7 million inclusive of $18.6 million of capital); 3) expansion of existing lease for UPHS in the Centre Square building at 1500 Market Street for an ambulatory care access center and an integrated call center ($23.4 million); 4) Towne Building first floor HVAC replacement and renovation  ($6.2 million); 5) Franklin Field concrete restoration phase 1 ($6.1 million).

The Student Life Committee focused its meeting on the AAU Campus Climate Survey on Sexual Assault and Sexual Misconduct. Dr. Gutmann said that while the survey’s results were not surprising, they were still troubling. She said there will be more efforts for prevention, education and dealing with the misconduct, which must be brought into the light.

At the October 28 University Council meeting, the Provost’s portion of the State of the University dealt with Mental Health Issues on Campus. Provost Vincent Price set the stage for this presentation (below), noting that these speakers were reporting back to Council on topics discussed by the Task Force on Student Psychological Health and Welfare, whose report was published last February (Almanac February 17, 2015).

The other presentation that was part of the State of the University was given by John Zeller and dealt with the development and alumni relations’ five-year plan, Penn Impact 2020 (Almanac November 3, 2015).

Beth Winkelstein, Vice Provost for Education

Thank you, Provost Price. I had the honor of joining this team in working on the continued attention and efforts around the report of the Task Force and on our continued work to focus on and pay attention to the psychological health and well-being of our campus. As Provost Price already said, the Task Force on Student Psychological Health and Welfare really gave some very careful attention to this and issued their report in February of 2015. What I would like to do is actually to comment first that while I have joined the team, the team is a big one. There has been partnering across colleagues and across campus, and in particular those in VPUL, those in CAPS and those in a new advisory team, which Dr. Alexander will talk a little about. I have the honor of working with Bill and Anita and others within this advisory team and of introducing them and giving you a little more information about the progress towards meeting those recommendations and our look towards the future because, as Provost Price says, simply meeting those recommendations is not enough. This is something that we take seriously and want to continue to push forward.

I am going to introduce Anita Mastroieni, who is the director of the Graduate Student Center. She was consulted often by the Task Force and has been involved in a variety of efforts around campus and with the new student orientation as well as serving as a member of the Jed Advisory Team, which you will hear more about in a few minutes.

Bill Alexander, as many of you know, is the director of CAPS. He was a member of one of the working groups of that Task Force and is chairing Penn’s Jed Advisory Team. Together they will provide you with an update on the progress and the actions that Penn has taken and will present you with some of the ongoing efforts of the advisory team. I am now going to turn it over to Anita, who is going to walk through some of those recommendations and actions.

Anita Mastroieni, Director of the Graduate Student Center and the Family Resource Center

Thank you, Beth. I am happy to talk about these updates on the recommendations of the Task Force. There has been an awful lot of progress, so there is a lot to say. The Task Force’s report and the recommendations were organized into four broad categories: communication and education; centralizing information about mental health resources; engaging faculty, staff, students and families; and finally, optimizing resources for CAPS. I will go through the recommendations in those categories.

Communication and Education

In the category of Communication and Education, the Task Force recommended that the entire University community work to reinforce messaging about the needs for self care and looking out for each other. This fall, those efforts could be seen at Freshman Convocation in the Welcome Back messages that our students received from deans and administrators and in the online graduate student resource guide. This messaging will remain ongoing and we hope that over time this messaging becomes part of the culture on our campus.

The Faculty Council on Access and Academic Support developed a checklist that was distributed to all faculty in the undergraduate schools with suggestions about how to help students thrive as scholars, as well as links to University resources. In addition, CAPS and the Faculty Senate disseminated information about warning signs of distress among students to our faculty and staff. Working with students, the Weingarten Learning Resources Center has begun the Penn Faces resilience project. The broad objective of this project is academic wellness by helping students learn to manage setbacks and to see those setbacks as opportunities for growth and learning. To date, they have shot several videos and they have engaged with a web design company and the public launch for that project will be in mid-January.

One subject found to be in need of greater clarity was leaves of absence. The four undergraduate schools working with the Provost’s Office have better coordinated the communication of their leave policies. With the help of The Daily Pennsylvanian, we are working to de-stigmatize leaves and help students see that sometimes a leave can be a good way to continue your success at Penn. These discussions have now been started with graduate deans in the graduate schools and that work will be ongoing this year.

Centralized Information about Mental Health Resources

As the Provost mentioned, the University’s HELP line was implemented in December. Calls are answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week, by Division of Public Safety professionals who have been trained in mental health resources by CAPS professionals. A wellness web page is in development as well that will complement the HELP line by centralizing information online about our resources. CAPS, along with student collaboration, has developed a wellness app that is currently in beta testing and we invite all students to join in that beta testing. If you are interested, please contact Bill Alexander in CAPS, and he will get you the information about that app. We hope that the app will be launched later this semester.

All entering first-year undergrads took part in Thrive at Penn (TAP), which is an online pre-orientation program that prepares our students to make healthy choices and provides information about the resources available at Penn. There are plans later this year for all undergraduates to complete the program in addition to the freshmen who have already done so, and we are looking to develop a similar program for graduate and professional students next year.

Engaging Faculty, Staff, Students and Families

Some 450 faculty and staff and 580 students have completed the CAPS i-Care training to date. We are really excited about those numbers and we are also excited to tell you that i-Care is continuing, so for faculty, students and staff who have not yet had the opportunity to go through the training, we encourage you to do so. The Faculty Senate has been working with the Provost and Deans to launch a Wellness Ambassadors program, which trains faculty ambassadors in each of the undergraduate schools to serve as liaisons among faculty, CAPS staff and students. The “Penn Benjamins” is a new student-led peer counseling group with extensive training by CAPS staff and we are excited that they are now meeting regularly with students across campus. The Thrive at Penn modules that I described earlier were also made available to the parents of our freshmen so they, too, are familiar with the resources at the University to support their children. As we extend that program to all undergraduates, we will likewise extend it to the parents and families of all of our undergraduates.

Optimizing Resources for CAPS

Under Optimizing Resources for CAPS, all the recommendations regarding CAPS have been implemented. One result is that CAPS has been able to offer initial appointments for non-urgent care within a week of the triage assessment. Three years ago, that time had approached three weeks during peak times of the year. We are happy to report that during the first three months of this fiscal year, CAPS offered direct clinical service to more students than at any other time in its history. Collaboration with Penn behavioral health and schools with expertise in mental health has continued and has continued strong. And finally, CAPS and VPUL continue to work closely with students on the CAPS advisory board and with students on Active Minds, as well as with students, faculty and staff on the advisory team, which Beth referred to and Bill Alexander is now going to tell us much more about.

Bill Alexander, Director of Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS)

Thank you, Anita. Another recommendation of the Task Force was to establish a mental health oversight group with two important functions: firstly, to establish an administrative structure that could review a wide range of mental wellness issues—including policies, procedures, services and campus culture—along with the authority to make or recommend changes in any areas of concern that were identified; secondly, to formalize this structure in such a way that the conversation and the concern about mental wellness on campus would be sustained as a core part of campus life. Simultaneously, Penn engaged in an insightful and collaborative process to become a member of the Jed and Clinton Health Matters Campus Program. Working with the clinical staff of the Jed Foundation, Penn established an Advisory Team to oversee the work of the Campus Program. The establishment of the Advisory Team will not only fulfill the recommendation of the Task Force to have an oversight group, but will ensure the ongoing review of mental health on Penn’s campus for years to come.

Let me tell you a little about the Jed and Clinton Health Matters Campus Program. As many of you know, Jed is a very venerable organization founded on suicide prevention and mental health. Those are the two goals of the Jed Foundation. The Clinton Foundation had an interest in alcohol and prescription drug misuse. In the summer of 2014, they got together and formed this program, which they jointly sponsor, called the Jed and Clinton Health Matters Campus Program. It is a pretty rigorous application. We filled out a long survey and submitted it to the clinical staff of the Jed Foundation. They reviewed it and they gave us very detailed feedback specific to Penn about how we did in many areas, which I am going to tell you about. We were accepted into the Campus Program. It is not only benefiting us internally; we are members of a large national program to which many universities belong—and it forms a relationship between the Advisory Team here at Penn and the Jed Foundation Clinical Staff to oversee this program. It was initiated by the survey, as I said, and reviewed by the staff. The Campus Program is a 4-5 year commitment to work with the Jed clinical staff. There is regular review with the Jed clinical staff. They are amazing consultants. They are made available to the Advisory Team on a daily basis if we want. They are just a phone call away. We have open consultation with them and they come down to see us.

The Campus Program is essentially divided into nine parts. It is referred to as the framework of the Campus Program. I’m going to just list them briefly. Each one is enormous and has lots of detail. Feel free to find me and I will fill you in. You can get the scope just by listening to the broadness of the nine areas. The first area is to review policies, systems and strategic planning as it pertains to mental wellness on your campus. The second is to develop life skills of students, faculty and staff. The third is to foster connectedness, not only between individuals in our community, but also between structures and programs. The fourth is to foster academic performance and how it relates to mental health and mental wellness on our campus. The fifth is to look very directly at student health and wellness, including everything from diet to mental health. The sixth is to have a strong program to identify students at risk, not only at risk for mental health issues, but physical health as well. The seventh is to increase health-seeking behaviors among members of the community and to know where to turn for help for any member of the community. The eighth is to provide mental health and substance abuse disorder services directly. You must have a direct service component. And finally, the ninth is to examine means restriction and environmental safety of your buildings and your campus and how this contributes to the mental wellness of your campus. It is a huge and far-reaching endeavor.

The Advisory Team, co-sponsored by the Vice Provost for Education and the Vice Provost for University Life and chaired by the Director of Counseling and Psychological Services, is made up of 20 members and it is a very transparent process. It is made up of faculty, students and staff, fairly evenly divided, and it reports directly to the Provost. The 20 members come from all over campus and we have already met once this fall. For the first time, we are in the process of taking those nine areas that I described and all the subareas within them and organizing them into some sort of a framework where we can begin to divvy up the work amongst the members and look at it, dig into the weeds and examine where we stand on all the issues within those nine areas. We will probably meet for the next time later this semester to see how we are doing and we hope to invite the Jed clinical team to meet with us personally early in the spring term and just go over their vision of how we are doing so far.

I will comment that the clinical staff of the Jed and Clinton program responded very favorably to our initial survey. Just with the Task Force findings, we are already doing a lot and they were fairly satisfied. We still have a lot of tweaking to do in a lot of areas that we hadn’t even thought of. It is such a huge umbrella program. But I think that we are off to a very good start. The thing that I am excited about personally is that the conversation has begun and that there is a structure in place to guarantee that it will go on for years to come. I think that this is good for Penn. Thank you.

Section IV.3(c) of the Council Bylaws provides that a University Council meeting “shall incorporate an open forum to which all members of the University community are invited and during which any member of the University community can direct questions to the Council.”

All members of the University community are invited to bring issues for discussion to the

University Council Open Forum, Wednesday, December 2, at 4 p.m.

Bodek Lounge, Houston Hall

Individuals who want to be assured of speaking at the University Council meeting must inform the Office of the University Secretary (ucouncil@pobox.upenn.edu) by Monday, November 23. Please indicate the topic you would like to discuss. Those who have not so informed the Office of the University Secretary will be permitted to speak only at the discretion of the Moderator of University Council and in the event that time remains after the scheduled speakers.

Please see the format given (at right). Questions may be directed to the Office of the University Secretary at (215) 898-7005 or ucouncil@pobox.upenn.edu

—Office of the University Secretary

Format for University Council Open Forum, December 2, 2015

The University Council will devote a substantial portion of its December 2, 2015 meeting to a public forum.  The purpose of the Open Forum is to inform Council of issues important to the University’s general welfare and of the range of views held by members of the University. The forum is open to all members of the University community under the conditions set by the Bylaws, following guidelines established by the Steering Committee of Council:

1. Any member of the University community who wishes to do so may attend the Council meeting.  Individuals who want to be assured of speaking at Council, however, must inform the Office of the University Secretary (ucouncil@pobox.upenn.edu) by Monday, November 23, 2015, indicating briefly the subject of their remarks. Those who have not so informed the Office of the University Secretary will be permitted to speak only at the discretion of the Moderator of University Council and in the event that time remains after the scheduled speakers.

2. Speakers should expect to be limited to three minutes with the possibility of additional time in cases where members of Council engage the speakers with follow-up questions or remarks. The Moderator may restrict repetition of views. Speakers are encouraged to provide Council with supporting materials and/or written extensions of their statements before, during or after the Council meeting.

3. Following the deadline for speakers to sign up in the Office of the University Secretary, the Chair of Steering and the Moderator of Council will structure the subject matter themes, speakers and times for the Open Forum session. In the event that there is not enough time available at the meeting to provide for all those who have requested to speak, the two officers may make selections that accommodate the broadest array of issues having important implications for Council’s work and represent the breadth of Council’s constituencies. The resulting order of the Open Forum of University Council will be made available no later than the Tuesday before the meeting, to be published on the Office of the University Secretary website (http://www.upenn.edu/secretary/council/openforum.html) and, if deadline constraints allow, in The Daily Pennsylvanian and Almanac.

4. Speakers’ statements should be framed so as to present policy issues and directed to University Council as a body through the Moderator. The Moderator will have discretion to interrupt statements that are directed against persons and otherwise to maintain the decorum of the meeting, as provided for in the Bylaws. In cases where questions or positions can be appropriately addressed by members of Council, or where a colloquy would seem to be productive given the time constraints of the meeting, the Moderator may recognize members of Council to respond to speakers’ statements, with opportunities for follow-up by the speakers.

5. Should the number of submitted topics of community-wide interest exceed what can be accommodated during a single Open Forum session, discussion will be allowed to continue at the following University Council meeting.

Charles Custis Harrison, C’1862 (1844-1929) was provost of the University of Pennsylvania from 1894 to 1910 and afterwards devoted himself entirely to the Penn Museum, serving as vice-president and president of the Board of Managers until his death in 1929. He was one of the Museum’s most devoted patrons, and the Harrison Rotunda is named in his honor. Julian Russell Story (1857-1919) painted many prominent people and was regarded as a portraitist of genius. His painting of Harrison wearing academic robes (at right) was presented to the Museum by members of his family in 1955. The portrait captures Harrison’s stern yet boyish face.

The original design for the Penn Museum was created by a team of three prominent Philadelphia architectural firms, all of whose principals taught on the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania—Wilson Eyre, Cope & Stewardson and Frank Miles Day & Brother. Only a portion of the original plan for the Museum was built.

The first phase was completed in 1899 with public galleries, the exquisite Widener Lecture Room and a suite of laboratories and offices surrounding an Italian courtyard garden accessed through an Asian-style gate.

The Harrison Rotunda is an architectural wonder. The Guastavino engineering firm reinterpreted vernacular medieval construction methods to achieve the all-masonry rotunda, with upper and lower chambers each surmounted by a monumental self-supporting dome. On the upper level, the interlocking tile dome was topped by a glass lantern. The weight of the 90-foot walls was borne by engaged masonry piers (each side of the open arch). The floor was also 90 feet in diameter, making for harmonious proportions. The opening exhibition featured Asian ceramics in Queen Anne vitrines, with European tapestries and Oriental rugs adorning the walls and floor, all loaned for the occasion. Much of this material had appeared on the art market due to political conditions in China at the time. George Byron Gordon, museum director from 1910–1927, took advantage of the Harrison Hall opening in 1916 to encourage Museum patrons to purchase items for the permanent collections of the University Museum, as it was formally named in 1913.

The lower chamber of the Rotunda consists of an auditorium seating 800 persons. A monumental domed ceiling with a bronze sunburst at its center illuminates the Harrison Auditorium. Two features made it the talk of the town in 1915: it had a system to purify and circulate air, and masonry construction techniques permitted a pillar-free space, offering unobstructed views anywhere within the auditorium. Its small stage, however, precluded grand productions.

The Rotunda, which houses the China and Japan galleries as well as the Harrison Auditorium on the ground floor, was completed in 1915.

 

On Thursday, December 10, from noon-1 p.m. in Bodek Lounge of Houston Hall, a special staff workshop will focus on Recognizing and Responding to Interpersonal Violence on Campus.

This interactive workshop will provide an introduction to the policies and resources on campus related to sexual violence, relationship violence and stalking. Learn about the responsibility of staff members under Title IX and the best practices for how to support someone who experiences interpersonal violence.

Speakers will include:

• Beth Winkelstein, vice provost for education
• Jessica A. Mertz, director of Sexual Violence Prevention
• Patricia A. Brennan, director of special services in Penn’s Division of Public Safety

This event is presented by Penn Professional Staff Assembly (PPSA) & Penn Weekly-Paid Professional Staff Assembly (WPPSA).

Light lunch will be provided; RSVP at http://tinyurl.com/nbyepd2  For information, contact Irene Tan, WPPSA chair-elect, at irenet@seas.upenn.edu

Penn faculty teaching online in diverse modalities will discuss their experiences during the Panel on Teaching and Learning Online on Friday, November 13 from 1-2:30 p.m. in the Class of ’47 Meeting Room in Houston Hall. The panel of five faculty members from four schools, moderated by Peter Decherney from SAS, will discuss their experiences with online and hybrid for-credit classes, massive online open courses (MOOCs) and non-credit executive models, including moving across those models and involvement in all aspects of course planning and design. This event is jointly sponsored by Arts & Sciences Online Learning and the Online Learning Initiative (OLI).

The panel will feature:

Peter Fader, Wharton

Carol Muller, Arts & Sciences

John Puckett, Graduate School of Education

Connie Scanga, Nursing

Peter Struck, Arts & Sciences

Exhibits

16    The Limner; stone lithography by Sinéad Cahill; Brodsky Gallery; reception: November 16, 6 p.m. (Kelly Writers House). Through December.

Films

16    Open Streets Film Screening and Panel; 6 p.m.; rm. B3, Meyerson Hall (Penn IUR).

On Stage

11    Christopher Knowles: The Sundance Kid is Beautiful; multi-media work of opera and sculpture; 6:30 p.m.; ICA; register: http://icaphila.org/ (ICA).

Talks

11    Wölff: Art at Your Fingertips; Greg Bryda, Yale; 12:30 p.m.; Meyerson Conference Center, Van Pelt-Dietrich Library; register: http://pricelab.sas.upenn.edu/ (Price DH Lab).

13    Are the Masses Critical?; Shuhao Fan, PPE and French; noon; rm. 345, Fisher-Bennett Hall (CSCC).

15    Coffee & Conversation: The Everyday Prosthetic; chukwumaa, fine arts; 2 p.m.; ICA (ICA).

17    Continuing Education Series: Ophthalmology; Steve Gross and Elaine Holt, Penn Vet; 6 p.m.; Hill Pavilion; RSVP: (877) 736-6838 (Penn Vet).

Do you know what is required to qualify for purchasing a new home? Prospective homeowners interested in learning more about the intricacies of purchasing a home are encouraged to attend “Finance Your Home.” This informative workshop from Penn Home Ownership Services (PHOS) is ideal for individuals who are considering buying a home during the current market conditions.

“Finance Your Home” will be held on Wednesday, November 18 from noon-1 p.m. at the Division of Public Safety, 4040 Chestnut Street. A valid PennCard is required for admittance. Santander bank, one of PHOS’s preferred lending partners, will be there to address audience questions. For more information or to register for the event, please visit www.upenn.edu/homeownership

The University of Pennsylvania Police Department Community Crime Report

Below are the Crimes Against Persons, Crimes Against Society and Crimes Against Property from the campus report for October 26-November 1, 2015. View prior weeks' reports. —Ed.

This summary is prepared by the Division of Public Safety and includes all criminal incidents reported and made known to the University Police Department between the dates of October 26-November 1, 2015. The University Police actively patrol from Market St to Baltimore and from the Schuylkill River to 43rd St in conjunction with the Philadelphia Police. In this effort to provide you with a thorough and accurate report on public safety concerns, we hope that your increased awareness will lessen the opportunity for crime. For any concerns or suggestions regarding this report, please call the Division of Public Safety at (215) 898-4482.

10/27/15      3:03 PM         420 Guardian Dr       Theft                         Laptops taken from lab

10/27/15      5:36 PM         3601 Locust Walk     Theft                         Wallet taken

10/28/15      8:02 AM         3400 Spruce St         Other Offense           Unauthorized male in building/Arrest

10/28/15      9:43 AM         140 S 36th St            Theft                          Wallet taken

10/28/15      10:33 AM       3400 Spruce St         Theft                         Wallet taken from office

10/28/15      5:51 PM         3700 Walnut St         Robbery                    Unknown males took complainant’s phone

10/29/15      11:08 AM       3417 Spruce St         Theft                          Wallet taken from locker

10/29/15      8:02 AM         4214 Spruce St         Other Offense            Male wanted on warrant/Arrest

10/29/15      6:02 PM         3600 Chestnut St      Fraud                         Unauthorized use of credit card

10/29/15      7:50 PM         4300 Chestnut St      Disorderly Conduct   Male cited for disorderly conduct

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                 Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                 Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                 Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                 Citation issued for underage drinking

10/29/15      10:30 PM       4059 Spruce St         Liquor Law                 Citation issued for underage drinking

10/30/15      1:16 PM         34 Convention Ave   Traffic                          Driver wanted on warrant/Arrest

10/30/15      1:33 PM         4021 Walnut St         Fraud                          Unauthorized charges made on card

10/30/15      4:15 PM         4214 Spruce St         Theft                           Package taken from porch

10/30/15      5:12 PM         4000 Market St         Robbery                     USC taken point of gun

10/31/15      2:03 PM         3300 Chestnut St      DUI                            Intoxicated driver arrested

10/31/15      11:00 PM       4000 Walnut St         Liquor Law                 Male cited for underage dinking

10/31/15      11:00 PM       4000 Walnut St         Liquor Law                 Male cited for underage dinking

11/01/15      3:04 AM         3400 Spruce St         Theft                          Handbag taken

11/01/15      11:23 AM       3600 Sansom St        Theft                        iPhone and wallet taken

11/01/15      11:25 PM       3400 Sansom St        Auto theft                 Vehicle taken

18th District Report

Below are the Crimes Against Persons from the 18th District: 6 incidents (4 robberies and 2 assaults) were reported between October 26-November 1, 2015 by the 18th District covering the Schuylkill River to 49th Street & Market Street to Woodland Avenue

10/26/15    3:22 PM      4806 Market St        Robbery

10/28/15    10:04 PM    3700 Locust Walk    Robbery

10/30/15    5:13 PM      4000 Market St        Robbery

10/31/15    3:24 AM      4101 Chestnut St    Assault

11/01/15    2:05 AM      4601 Walnut St        Robbery

11/01/15    4:16 PM      15 S 33rd St             Assault

World Travel: Two round-trip tickets for anywhere in the 48 contiguous states (valued at $1,000)—Yolanda Lee, CPUP

Penn’s Way 2016 Raffle Prizes Week 6 (11/17 drawing)

Penne Restaurant & Wine Bar: $75 gift certificate

Morris Arboretum: Family membership

National Constitution Center: Four admissions

Parc Restaurant & Bistro: Brunch for two

SSM Group: Padfolio w/ $25 restaurant gift card

QVC: Studio tour for six

Philip Rosenau Company: $50 Barnes & Noble gift card

YouDecide: BJ’s one-year membership

Philadelphia Zoo: Four passes

Q: What contribution methods are available using the online pledge form?

A: Employees may contribute via payroll deduction, cash, check or credit card using the online pledge form. Please follow the instructions on the online confirmation page to ensure all contributions are properly processed.

Visit the Penn’s Way website for more information about what a gift can provide, pledge forms, a payroll deduction guide, an agency list and more frequently asked questions & answers: http://www.upenn.edu/pennsway/