Provost Vincent Price today announced that the appointment of Dr. M. Grace Calhoun, Director of Athletics and Recreation at the University of Pennsylvania, has been extended to 2022. 

“This extension,” said Provost Price, “testifies to Grace Calhoun’s extraordinary leadership over the past three years. She is fostering athletic success while reaffirming the vital connections between Penn Athletics and our campus-wide values of community, work-life balance, and overall mental and physical health. Above all, she is committed to making athletics and recreation an ever more integral part of the experience of every Penn student – and of every member of the Penn community. I am confident that, in the years ahead, she will continue to advance Penn’s place at the forefront of university athletics and recreation programs around the world.”  

As Director of Penn Athletics and Recreation since 2014, Calhoun leads the University’s 33 varsity athletics programs, nearly 40 club sports, and broad-based intramural and recreational offerings for students, faculty, and staff.  During her tenure, among many highlights, there have been 13 Ivy League team championships, 106 first-team All-Ivy players, 92 individual NCAA qualifiers, 49 Ivy individual champions, 52 All-Americans, 13 Ivy Players of the Year, 11 Ivy Coaches of the Year, and one Rhodes Scholar.

“I am humbled and honored to continue my service as the Director of Athletics and Recreation at Penn,” Calhoun said. “I want to thank President Gutmann, Provost Price and Executive Vice President Carnaroli for their leadership, friendship and continued support of Penn Athletics and Recreation. Our varsity programs are experiencing competitive success and winning championships, our student-athletes benefit from programming that develops them holistically, and we are engaging the community through spirited intercollegiate events and robust recreational programs, all as a result of our talented and committed students, coaches and staff. I look forward to leading Penn Athletics and Recreation to even higher levels of eminence in the future.”

Penn Athletics has increased competitiveness during Calhoun’s tenure, winning six conference championships to date in 2016-17 (which ranks third all-time in a single year), while still achieving academic distinctions and offering a second-to-none student-athlete experience. In the most recent NCAA Academic Progress Rate (APR) announcement, Penn ranked fourth nationally, with 17 teams rated in the top 10 percent of their sport.

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