PHILADELPHIA – The Pew Charitable Trusts have given $2 million to support Presidential Term Professorships at the University of Pennsylvania.  The announcement was made by Penn President Amy Gutmann and Provost Vincent Price.

Presidential Term Professorships are a key feature of Penn’s campus-wide Action Plan for Faculty Diversity and Excellence that Gutmann and Price issued in June. The Presidential Term Professors will be exceptional scholars, of any rank, who contribute to faculty excellence and diversity across the University.

“I am delighted that this most recent grant from The Pew Charitable Trusts will enable Penn to move quickly to appoint Presidential Term Professors who will add further distinction to our faculty,” Gutmann said.  “The Pew Charitable Trusts’ wonderful demonstration of support will significantly strengthen Penn’s efforts to recruit and retain an even more eminent faculty.”

The Office of the Provost will accept nominations for Presidential Term Professorships from any school or department, for appointments at any rank, with funding shared with the school on a matching basis. When a Presidential Term Professor leaves the University or rotates out of the chair, the funding will return to the central pool to be reallocated.

 “We are grateful to The Pew Charitable Trusts for this generous award, which will help us further advance the diversity and scope of our extraordinary faculty,” Price said.  “I look forward to working closely with the leaders of the schools to develop outstanding nominations in the year ahead.” 

 Additional information about The Action Plan for Faculty Diversity and Excellence is at www.upenn.edu/almanac/volumes/v58/n02/diversityplan.html.