Penn installs Gutmann as new president

PHILADELPHIA — In a ceremony marked for its fanfare, Amy Gutmann, who served as Princeton's provost until this summer, was inaugurated Friday as the eighth president of the University of Pennsylvania.

In her inaugural address — delivered to an audience that included dignitaries from several universities, learned societies and government — Gutmann challenged the Penn community to embrace a new plan for the future.

Her three-part proposal, termed the "Penn Compact," seeks to make a Penn education more accessible, to better integrate the various schools at Penn and to have Penn better engage with the outside world, locally and globally.

"It won't be easy. There will be challenges — many — but we will meet them and we will succeed," Gutmann said. "We will rise from excellence to eminence. Together we shall rise as together we serve."

Gutmann's "compact" fit well with the themes of the event, which was titled "Rising to the Challenges of a Diverse Democracy."

Throughout the inauguration ceremonies, speakers repeatedly invoked the ideals of Penn's founder, Benjamin Franklin, speaking about "civic virtue," or as Gutmann phrased it, "How Penn can help us meet our obligation to humanity — and that is our mandate."

"We've never had a Penn alum serve as president [of the United States]," Gutmann noted. "One day I predict Penn will claim . . . a president of the United States — and we will all be proud of her," she added, to thunderous applause.

The new president's speech drew universal praise from observers.

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"Remarkable," Michael Dyson GS '93, a professor of African-American studies at Penn, said of the speech. "The themes she chose to focus on were wisely political."

"Her speech was very effective, very challenging and I was very proud of it," said Harold Shapiro GS '64, who served as Princeton's president from 1988 to 2001.

Though challenging, several observers noted that the issues Gutmann raised were neither new nor controversial.

Using access to higher education — one of Gutmann's top priorities — as an example, Shapiro said, "We all, including Princeton, have to do better. The biggest challenge is entrenched success. Everything we can do can be done better, and that's what I heard today."

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One couldn't help but notice the smiles on attendees' faces, especially those of the large contingent of Princeton faculty, staff and administrators present for their former friend and colleague's installation.

"Just a great day, man," Cornel West GS '80 said. "Great day for a great leader and my sister. She's a great human being."

For Abigail Gutmann Doyle, it was just mom's big day. "I'm very excited. It's a wonderful day," said the Harvard Medical School student.

Tilghman and Gutmann

Gutmann's move to Penn may change the dynamic of the relationship between it and Princeton. Before her move to Philadelphia, Gutmann served as President Tilghman's top deputy for two years.

In her speech to the assembled dignitaries, Tilghman noted, "We gather to celebrate Penn's gain at Princeton's expense" — a comment that drew universal applause. "This is a circumstance we tigers tried to avoid," she added to a round of laughter.

"It's wonderful to have [a relationship with] an Ivy-League colleague that includes friendship," Tilghman noted in an interview after the ceremony, adding that further collaboration between Princeton and Penn was "almost inevitable."

A stronger relationship between the two schools "makes sense," Tilghman said. Penn's experience in graduate professional schools and Princeton's unique commitment to undergraduate teaching means each institution has much to offer the other, she added.

After having their photograph taken, Gutmann and Tilghman embraced and bid each other farewell.

"How about dinner?" Gutmann asked. "My treat, this time."