Ceremony>
Ceremony Remarks
- Invocation: Rev. William C. Gipson, University
Chaplain
- Welcome: James S. Riepe, Chair, Board of
Trustees
- Greetings: Charles W. Mooney, Chair, Faculty
Senate
- Jason A. Levine, Chair, Undergraduate Assembly
- Simi R. Wilhelm, Chair, Graduate and Professional
Student Assembly
- Rodney V. Robinson, Chair, Penn Professional
Staff Assembly
- Sylvie M. Beauvais, Chair, Weekly-Paid
Professional Staff Assembly
- James Riepe, Chair, Board of Trustees
- Paul C. Williams, President, Penn Alumni
- Edward G. Rendell, Governor, Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania
- Frank H.T. Rhodes, President, American Philosophical
Society
- Shirley M. Tilghman, President, Princeton
University
- Neil L. Rudenstine, President Emeritus,
Harvard University
- Investiture of the President: James
Riepe, Chair, Board of Trustees
Invocation
Rev. William C. Gipson
University Chaplain
Sacred Fire, Revelation Light, Fount of Wisdom, Sojourner
Spirit Companion of the Despairing Disinherited of the Earth—All Gracious
God,
On this Inauguration Day for Penn's distinguished eighth President,
Dr. Amy Gutmann, we celebrate Penn—for the boldness of its academic
adventures, its electric intellectual inquiry, it's faithfulness to committed
citizenship in West Philadelphia, the City, the Commonwealth, the nation
and the global marketplace of ideas and human possibilities.
So here and now we re-commit ourselves to the best of Penn.
We eagerly anticipate the elegant, energetic, enthusiastic, and excellent
leadership of a President already guiding us with infectious joy and a judicious
vision for the next chapter in Penn's storied history.
We ask your blessings on this august occasion and on all who
are gathered here in celebration, solidarity, and great expectation.
In Your Name we pray...Amen.
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Welcome
James S. Riepe
Chair, Board of Trustees
Distinguished presidents, delegates, honorable governor of
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Trustees of the University, esteemed faculty,
students, alumni, and revered guests, it is my great honor to welcome you
to the inauguration of Amy Gutmann as the eighth president and twenty-fourth
chief executive officer of the University of Pennsylvania.
This is an historic occasion for this august institution—America's
first university.
The presence here today not only of our own eminent faculty—but
also of representatives of colleges, universities, and learned societies
from around the country and throughout the world—attests to Penn's
prominent place in the ambitious endeavor of higher education.
An inauguration is heavy with the weight of all these traditions,
but it also represents a new beginning.
On the one hand, the solemnity of these proceedings reflects
not just the traditions of presidential inauguration—it also symbolizes
the awesome responsibilities that Penn's president will bear for the well-being
of this community of scholars and learners and for its contributions to
society-at-large.
On the other hand, the joyfulness of these proceedings symbolizes
our enduring love for this educational community—what my predecessor
at this podium ten years ago called "this idea called Penn."
On behalf of the many diverse members of our community and
participants in this "idea," I thank you for being present here today to
share our great pride in our University, our boundless vision of its future,
and our reverence for and our joy at this event in our history.
I am honored to present to you the following speakers who
bring greetings to President Gutmann from their respective constituencies:
Charles W. Mooney, on behalf of the faculty; Jason Levine and Simi Wilhelm,
on behalf of the students; Rodney Robinson and Sylvie Beauvais on behalf
of the administration and staff.
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Greetings
Charles W. Mooney
Chair, Faculty Senate
Greetings from the faculty of the University of Pennsylvania.
We are delighted to welcome Dr. Amy Gutmann to Penn.
The selection of Dr. Gutmann as president fulfilled our greatest
hopes. She brings to Penn impeccable credentials as a preeminent scholar
and outstanding academic leader. And she has the vision and energy to lead
us forward.
The past decade has witnessed enormous successes for the Penn
community—our whole community—including our University City
neighbors. We look to the future with unflagging hope for continued success.
But hope alone will not suffice. Treading water will move us nowhere, even
backward.
Not to worry. Dr. Gutmann has challenged us to step up the
pace. She has exhorted us to pursue our core missions of creating and disseminating
knowledge that will make the world a better place. She has challenged us
to stay the course of pursuing and preserving Penn's unique position
among the world's great research universities. And she has challenged us
to see that Penn plays an important role in fostering social justice and
democratic institutions.
But as we pursue excellence and justice, we must always keep
intellectual freedom ringing within the Penn community. We believe that
vigorous debate and intellectual rigor thrive in an atmosphere of civility
and respect for one another. But as members of the diverse Penn community,
we are entitled to express our views and, yes, even to be wrong.
Consider the following passage taken from Langston Hughes'
poem, Democracy:
Freedom
Is a strong seed
Planted
In a great need.
I live here, too.
I want freedom
Just as you.
Dr. Gutmann, you have challenged us to rise to the challenges
of a diverse democracy. We the Penn faculty accept your challenges. We accept
them gladly. And we especially look forward to meeting them with you
as our colleague. Welcome to Penn.
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Jason A. Levine
Chair, Undergraduate Assembly
On behalf of Penn's undergraduate students, I am honored to
welcome Dr. Amy Gutmann to this great University. As students, we wanted
a President who is renowned not only as a scholar, but as a leader and a
motivator. We found all of this in Dr. Gutmann. She has developed
a powerful vision about the contribution that universities can make to society
and democracy. I have met so many students who already feel a special connection
with Dr. Gutmann through her writings.
As a leader, Dr. Gutmann brings new energy, optimism, and
inspiration to Penn. Her Inaugural theme, Rising to the Challenges of
a Diverse Democracy, recognizes many issues that we face today. In
just the short time she has been here, Dr. Gutmann has motivated students
to take on ambitious intellectual pursuits and serve in the community.
She has already shown her willingness to work with students
and listen to their opinions. Her warm smile encourages all of us
to speak freely. Dr. Gutmann, we undergraduates look forward to working
with you, learning from you, and thriving together. And when we beat Princeton,
perhaps we can coax you into helping us tear down the goalpost. Just kidding.
Dr. Gutmann, the undergraduate community welcomes you wholeheartedly,
and we wish you health and happiness in your new post as president of the
University of Pennsylvania.
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Simi R. Wilhelm
Chair, Graduate and Professional Student Assembly
On behalf of graduate and professional students across the
University of Pennsylvania, I would like to officially extend a collective
and warm welcome to our eighth president, Dr. Amy Gutmann.
As the next generation of scholars and professionals, we need
a president who understands the appropriate marriage of practical and classical
instruction; we need a leader who can champion a vision for common academic
values across the professions and disciplines; we need a colleague who can
relate to the hours we pore over our experiments, case studies and journal
articles; and perhaps most importantly, we need a president who provides
a strong role model both as a scholar and as a professional institutional
leader.
We are celebrating today because in Amy Gutmann, we have just
that president.
Dr. Gutmann has embraced Penn's dual commitment to liberal
and practical education. Her vision for democratic education speaks to all
of us and her distinguished scholarly works inspire us to push the boundaries
of our own disciplines. In addition she exudes boundless energy and excitement
for this institution and our role in its eminent future.
Lucky us and lucky Penn!
Dr. Gutmann, on behalf of over 11,000 graduate students who
represent your new friends and colleagues, I welcome you to your new institutional
and scholarly home. Thank you for your commitment to preparing us for future
positions in which we can honor our Penn legacy and for providing an elegant
example of how to fulfill it.
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Rodney V.
Robinson
Chair, Penn Professional Staff Assembly
On behalf of the administrative and professional staff, I
am honored to officially welcome you, Dr. Gutmann, to our extraordinary
Penn family.
As you have learned from Professor Mooney, Jason and Simi,
our faculty are world renowned, and our students the best and brightest
anywhere. You have also discovered that the men and women who support the
teaching and research mission of this institution daily are truly remarkable
and among the finest in higher education.
Dr. Gutmann, we are grateful that you have taken the time
to get to know us. Encouraged by your vote of confidence in us, we have
rallied to your call to lead Penn to new heights of excellence. You can
count on our expertise and support to make your vision for Penn a reality.
Dr. Gutmann, the administrative and professional staff is ready to roll!
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Sylvie
M. Beauvais
Chair, Weekly-Paid Professional Staff Assembly
The Penn Weekly-Paid Professional Staff joyfully welcomes
the arrival of Dr. Amy Gutmann. The inauguration of a president is an occasion
for the entire Penn community to renew and rededicate ourselves to our common
purpose. Under Amy Gutmann's leadership, all the engaged participants in
university life—the students, the faculty and the staff—can
seek new ways to make this institution a world-class leader in teaching
and research. Dr. Gutmann will lead us in creating a compassionate community
that fully embodies the democratic values of deliberation and respectful
exchanges at every level. The staff embraces President Gutmann, and we are
thrilled that an outstanding scholar of deliberative democracy has been
chosen to shape our campus culture into the 21st century.
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James Riepe
I am honored to present the next speakers:
Paul Williams, on behalf of our 270,000 alumni; and the Governor of the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and a key member of the Penn family, Edward
G. Rendell, and to offer greetings to President Gutmann from their constituencies:
Frank Rhodes, on behalf of learned societies; and Shirley Tilghman and Neil
Rudenstine on behalf of institutions of higher learning.
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Paul C. Williams
President, Penn Alumni
Good morning and greetings to all! It is a glorious, glorious
morning. Obviously I am a contrarian about the weather.
Dr. Gutmann—President Gutmann—it is an honor for
me to welcome you on behalf of the Penn alumni here today, as well as over
270,000 Penn alumni worldwide, who are here in spirit.
This morning Penn alumni enthusiastically join with the entire
University community to express their love of Penn and their shared aspirations
for its future.
All Penn alumni take enormous pride in the University's recent
accomplishments and the momentum and energy that abounds everywhere on campus.
And with great expectations we join you today, President Gutmann, to begin
a new chapter in Penn's history.
Celebrating your inauguration provides a unique moment for
all to reflecton our heritage and the profound contribution Penn has made
to our lives and to the society at large. Today, we reaffirm our most deeply
held values and goals, and then we look boldlywith you to the future.
Penn is a great University, in no small measure because of
the support of innumerable alumni gathered here and across the globe and
faculty and staff who teach and work here.
We appreciate your recognition of the strategic role loyal
Penn alumni may play in the task of bringing Penn to the next levels of
achievement. We are excited by the prospect of working together with you
to enhance the sense of alumni community, to increase the breadth of involvement
and support. We seek to advance the credo of life-long learning and connection
with Penn as our intellectual home. We are inspired by your commitment to
foster mutual respect and civility and to celebrate diversity in every domain
of the University.
While the ambitions and goals we express are perennial—really
the thread of continuity for 270 years of the institution's life—the
force of time and circumstance demands a new articulation—a new vision
to guide us going forward. President Gutmann, thank you for accepting that
mission. Thank you for embracing that pragmatic, inventive spirit that is
so uniquely Penn. Thank you for embracing the Red and Blue. May your leadership
in the coming years prove most fruitful, and for this most important endeavor,
it is my privilege to pledge the support of Penn alumni —all 270,000
of us—and growing. Proudly, we cheer you on!
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Edward G. Rendell
Governor, Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
Good morning everyone. When I applied to the University of
Pennsylvania in 1961, the fact that Penn was located in a large urban center
was not looked at as a plus, it was looked at as a negative. Why do you
want to go there with all the problems of the city? Why don't you want to
go to a pristine atmosphere where you can study and not worry about all
the attendant things that come from urban life in the early '60s?
Well the world has changed and those changes have been reflected
in many places and Philadelphia is one of them, and now it is a tremendous
advantage, in my opinion, to go to college on an urban campus. The urban
centers are truly a laboratory for all the challenges that face our democracy.
Those challenges are great. Perhaps never in our lifetime have many of those
challenges been more acute. Over the last decade Penn had made enormous
progress in helping the City of Philadelphia and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
meet those challenges.
We have seen a level of renewed activitism, renewed cooperation,
and renewed concern about the challenges that exist beyond the walls of
ivy. And when we learned that Dr. Rodin was leaving many of us thought, "Oh
my gosh are we going to go back?" You don't have to spend more than
five minutes with Dr. Gutmann to know we're not going back, we're going
forward at warp speed.
You know I've always been described as someone with boundless
passion and boundless energy and I find that often to be the case, although
I do get tired. And after spending my first substantive meeting with Dr.
Gutmann, I was tired, I was tired. My energy and my passion was out-striped
in a few short moments. But it's wonderful to see that, because if you look
at the resources that we as a city, and we as a state, and we as a nation
have, to meet the difficult challenges it's never been more difficult.
How do we address the rising costs of health care at a time
when people are living longer and longer lives? How do we deal with the
challenges of the new economy which inevitably involves transition, but
these are human beings you are transitioning out? How do we meet the challenges
that technology and science are putting upon us? And when you look at our
resources to meet those challenges, great universities—and I am proud
to say this is among the very greatest—are our strongest assets. But
only if they are led by leaders who have vision, compassion and who care
about making these universities even more drivers of economic progress,
of social progress, and of progress that will restore civility, decency
and quality of life for all of us as Americans. And for this challenge—this
challenge that will culminate I think in many intense and focused ways on
the morning of November 3rd—we couldn't have a better leader for the
University of Pennsylvania.
Dr. Gutmann, congratulations to you and congratulations to
all of us for the great things that this University has accomplished over
the last decade, will continue, grow and will be more of a driving force
in helping us meet those challenges.
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Frank H.T. Rhodes
President, American Philosophical Society
On behalf of the nation's learned societies, I am pleased
to offer congratulations to Amy Gutmann on her inauguration as the University
of Pennsylvania's eighth president, and to commend the University of Pennsylvania
on its choice.
Amy Gutmann is the ideal leader for Penn in the 21st century.
She is a distinguished scholar known the world over for her work in the
fields of political philosophy, ethics and human values. She has been widely
recognized for her research, teaching and writing on ethnic and cultural
pluralism, and I am pleased to note, as the representative of the learned
societies at these festivities, that Amy Gutmann is one of us. She is a
fellow of both the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and the National
Academy of Education. She is also a W.E.B. Du Bois Fellow of the American
Academy of Political and Social Sciences, and president of the American
Society of Political and Legal Philosophy. I take her active involvement
in these scholarly groups as a very good omen for the future of the learned
societies and for the future of Penn.
For more than 250 years, the nation's learned societies and
the nation's universities have been partners in the search for knowledge
and in its dissemination, that is especially true for the University of
Pennsylvania and for the American Philosophical Society, which I have the
privilege to serve as president. Penn and APS both emerged from the fertile
mind of Philadelphia's "first citizen," Benjamin Franklin, the tercentenary
of whose birth Philadelphia will be celebrating in 2006. Both embodied Franklin's
practical, non-sectarian philosophy and his belief that education should
contribute to "the common stock of knowledge" as well as to the cultivation
of the "finer arts." And both benefited from his leadership and direct involvement
over many years. In fact, early in its history, the American Philosophical
Society provided space to the University of Pennsylvania in Philosophical
Hall; today there continues to be mutual dependence between the learned
societies and the major universities of the world.
Here at the University of Pennsylvania, Franklin sowed the
seeds for what has become the basis for a liberal education all across America.
He envisioned a college that would teach "ornamental knowledge" and practical
skills; that would prepare students not just for the clergy, but also for
productive personal and professional lives across a wide spectrum of fields.And
in both the learned society and the University, Franklin helped foster an
international outlook. He himself had lived abroad at several stages of
his life. He was a member of the Royal Society of London and many literary
and scholarly societies on the continent. Several of the early members of
the APS were foreigners, including Lafayette, von Steuben and Kosciusko.
And that spirit of international inclusiveness infused his University, too.
It is wonderful to see at Penn a true commitment to preparing
faculty and students for a world of growing global interdependence. And
to note that the commitment to nurturing a global perspective is poised
to increase dramatically under Amy Gutmann's leadership. Her vision for
Penn, as reflected in this afternoon's symposia, speaks both to the core
values of democratic societies and to the diversity of ways in which they
are expressed around the world.
Quoting Ben Franklin: "either write things worthy of reading
or do things worth the writing." I predict that we can look forward to great
accomplishment in both those sphere from Amy Gutmann. On behalf of the learned
societies, I am privileged to convey congratulations to her and to the University
of Pennsylvania and to wish them both good success.
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Shirley M.
Tilghman
President, Princeton University
It is truly an honor for me to extend to Amy Gutmann the greetings
of her fellow college and university presidents as she formally takes the
helm of the University of Pennsylvania. We are delighted that this venerable
institution, whose founder, Benjamin Franklin, is synonymous with intellectual
curiosity, has had the wisdom to entrust its presidency to a scholar, teacher,
and leader of Amy Gutmann's stature.
Of course, this occasion is also a true test of my character. For
after all, we gather to celebrate Penn's gain at Princeton's expense, a
circumstance that we Tigers try hard to avoid on every other occasion, and
most particularly at the Palestra. To all of us who had the great good fortune
to work with her over the past 28 years, Amy Gutmann will always be a true
daughter of Princeton, even though her colors are now red and blue.
Amy Gutmann's qualities of mind and heart—her sense
of fairness and commitment to excellence—are ideally suited to the
challenges that Penn, and indeed all universities and colleges, will face
in the coming years. Let me highlight just two of these. The future vitality
of this country depends upon the doors of our institutions of learning being
held wide open for every qualified student, irrespective of their ethnic
background or their family's economic circumstances. This country faces
a paradox in education: we have arguably the finest system of higher education
in the world, but we are hampered by a K-12 system that is failing far too
many students, particularly in poor inner city neighborhoods and rural areas.
Attending an institution like the University of Pennsylvania is one of the
few ways in which a student from a disadvantaged background can achieve
social mobility in our democracy—but we know from experience that
such opportunities will not be available unless educational leaders are
committed to the principles of equal opportunity. Amy Gutmann's deep understanding
of this central issue of our time grows out of her lifelong scholarship
on identity and the value of multicultural education.
Universities must also be champions for the free exchange
of ideas and independent inquiry in a democracy. That principle lies at
the very heart of what we mean when we speak of academic freedom. At a time
when our nation struggles to strike the right balance between preserving
the civil rights of the individual and the collective right of the population
to be secure, our colleges and universities need to be places where those
difficult debates, and others like them, can be conducted in a climate of
civility and mutual respect. We must teach a new generation of students
how to take part in civil discourse dispassionately and with due respect
for the facts and the convictions of others. As a brilliant political theorist
and moral philosopher, Amy Gutmann has written compellingly on the subjects
of freedom of association, human rights, and the value of deliberative democracy. As
a powerful teacher, she has led a generation of students to becoming informed
and effective citizens.
If Penn is blessed in its choice of president, Amy Gutmann
is equally fortunate to be joining a University that has long embodied educational
principles that she has studied and articulated, principles that have helped
to define the character of higher education in America since pre-revolutionary
times. She can draw inspiration from Penn's motto: "Leges sine Moribus
vanae"—"laws without morals are useless"—and from the vision
of Penn's extraordinary founder In his Proposals Relating to the
Education of Youth in Pensilvania, published in 1749, Benjamin Franklin
argued that students should be brought to see that "true Merit" consists
of "an Inclination join'd with an Ability to serve Mankind, one's country,
Friends and Family." Penn's commitment to service, to the ethical pursuit
of knowledge, and to an inclusive definition of education, both in terms
of subjects offered and persons taught, will ensure that Amy Gutmann and
the community that welcomes her today will form a strong and fruitful partnership
for many years to come. Penn is a great University, and Amy Gutmann will
give new substance and expression to this greatness. If ever a marriage
were made in heaven, I like to think that this is it.
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Neil L.
Rudenstine
President Emeritus, Harvard University
It is a great pleasure and honor to be here with you, to offer
greetings and congratulations on behalf of higher education in this country
and abroad.
More personally, I am happy to be able to speak at a university
founded during the age of the Enlightment, when Scottish Anglicans, English
Quakers, and American Deists gathered together harmoniously to create this
institution, which began as a fragile charity school, transformed itself
into a burgeoning college, and then dashed ahead outflanking everyone else—to
become, in exactly 39 years, the first seat of higher learning in America
to be called a University.
Because of your Enlightment founders, you chose to cultivate
the liberal arts, the advancement of science, and–most originally—the
beginning of serious study in the major professions (nearly a century before
others followed your lead).
These ambitious commitments involved, from the very start,
an unequivocal dedication to free inquiry, free expression, and the free
publication of a multiplicity of ideas and opinions. Much as you respected
religious conviction, you also made a bold proclamation of non-sectarianism,
and stated that you did not intend to become—like so many other colleges—a
training ground for the ministry.
In charting this course, you may actually have succeeded more
extravagantly than you expected. Before long, there were fours times as
many publishers and printers in Philadelphia, freely circulating disconcerting
ideas, as there were ministers. And your commitment to the arts and sciences
swelled the ranks and quickened the exponential expansion in the number
of learned institutions that made Philadelphia the most intellectually conversable
city in America: institutions that ranged from the Athenaeum and the American
Philosophical Society, to the Academy of Natural Sciences, and an already
stunning Symphony orchestra that consisted, astonishingly, of 120 musicians
who apparently all played simultaneously as well as melodiously.
Because the two universities where I have spent most of the
last half-century were established by unappeasable Puritans, who were inclined
to cast a cold eye on virtually all the fine arts, and certainly on any
potentially wayward philosophical musings; and because every time Princeton
chose a Jonathan Edwards as President, Harvard would call in a cheerless
Cotton Mather; and since the prevailing gloom that shrouded both of these
colleges made conventional run-of-mill Calvinists seem positively effusive,
if not hopelessly frivolous; you can perhaps understand what a revelation
it is for me to stand in the very center of an institution that did not
require a century or two of protracted excruciation in order to emerge into
the bright daylight that Benjamin Franklin and his colleagues obviously
took so easily for granted as part of their natural birthright.
In short, the University of Pennsylvania was able to create—very
swiftly—a new conception of higher education on this continent: one
that was more daring in its intellectual openness and its reach, with an
extensive and adventurous curriculum that was as modern as it was classical;
and an approach to education that was concerned to encourage the practical
application of knowledge for the public good, as well as to pursue the discovery
of significant new knowledge, irrespective of any obvious utility that it
might have. Finally, you were more directly engaged with the creative, cultural
and enterprising life of your city than any other American college or university—something
that enabled both town and gown together to be distinctively and beneficently
urbane, rather than simply urban.
For all that you have accomplished, the rest of us are here,
not only to bring greetings, but also to say how much we are in your debt.
The most recent of all your clairvoyant deeds has been, of
course, the selection of your new president. You have chosen not only
wisely and well, but brilliantly. It would be hard for anyone to match the
extraordinary record of Judith Rodin—but, fortunately, there is no
need for competition in such matters.
In President Amy Gutmann, however, you have found someone
who combines penetrating analytic ability, decisiveness with firmness, and
a capacity for strong and clear-sighted leadership.
You have also chosen a person who motivates and energizes
others, bringing them together in a common enterprise, and doing so with
vivacity, resilience, great human warmth, and deeply humane values.
Ethel Merman was once asked what she thought of another performer,
and promptly replied: "She's OK, if you like talent." Merman, of course,
was not merely talented—she was a show-stopper. Congratulations for
having selected, as your next President, someone who will be a leader for
all of higher education, and who is also—unambiguously—a show-stopper.
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Investiture
of the President
James Riepe
I am very heartened by all of our speakers to know that we
made a good decision. Not having see their remarks, I was a bit worried.
It is a gray day outside but it is very sunny in here.
I could not be more proud on this day when we invest Amy Gutmann
as Penn's eighth president She is the right person, at the right time,
in the right place.
I was fortunate to have led the search committee that selected
Amy for this position, so I am admittedly biased. But I also had 20 fellow
search committee members and a full Board of Trustees, all of whom agreed.
In our view, there could be no one better suited to lead this
institution forward at this moment in its history. No one more attuned to
the ideals of Benjamin Franklin's University.
James Russell Lowell, a well-known American poet and author
in the mid19th century, once wrote that, "it was in making education not
only common to all, but in some sense compulsory on all, that the destiny
of the free republics of America was practically settled."
Amy Gutmann's entire career as a teacher, scholar and moral
and political philosopher has been centered on the critical linkage of education
and democracy that is referenced in Lowell's comment about our American
democracy.
She has thought long and deeply about the ways education can
strengthen the institutions of democracy and now she will lead Penn to a
position of pre-eminence in precisely that vital charge—it is as though
her career was destined to put her in this place, at this time.
Amy accepted our offer of this presidency with such enthusiasm
because she recognizes that there is no college or university in the world
better suited to rise to that ideal—from our first insitutional breath
under Mr. Franklin's guidance, we have sought to link theory and practice.
While many of our peers were veritable cloisters, Penn strove to educate
and train the citizens of a feisty little colony with a will to independence
and greatness.
Thus, it is clear to me that today's marriage of Amy Gutmann
and Penn is a moment that was clearly meant to be.
So it is now my great privilege formally to invest Dr. Amy
Gutmann as the eighth president of the University of Pennsylvania.
By the authority of the Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania,
I hereby invest you as president. This medallion is a symbol of that office.
More than 100 years ago, Pennsylvania Governor Daniel Hartman
Hastings delivered these three keys to Charles Custis Harrison on his induction
as provost of the University.
They, too, are emblems of the "authority with which you are
now invested and the solemn responsibilities laid upon you."
With these keys, symbols of the custodianship of this great
University, I entrust the University of Pennsylvania to your sure leadership.
Congratulations.
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