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Almanac September 13, 1983

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Almanac September 13, 1983 Tuesday. September 13, 1983 Published by the University of Pennsylvania Volume 30, Number 3 In the Works: A Plan to Keep a Penn Education Affordable For parents whojoke (but don't laugh) that pointed out, but "for Ph.D. students we are tuition costs more than their houses did, the working on other steps to meet their needs." University has come up with a financing plan Ph.D. support is high on the priority list that closely resembles home mortgaging. already, the Provost said, and "solving the Its earmarks are a guarantee against tuition financing problems for two out ofthree catego- increases, fixed or variable interest rates, and ries can only helpaswe turnto graduatefellow- tax deductibility of the interest. ship concerns." Any new measures must take The "Penn Plan" unveiled Friday to the account of the fact that flexible progress Trustees Executive Board has been two years in toward graduate degrees prevents setting a development, starting with three goals: to limit total guaranteed price and predictable pay- student indebtedness after graduation: to help ment schedule that are the key to the Penn families plan financing (in ways more tax- Plan. advantageous thantakingloans in the student's The Plan was presented Friday by Dr. name, for example): and protecting Penn's Robert Zemsky, the former historian turned "need blind" admissions policy for the rest of analyst of college and university planning and the century. finance. Now a professor at GSE and director As trustees raised and debated safeguards to ofthe University' Higher Education Financial a plan in which Penn would in effect become Research Institute, he headed the team work- "banker" to families, Provost Thomas Ehrlich ing with deans, financial administrators and said "the real nightmare would be the idea that others. something like this would not get done." "The four options are one for parents who The reference was to loss of quality and have saved tuition money and want to besure it under that leaves will cover allfour two for those who also diversity present public policy years: Option Two gives the same guarantee, but students ofmiddle-income families stranded. want a but need to finance the guaranteed price allows for down payment (one full year's tui- The Plan is believed to be the first in the after a down and one for payments payment: tion and fee) with a ten-year installment pay- nation torelieve middle-income parents-those aided students whose main need for relief is a back at a guaranteed interest rate. schedule of whose cash flow makes pay-as-you-go a hard- payback more flexible than that of Option Three is the same as Option Two, but loans ship but whose annual income is too high to any public agency that may make up part with variable payback schedules, of their Dr. arranged qualify for public-agency loans and direct package," Zemsky summed up separately with each family. after the to trustees. grants. briefing Option Four, for aided undergraduates would be only, Its four options work for both undergradu- Option One chosen by parents spreads any parental contribution over which who the full tuition. Penn would eight ate and professional-school enrollment, prepay guar- years instead of four: and by channeling pres- Provost Ehrlich anteea set at the current rate. have set courses to degree, price entryyear's ent loan funds into the Penn agency acting as banker, it allows for flexible payback sche- dules. In terms of at'ailahi/iir ofloans, it could at times make a difference in stability ofenrol- lment from Thefourfaculty members at low-income families as public poli- cies shift. left now have named "This professorships, and the one is by no means a substitute for the below has one named for needed loan and direct grant funds of local, him. Their stories are on state and federal agencies." Dr. Zemsky said. "The that pages 4-5. push President Hackney started two years ago with college presidents in the Dela- ware Valley area [protesting student aid cut- backs in Washington] has to go on, and so do Continued nextpage INSIDE' " Trustee Actions, Reports, p.2 " Of Record: Affirmative Action, p.2 " Regulations: Research Faculty Track, p.3 " Chairs, Changes & JOINING IN, pp. 4-5 'We Sing Amid Our Uncertainty, p.6 " Faculty/Staff as Freshmen, p.7 " Guides to Settling in, p.8 Penn Planfrom page 1 tax interest may be ofmuch greater value to the Cash Flow: Up as a whole ifthe are in a other efforts of this university and of higher family parents higher In Chairman Miller and President income bracket. Since the loan reports by education in general to make it possible for they co-sign the Executive Committee atthe can take in the tax relief. Hackney, Sep- students at all income levels toenroll andftnish they part tember 9 news in Penn's back- "Some of the incentives that make us strain meeting, good college." he added. "Otherwise we will lose a to-school financial was the over the short run to a house-because it's picture higher- generation-perhaps more than one." buy Commonwealth contribution Meantime, the trustees will be to off in the run-are built into than-budgeted University going pay long at 2 but granted at 3.6; see asked to act in December on a the Plan. (expected percent setting up table) and a surge in cash receipts through wholly-owned subsidiary-tentatively known "Communicating that approach to college the notable ones Mr. Miller tuition-in effect students and gifts. Among as SFAA, for Student Financial Assistance reeducating out a G.E. toward an NMR (be- their families to a new of a singled gift Agency-and establish a line of credit pro- way financing-is low), two Robert Wood Johnson awards to at $55 million or more. The major job." he added. Admissions. Financial jected Agency Nursing, and the late HUP benefactor Thomas would both receive One Aid and Communications staffat the Univer- funds-Option pre- McCabe's bequest adding $800,000 to a trust outside loans and and future sity were brought into the picture early on to payments, grants, he set up some years ago. paybacks under Options Two, Three and test its "marketability" and help develop ways Four-and disburse funds to the Universityfor to explain it. Actions: A Magnet... Some People tuition and fees. The projection is that Penn will launch the Two of the Executive Board's actions add Atthe meeting.Trustee Margaret Mainwar- four options. with next year's entering class. resources in medicine-one the Eisman Pro- cautioned the to alumni two have been ing planners guard Already mailing pieces de- fessorship (page 5) and the other the çonstruc- relations from any perception ofthe University signed-a brief explanation for first-inquiries tion of a $3.3 million Nuclear Magnetic Reso- as a collection agency. "The wholly-owned and a more detailed one for those who apply. A nance (NMR) facility at Silverstein. General whichCoopersand Lybrand recommended third stage, personal counseling, will be deve- Electric has given $1.2 million toward the cost subin their independent-sidiary,analysis ofour plan early loped for those who decide on Penn. of the magnet itself, and the Department of this year, should help that," Dr. Zemsky said. The new mailing pieces are designed as com- Radiology's educational and development "We might really call this a financing assis- panions to the Communications Office's new fund will take up the rest of the magnet's cost tance plan rather than a financial assistance," package of admissions and orientation mate- plus contruction to house it. he explained. "But there can be some real dol- rial (page I). highly praised at the Executive In faculty appointments and promotions, larsavings for families under Options Two and Board meeting for their design and content. Provost Ehrlich identified six tenure-bearing Three-especially for the many parents who And, said Trustees Chairman Paul F. Miller. actions-for FAS's Dr. Alan J. Auerbach in now help their children with payback aftergrad- "After debating all this time whether to call economics, Dr. Paul M. Chaikin in physics uation but cannot realize tax benefits on the ourselves Penn or Pennsylvania, thequestion is and Dr. Paul Guyer in philosophy; for Medi- note in the graduate's name. The deduction of settled: We're Penn!" cine's Dr. Michael J. O'Connor in neurosurgery and Dr. Alan J. Wein in urology; and for Nursing's Dr. Ann Burgess (see page Getting on with Affirmative Action 4). Remaining actions by the trustees were: The acceptance of Penn's Affirmative Action Plan prompts the publication below of the Universi- " Confirmation of Helen O'Bannon as Senior Vice ty's official statement on equal opportunity, which appears in the Handbook for Faculty and Ad- President. ministration and in other literature used to recruit and orient students, faculty and staff. It should " Change of Dr. Ross Webber's title to Vice Presi- accompany the statement on Conduct and Misconduct published by the President and Provost (Al- dent for Development and University (from Alumni) manac September 6) when that document is used for discussion. Relations. "The long review conducted by the Department of Labor has resolved those few differences of *Designation of F. Stanton Moyer as University format and approach that delayed formal acceptance," Affirmative Action Director Davida Hopkins representative to the Atwater Kent Museum Ward. Ramey said, "but did not delay the University in implementing the spirit of the plan. In some of " Appointments to several Boards of Overseers and our highest-ranking appointments we have certainly made steady and demonstrable progress in di- to the Athletic Advisory Board (to be published).
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