Riepe to step down as trustee chairman

The University Board of Trustees nominated 1981 Law school alumnus David Cohen to replace James Riepe as chairman of the board beginning in Nov. 2009.

Riepe, senior advisor and retired vice chairman of investment firm the T. Rowe Price Group, has been chairman of the board since 1999. He said of his decision that it is "an appropriate time to have some new leadership."

Penn President Amy Gutmann said the 10 years he has served is a long time to serve in a "very taxing job."

But Riepe said he will wait a year to step down in order to avoid a change in leadership during challenging economic times.

Both Gutmann and Riepe expressed their confidence in Cohen as an excellent choice for the new chairman of the board. He has "an infinite capacity to get things done quickly," Gutmann said, adding that she is "looking forward to having him as a partner in the Penn enterprise."

As a member of the board of trustees for the past seven years and founding chairman of the Board and Executive Committee of Penn Medicine, Cohen said he has the background to "work collaboratively" with members of the Med and University boards, as well as with Gutmann and her senior staff.

He added that he is excited to work with his fellow trustees "to pursue our mutual passion for Penn and help make it the premier institution of higher learning in America."

Cohen is the executive vice president of Comcast Corporation, the nation's largest cable provider. He also currently serves as chairman of the Board of Directors of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce and is a member of the Chamber's CEO Council for Growth.

For five years, he served as Chief of Staff to Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell when he was the mayor of Philadelphia.

Cohen will be Penn's first Philadelphia-based trustee chairman since 1986.

His strong ties to the city are consistent with Penn's commitment to the community, and having a chairman from Philadelphia will be "very good" for the board, Riepe said.

"I feel honored, exhilarated and scared to death," Cohen said of his nomination, adding that he is "still trying to assign the appropriate percentages to each emotion."

Both Riepe and Cohen said they anticipate a smooth transition between chairmen - especially because Cohen has a year to prepare for his new position.

According to Gutmann, Riepe has done a "truly transformational job as chairman of the board."

In addition to his support of Penn's new financial aid policy and the Penn Compact, he has personally given money for graduate and undergraduate student aid as well as endowed funds for the Riepe College House, she said.

Riepe said he plans to remain on the Board of Trustees and the board's Executive Committee.

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