Funderberg Center to reopen next month

Over 1.7 million people visit the University each year, and now they will need to stop at only one place for information on everything from the Annenberg Center to the Philadelphia Zoo. According to Lynn Oliver, the center's acting director, the facility will centralize information on almost every aspect of the University, including undergraduate and graduate schools, the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, and the Annenberg Center. She added that the center will also offer information about Philadelphia attractions, including the Philadelphia Museum of Art, the Philadelphia Zoo, Fairmount Park, and information on nearby hotels. Oliver said that she hopes the center will become a "hub of the city," providing a "one-stop shop" for all visitors. "Someone who's down at this end of campus who wants to know about HUP or Annenberg or whatever won't have to go all the way across campus to find out now," she said. At the time of the center's closing, Vice President for Development Rick Nahm said the center was struggling because of a lack of planning. Senior Vice President Marna Whittington said yesterday that she was pleased the center could reopen in time for Peak Week. "It's great that the University has information available in time for the 250th," Whittington said. "It's ideally situated [and] it's ideally timed". Whittington said planners hope to expand the center to include information for students and eventually to sell tickets for concerts and cultural events. "We're hoping to open it more and more to the campus," the senior vice president said. "We want to involve the whole communnity."

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