Protecting perceptions

University President Judith Rodin is a woman with a lot on her plate. She leads one of the nation's elite universities. She serves as a director on the boards of several leading corporations. And throughout her long academic career, she has applied her scientific knowledge as an advisor to mayors and even a president. This week's announcement, then -- that Rodin will be the first chair of the city's New Economy Development Alliance -- should come as no surprise to anyone used to her very public leadership persona. As chairwoman of the Alliance, Rodin will be charged with organizing efforts to bring high-tech businesses to Philadelphia -- a city typically shunned by "New Economy" ventures for its high taxes and quality of life issues. Such an effort naturally serves to benefit both the city and the University, which has made tremendous efforts in recent years to develop its prominence in the sciences. The Alliance's work may further find a home here in University City, where the proximity of Penn, Drexel and the University City Science Center make the neighborhood an ideal center for any high-tech venture. At first glance, those circumstances would seem to make Rodin's work on the new Alliance a potential boon for Penn and the city. Ironically, though, it's the University's proximity to the work of the Alliance that may threaten her involvement in it. Often, local perceptions of Penn and its leaders -- including Rodin -- are skewed by the University's enormous size and the influence that it often exerts in city affairs. Some officials have already suggested that the new body should be monitored closely by other city leaders, to ensure that its work does not evolve to suit only the University's needs. Rodin's role, therefore, should be to move the City of Philadelphia forward without pushing the Penn agenda in a manner that antagonizes our neighbors in the region. While the University has tremendous resources to provide -- and even more to gain -- through this new body, any other kind of leadership would likely be perceived as nothing more than self-interest. And that perception will do a lot more than ruin Rodin's tenure with the Alliance. It could potentially ruin Philadelphia's chances to become the next high-tech center.

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