Rodin leads campaign to market Phila.

Unlike Boston, New York and Washington, D.C., Philadelphia is not considered a college hot spot by most high school students.

But now, leaders in the Philadelphia region have announced a collaborative endeavor which will seek to promote the city as "One Big Campus," thus attracting potential college students and enticing them to remain in the city to start their careers.

"We've done a great job attracting students to Pennsylvania -- now, it is crucial for us to keep them," Pennsylvania Governor Ed Rendell said.

The collaboration, called Knowledge Industry Partnership, includes leaders of institutions of higher education and civic, governmental and business groups. Yesterday, its members unveiled an initiative that will aggressively market Philadelphia and encourage current and prospective college students to "Arrive, Explore and Achieve" in the city.

"In a real sense, colleges and universities are a knowledge industry," University President Judith Rodin told attendees at the kickoff. "And our goal is to make the greater Philadelphia area the undisputed champion of the knowledge industry."

Some KIP initiatives include sponsoring internship programs with local businesses, marketing college apparel at Philadelphia International Airport and setting up a one-stop travel assistance Web site -- onebigcampus.com.

Rendell, Philadelphia Mayor John Street and former governor Mark Schweiker all expressed their support for KIP.

"We are willing to invest money to make sure Knowledge Industry Partnership works for us," Street said. "We want [college students] to stay right here in the city."

KIP's One Big Campus campaign is a $7.8 million project that will continue over three years.

Rendell hopes that the state will also offer financial support -- he said he is a model of a successful Philadelphia student-turned-resident.

"I arrived, I explored and I eventually achieved," he said.

According to Rodin, the campaign has great potential, and she was delighted to see great enthusiasm at yesterday's unveiling.

"This is a well-financed and well-thought-out initiative, with a lot of buy-in from a lot of people," she said. "If it doesn't succeed, it will be our own fault."

One-third of the campaign will include marketing Philadelphia as One Big Campus, challenging juniors in high school to "Come to Philadelphia and Declare Every Major."

The second theme will seek to inform students in the Philadelphia region about their surroundings in part through a student discount program which will include over 200 merchants and organizations in the area.

And the final aspect of the initiative will "seal the deal with great job opportunities," KIP manager David Thornburgh said.

KIP will sponsor summer internship and events highlighting regional career opportunities.

Organizers of One Big Campus say that this three-pronged initiative is the first of its kind and should reap great benefits.

The event concluded with a pep rally for Philadelphia -- the Villanova University band performed and was followed by cheering students from various schools in the region, all donning T-shirts with their school logo.

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