Timothy Rommen named Penn's inaugural vice provost for the arts

Music and Africana Studies professor Timothy Rommen was named the University's inaugural vice provost for the arts.

Rommen, a Davidson Kennedy Professor in the College of Arts and Sciences, specializes in Caribbean music, and his major research interests include popular music, sacred music, critical theory, ethics, tourism, diaspora, and the intellectual history of ethnomusicology. He has taught at the University since 2002, and will begin his new position on Jan. 1, 2025.

In the announcement of Rommen's appointment, Provost John Jackson Jr. called him the “ideal colleague” for the new position.  

“[Rommen] is widely respected as a collaborative and consultative leader who is strongly committed to scholarship and teaching, to our diverse arts communities on campus and in Philadelphia, and to the goals of In Principle and Practice, the University’s strategic framework, which he played a key role in developing as a member of the Red and Blue Advisory Committee,” Jackson said.

Rommen is currently a board member of the Center for Africana Studies, Greenfield Intercultural Center, Sachs Program for Arts Innovation, and Wolf Humanities Center. He also serves on several University committees, including the Provost’s Arts Advisory Council, Faculty Senate Subcommittee on Research, and University Council Committees on Diversity and Equity and Academic and Related Affairs.

Rommen previously served as the director of both undergraduate and graduate studies in the Department of Music, as well as interim chair of the Department of Africana Studies. 

He said in the announcement that the University is fortunate to have dedicated leaders and practitioners in the arts whose projects are a reminder of the "fundamental value and power of the arts.” 

“The arts afford us spaces to engage with the pressing issues of our time—be it climate change, social justice, or the growing impact of AI—and they do so through expressive practices and methods that often directly challenge us to rethink, reimagine, and reframe our understanding of the issues at hand,” Rommen said.

He also added that the arts also teach “a great deal about what it means to be human.”

Among various edited volumes and articles, Rommen’s published work includes “Funky Nassau: Roots, Routes, and Representation in Bahamian Popular Music” and “Mek Some Noise: Gospel Music and the Ethics of Style in Trinidad.” The latter won the Alan Merriam Prize for the best book of the year in ethnomusicology.

His work has earned him several accolades over the years, including a Guggenheim Fellowship in 2016 and the Ira Abrams Award for Distinguished Teaching in 2023, the highest teaching award in the College.

Rommen previously attended the University of Chicago, Northwestern University, and Trinity International University, where he respectively earned a Ph.D. in ethnomusicology, a master of music in musicology, and a bachelor of arts in music performance/theory. 

In May 2024, Penn announced the positions of Vice Provost for the Arts and the Vice Provost for Climate Science, Policy, and Action to promote the University's strategic framework. The University announced Michael Mann as the inaugural vice provost for climate science, policy, and action earlier this month.

The consultative committee tasked to lead the search for the Vice Provost for the Arts was led by Vice Provost for Faculty Laura Perna. Faculty from the School of Arts and Sciences, Annenberg School for Communication, and Weitzman School of Design joined Perna in reviewing candidates. 

“I am excited to partner with our arts leaders and practitioners, and with the wider Philadelphia arts community, to maximize the impact of their innovative, cross-disciplinary, and experimental work and to imagine new possibilities for the arts here at Penn and beyond,” Rommen said.