The University of Pennsylvania announced their new Chair of the Board of Trustees nearly a month after their previous Chair resigned amid controversy over the school's handling of reported antisemitism on campus.
Ramanan Raghavendran is Penn's new Chair of the Board of Trustees effective immediately, the university announced on Friday.
Raghavendran succeeds Scott L. Bok who served as Penn's Board of Trustees Chair from July 2021 to Dec. 9, 2023.
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"Ramanan Raghavendran is an inspired and inspiring choice for Trustee Board Chair,” Penn Interim President J. Larry Jameson said. “With three Penn degrees, devoted University engagement in multiple leadership roles, and professional experience in a rapidly changing business environment, he is poised to partner with other distinguished Trustees to support our University’s important and impactful missions. Ramanan has a history of bridging distance to make a lasting difference, whether between places and people or fields of knowledge.”
Raghavendran is a Penn alumnus and managing partner and co-founder of Amasia, a global venture capital firm that focuses on climate change and sustainability.
Raghavendran has also held investing roles at General Atlantic, Insight Partners, TH Lee Putnam Ventures and Kubera Partners. He also serves on the board of SF Goodwill, the Advisory Council of the Natural Project at Stanford University and is a member of the Advisory Board for the Center for the Advanced Study of India and the Global Coordinator of the Penn Alumni Ambassador Program.
Raghavendran became a University Trustee in 2014 and was appointed Chair of the Local, National, and Global Engagement Committee in 2020 before joining the Executive Committee in 2022. He has also served on the School of Arts and Sciences Board of Advisors since 2012 before becoming Chair in 2022.
Julie Beren Platt, who served as Interim Chair following Bok's resignation in December, is returning to her role as Vice Chair.
“Having worked closely with Ramanan as a member of the Executive Committee, I have seen first-hand his passion for and commitment to Penn. He is someone who listens with intention and invests deeply in relationships,” Platt said. “I am delighted that he will serve as the next Chair of Penn’s Board of Trustees, and I look forward to working alongside him as Vice Chair.”
Bok resigned as Chair while Liz Magill resigned as Penn's president back on Dec. 9, 2023.
The resignations occurred several days after Magill testified on Capitol Hill during a hearing focused on antisemitism at U.S. universities. Massachusetts Institute of Technology President Dr. Sally Kornbluth and former Harvard University President Dr. Claudine Gay also testified.
The investigation is part of the Biden administration’s effort to take “aggressive action” against discrimination. Schools found to have violated civil rights law can face penalties up to a total loss of federal money, although the vast majority of cases end in voluntary settlements.
Penn was accused of antisemitism in federal complaints filed in November by the Brandeis Center, a Jewish legal advocacy group.
In a Nov. 9, 2023, letter to the Education Department, the center said Penn professors have made antisemitic statements in the classroom and on social media. It also said many Jewish students are afraid to be on campus during pro-Palestinian rallies, and that the university has done little to support them.
During a hearing on Capitol Hill on Dec. 5, 2023, Magill was questioned about several issues, including the comments from the Penn professors, a fall event that featured speakers that drew concerns from the Anti-Defamation League (ADL) and a pro-Palestinian rally on campus that sparked accusations of antisemitism.
An exchange towards the end of the hearing between Magill and Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) also sparked controversy. Stefanik repeatedly asked Magill if calling for the genocide of Jews violated Penn’s code of conduct to which Magill was unable to give a direct “yes or no” answer.
During an appearance at a Philadelphia Jewish restaurant that was protested by a pro-Palestinian group, Gov. Josh Shapiro criticized Magill’s exchange with Stefanik, calling it a “failure of leadership.”
Two Penn students also recently filed a lawsuit against the school, claiming the university had become an "incubation lab" for antisemitism.
Prior to Magill's resignation, Ross Stevens -- a 1991 Wharton graduate and CEO of the New York-based financial services firm Stone Ridge Asset Management -- threatened to withdraw his $100 million donation from Penn's business school unless there was a change of leadership.
Stevens was one of multiple Penn donors and alumni who were critical of the university’s response to antisemitic acts on campus — including a swastika drawn inside the design school building and vandalism at the Hillel chapter there — that happened before Hamas’ attack on Israel on Oct. 7, 2023.
A protest was also held at Penn calling for Magill's resignation while a truck with the message, "Fire Liz," was spotted driving around campus in December.
