Penn IUR Launches Fellows in Urban Leadership Program

Philadelphia, PA—The Penn Institute for Urban Research (Penn IUR) is pleased to announce the launch of the Penn IUR Fellows in Urban Leadership Program. The program will provide a competitively selected cohort of outstanding Penn undergraduates with the opportunity to engage with and learn from high-level local and regional urban leaders drawn from government, business, and civil society. According to Susan Wachter, Penn IUR co-director, “the expectation is that the program will encourage Penn students to be leaders.”

“Our cities need the best and brightest leaders— both in the public and private sectors,” said Penn IUR Co-Director Eugenie Birch. “The Fellows in Urban Leadership program offers undergraduates a unique chance to see and hear what it takes to be an urban leader.”

Fellows will meet, engage with, and make lasting connections with high-level urban leaders from the public, private and civil society sectors in Philadelphia and other metropolitan areas, thus providing them with a window into the interplay of these groups in the stewardship of today’s cities and urban communities.

“As a long-time urbanist, I appreciate Penn IUR’s work engaging our faculty and students interested in urban-focused research and practice,” said Provost Wendell Pritchett. “I am excited that this new Undergraduate Fellows program will offer students a unique opportunity to study urban leadership and to learn, first-hand, what it takes to build inclusive and sustainable cities now and in the future.”

The Penn IUR Fellows in Urban Leadership will attend monthly meetings from September to May beginning with an orientation session led by the Penn IUR co-directors and members of the Penn IUR Advisory Board. Following the orientation, they will participate in seven off-the-record meetings with individual leaders drawn from the public, private and civil society sectors.  At the program’s final meeting, the Fellows will share their reflections on the experience. In addition, the Fellows will be invited to attend Penn IUR Advisory Board meetings where they will receive additional informal mentoring from board members with mutual interests.

“Through this program, we hope to give undergraduates real-world insight into the life of the city in all its complexity, and to shed light on what it takes to actually run and shape urban communities,” said Penn IUR Advisory Board chair, Egbert Perry CE’76, WG’78, GCE ’79, Chair and CEO of The Integral Group LLC of Atlanta and Board Chair of Fannie Mae.

Admission is open to rising juniors and seniors from the four undergraduate schools at Penn. Outstanding rising sophomores may also apply. A committee comprised of members of the Penn IUR Advisory Board and the Penn IUR Executive Committee will select the Fellows. The application, due June 1, 2018, calls for demonstrated interest in urban issues exhibited through relevant coursework, internships and/or employment, a short essay, a faculty recommendation, and a transcript. Finalists will be interviewed.  

For additional information, please visit the Penn IUR website.