Ten years ago, on November 11, 1998, Drexel made the bold move of taking over the financially troubled Allegheny University of the Health Sciences. When people asked, “Why take on the challenge of a bankrupt medical school?” my answer was, “Because it needs to be done.”

The rich tradition of two venerable medical institutions, MCP and Hahnemann, needed to be preserved. Their role in training the nation’s future doctors could not be replicated, and the service they provided to the citizens of Philadelphia could not be replaced. There were 13,000 jobs and the education of 3,000 students at stake.

Some asked, “Why Drexel?” In hindsight, I don’t think those people really knew Drexel. With our strengths in engineering, information science and business, our legacy of innovation in biomedical science and our leadership in educational technology, it seemed clear that the future of medicine was made for a university like ours.

The past decade has validated our original vision. The combined faculty of Drexel and the Drexel University College of Medicine set out to break down the silos that exist in many research universities. Collaboration quickly became the norm. Some of Drexel’s greatest research successes in recent years have involved multidisciplinary efforts that included medical faculty—bioinformatics, plasma technology, research into spinal cord injury, autism and more.

The future of the College of Medicine is exceedingly bright. I want to thank Dean Richard Homan, M.D., for his outstanding leadership; the College’s faculty and staff; the board of trustees and Manny Stamatakis, chairman of the board, who was in many ways the heart and soul of the vision that brought medicine to Drexel. He believed it was a good fit, and he made us all believe.

I extend holiday greetings and best wishes for the new year to the entire Drexel community.

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C.R. "Chuck" Pennoni Interim President