And it is succeeding. In existence for 10 years, the Council has become an established force on campus. The brainchild of former Chairman of the Board of Trustees Al Shoemaker, the Council claims 139 women, including Penn President Judith Rodin, from more than 40 different professions. Berkowitz, who has been active in the Council since its inception, believes that Shoemaker deserves a lot of the applause that the Council receives. He had felt that Penn needed an institutional network to support women's groups on campus, so he called together more than 100 prominent Penn graduates from all over the country.
Council members are mentors, role models and advocates for women on campus.
The Council advocates for advancement of staff and faculty, and it works to ensure women's participation in search committees and the equal consideration of women applicants. Each year the Council holds a Career Dinner, in which junior women have the opportunity to dine with women in their field of interest. The Council has also instituted a shadowing program, which allows students to see first hand the working world. The Fund to Encourage Women pays for lectures by academic leaders, research grants for junior faculty, as well as an on-line mentoring program. But one of the most important things that the Council does is to provide emergency grants.