This new building will give us an environment to support our curricular innovations and new educational technologies. Our new curriculum relies far more heavily on group collaboration and draws upon global and cross-disciplinary insights. We do not have spaces designed for this work. The new building will also facilitate the integration of multimedia, satellite and network technologies into the classroom and projects, with classrooms and meeting spaces designed to take advantage of the latest technology and curricular advances. The new building will also give us the space for major conferences, senior executive lectures and other co-curricular activities that have become an increasingly important part of the Wharton experience.
Competition is very intense for top faculty.
We need the resources to be able to attract and retain the world s finest faculty members, who are highly sought after by all our major peers. In addition, the costs of sustaining the best academic research programs are increasing with the advent of new technology and global studies. Thanks to increased support through endowed professorships and other donations, we have been able to expand our faculty, but we need to add more new faculty, particularly in key disciplines. Our new academic center will provide an outstanding educational environment that will be a great asset in recruiting the best students. It will offer access to the latest technology and encourage interaction among faculty and students.