PHILADELPHIA–The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania has announced that the Dean’s Medal, the School’s highest honor, will be awarded to two distinguished members of the Wharton community: Connie K. Duckworth, WG’79, and Robert B. Goergen, WG’62.
Wharton Dean Thomas S. Robertson said, “Our vision for the future of the Wharton School comprises three pillars: social impact, innovation and global presence. In this spirit, I am honored to present the Dean’s Medal to two individuals who strongly exemplify these important values of the Wharton School. The global effects of their contributions to social impact and innovation stand as powerful examples to our current students and alumni of the transformative potential of a Wharton education.”
Connie K. Duckworth is a retired Partner and Managing Director of Goldman, Sachs & Co., where she was named the first woman sales and trading partner in the firm’s history. In 2004 she founded ARZU, Inc., a nonprofit organization that provides sustainable income to Afghan women by sourcing and selling the rugs they weave, and serves pro bono as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. A member of the Wharton School’s Board of Overseers, Ms. Duckworth also serves on the Boards of Directors of the Interfaith Youth Core in Chicago and NorthShore University HealthSystem in Evanston, Illinois. She is a past Chair of the Committee of 200, the organization of leading women entrepreneurs and corporate business executives in the U.S. and she is the author of The Old Girls Network: Insider Advice for Women Building Businesses in a Man’s World (Basic Books 2003). The recipient of numerous awards for leadership and advocacy, she was named a 2008 Skoll Foundation honoree for Social Entrepreneurship. Ms. Duckworth created the Connie K. Duckworth Endowed Doctoral Fellowship and the Connie K. Duckworth Endowed MBA Fellowship at the Wharton School to provide support to female graduate students.
Robert B. Goergen is founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Blyth, Inc., a global industry leader in candles and home fragrance products. He is also Chairman of the Ropart Group, a private equity investment firm. Previously, Mr. Goergen was a Partner with McKinsey & Company and served with Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette, McCann-Erickson, and Procter & Gamble. He is a member of the Board of Directors of Protein Sciences Corporation. Since 1982, he has served on the Board of Trustees of the University of Rochester, most recently as Chairman. Mr. Goergen is a member of the Wharton School’s Board of Overseers, and his son, Robert Blyth Goergen, Jr., earned an MBA from the Wharton School in 2000. Goergen’s commitment to seeding innovation — and to the next generation of entrepreneurs — is reflected in his support of numerous initiatives at Wharton and the University of Pennsylvania, including the Goergen Entrepreneurial Management Program and the Robert B. Goergen Professorship of Entrepreneurial Management.
About the Dean’s Medal
Created in 1983, the Wharton School Dean’s Medal recognizes outstanding leaders of private enterprise, public service, and academia. The awardees are chosen for their contributions to the enlargement of the global economy and to the improvement of lives worldwide. The dean selects individuals who, through excellence in management, have truly made a difference in the creation of wealth and value, and in the promotion of a peaceful and prosperous world. Past recipients of the award include two Nobel Prize winners, presidents of five countries, and many chairmen and chief executive officers from thirteen countries worldwide. For more information, please visit: http://www.wharton.upenn.edu/alumni/deansmedal/.
About the Wharton School
The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania— founded in 1881 as the first collegiate business school — is recognized globally for intellectual leadership and ongoing innovation across every major discipline of business education. The most comprehensive source of business knowledge in the world, Wharton bridges research and practice through its broad engagement with the global business community. The School has more than 4,800 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, and doctoral students; more than 9,000 annual participants in executive education programs; and an alumni network of 86,000 graduates.
The Campaign for Wharton
With an ambitious $550 million goal, The Campaign for Wharton includes foundational elements and cutting-edge initiatives in such areas as faculty and student support, research programs and curriculum development, technology and facilities, and unrestricted support. Launched in 2005 and ending in 2012, The Campaign for Wharton will help to ensure Wharton’s prominence as the thought leader in global business education. For more information, please visit www.thecampaignforwharton.com.