Wharton School Announces Establishment of Doctoral Fellowship in Business Ethics in Memory of Alumnus Lewis Platt

Philadelphia, PA, April 16, 2007 -- The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania announced the establishment of the Lewis Platt Doctoral Fellowship in Business Ethics, created in memory of cherished alumnus, Lewis Platt, former CEO of the Hewlett-Packard Company and chairman of the Boeing Company. The fellowship was announced on April 13 at Wharton’s Economic Summit, the largest event in the School’s 125-year history.

Through the joint support of Joan Platt and the Hewlett-Packard Company Foundation, as well as a gift from the Boeing Company, and individual gifts from fellow alumni and friends, the fellowship was officially endowed and established in 2007.

“This fellowship is a truly fitting way to honor the personal and professional integrity of one of the world’s great business leaders,” said Wharton School Dean Patrick T. Harker. “Lew was a highly regarded and much admired proponent of the highest standard of ethical behavior in the corporate arena. I’m especially pleased that this fellowship will support further scholarship in the critical field of business ethics and the training of new educators that will advance the preparation of generations of business students to follow in Lew’s footsteps.”

The fellowship was created to assist students in Wharton’s PhD Program in Legal Studies and Business Ethics and will offer nearly full support for tuition and research expenditures for the recipient. Created in 2003, the program is the first of its kind in the world, built on Wharton’s pioneering work in business ethics. It focuses on ethical and legal norms of conduct in management, with students taking core classes in ethics and law in business, plus courses in one additional area of concentration. The program, led by Tom Donaldson, Mark O. Winkelman Professor, Professor of Legal Studies and Business Ethics, and director of the Wharton PhD Program in Legal Studies and Business Ethics, promises to have a direct impact on the future of business by training the next generation of business school faculty and corporate leaders.

The Lewis Platt Doctoral Fellowship in Business Ethics was established in memory of Platt, who assisted in the creation of the School’s Wharton West campus in 2001 and was chairman of its Advisory Board. Platt, who earned his MBA from Wharton in 1966, was also a member of the Wharton Board of Overseers. The fellowship is a tribute to Platt’s high standard of personal and professional integrity, and commitment to creating ethical standards for business practices. Since his death in 2005, Platt’s widow, Joan Platt, has been dedicated to establishing a fund that would memorialize Platt’s life and leadership at the Wharton School and in the business community.

“HP is pleased that Wharton has recognized the high standards that Lew Platt set during his prestigious career with HP,” said Bess Stephens, HP’s vice president of corporate philanthropy and education and executive director of the HP Company Foundation. “It’s our hope that through our collaboration with Wharton, the next generation of business leaders will carry forth into the global marketplace an unrivaled sense of what it means to be an ethical leader in the 21st century.”

Founded in 1939, the Hewlett-Packard Company is a technology solutions provider to consumers, businesses and institutions globally. Operating in more than 170 countries worldwide, its offerings span IT infrastructure, global services, business and home computing, and imaging and printing.

The Boeing Company is the world’s leading aerospace company, and is the largest manufacturer of commercial jetliners and military aircraft combined. Headquartered in Chicago, the company is one of the United States’ largest exporters in terms of sales, and has customers in more than 90 countries around the world.

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 4,600 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, and doctoral students; more than 8,000 annual participants in executive education programs; and an alumni network of more than 81,000 graduates.

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