February 16, 2017
Former Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter added yet another title to his already-long resume as he makes a return to his alma mater.
On Wednesday, the University of Pennsylvania named Nutter, a 1979 Wharton graduate, to serve as the Senior School of Social Policy and Practice Executive Fellow at the Penn Institute for Urban Research.
Beginning this spring, Nutter will have an active role in steering the institution's research and investment into policies designed to alleviate poverty in Philly and other cities.
Dean John L. Jackson Jr. cited Nutter's career of public service addressing the needs of all citizens in the announcement.
"[Nutter] couldn’t be an effective mayor of a city like Philadelphia, with one of the highest rates of deep poverty in the country, if he didn’t think about the lives and life chances of poor citizens," Jackson said. "It’ll be valuable to have Mayor Nutter’s expertise, insights, and public service background at the table as we think about issues of poverty in the 21st century.”
The position will not affect Nutter's position at fellow Ivy League school Columbia University, where is an urban policy professor at the School of International and Public Affairs.
Philly's 98th mayor said he's honored to work at "reducing poverty and utilizing the full capacity of the University of Pennsylvania to solve various public policy challenges that Philadelphia and many other cities face in America."
Since leaving City Hall in January 2016, Nutter has secured numerous jobs to keep busy.
He is the chairman of Airbnb's Mayoral Advisory Board, a political commentator at CNN and named to Code for America's board of directors. He previously served as a member of the Department of Homeland Security's advisory council.
