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Gutmann speaking at Penn in 2021. (Photo by Eric Sucar)<\/p>\n Gutmann speaking at Penn in 2021. (Photo by Eric Sucar)<\/p>\n
The longest-serving president of the University of Pennsylvania and former U.S. Ambassador to Germany Amy Gutmann will be honored by the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History later this year when she is presented with the Only in America Award, given to Jewish Americans who have made significant contributions to the world, according to a Weitzman press release.<\/p>\n
The ceremony will take place on Nov. 5 at the Weitzman during the museum\u2019s annual gala and award presentation. Past winners of the award include former U.S. Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, former commissioner of Major League Baseball Bud Selig, former Philadelphia Flyers owner Ed Snider, CNN anchor Wolf Blitzer and Sherry Lansing, the first woman to head a major film studio.<\/p>\n
Gutmann\u2019s impact on American Jewry and the Philadelphia community are sizable, as she served as president of Penn from 2004 to 2022 and ambassador to Germany from 2022 to 2024. She has written more than a dozen books and has long been vocal in efforts to curb antisemitism and preserve Holocaust remembrance.<\/p>\n
\u201cThis Only in America award is both a profound honor and a deeply personal moment for me. As the daughter of a Jewish refugee who saved his family from the scourge of Naziism and found a home in this country, I cannot help but see this award as an affirmation of all our ongoing struggles against antisemitism and other cruelties that threaten the dreams of so many today,\u201d Gutmann said.<\/p>\n
Dan Tadmor, the CEO of the Weitzman, said he sees Gutmann\u2019s life as an example of what one can achieve with hard work.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a very touching story of closure in her life, because her father had escaped Nazi Germany in the \u201930s and made a life for himself in America and built a family here. She was the first in her family to go to college, and then she went on to all of these accomplishments and ultimately went to Germany as American ambassador \u2014 the same country that her father had escaped. So to me, it\u2019s a very moving story,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Gutmann also said she\u2019s proud of her nearly two decades as president of Penn, particularly due to accomplishments like beginning all-grant financial aid for undergraduates, which enabled many students to graduate without debt, helping to bring the Holocaust-focused Shoah archives to the school and overseeing breakthroughs in cancer and COVID research.<\/p>\n
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The Only in America exhibit. (Photo courtesy of the Weitzman National Museum of American Jewish History)<\/p>\n
\u201cMy legacy at Penn simply adds to the time-tested truth that access to education transforms lives and strengthens democracy. I am deeply proud that during my presidency we made Penn more accessible, more inclusive, more innovative, and more impactful \u2014 in Philadelphia, our Commonwealth, nation, and around the world,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
For many at the Weitzman, Gutmann\u2019s work meant and continues to mean something to them on a personal level. Sharon Tobin Kestenbaum, the Weitzman\u2019s co-chair of the Board of Trustees and a graduate of Penn\u2019s Wharton School, said that Gutmann\u2019s life is similar to those of others highlighted at the museum.<\/p>\n
\u201cDr. Gutmann was the first in her family to graduate college, the first Jewish female ambassador to Germany, and Penn\u2019s longest-serving president,\u201d she said. \u201cHer father fled Nazi Germany and rescued his entire family. Hers is a quintessential only-in-America story. Her journey mirrors the stories that the Weitzman tells about luminary figures like Ruth Bader Ginsburg and Steven Spielberg. We are proud to recognize her contributions with this award.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tadmor said that Gutmann continues the tradition of distinguished recipients of this honor.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt always goes towards people who\u2019ve made a significant contribution to the Jewish people and to humankind, people who are outstanding and whose story is emblematic of the Jewish story in America, and in that respect, Dr. Gutmann really does fit the bill,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
For Gutmann, the values she was taught by her parents instilled a mission in her that she is proud to say she has worked to fulfill.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a proud Jewish American, I have devoted my life to advancing freedom and opportunity for all through the power of civic education, dialogue and diplomacy. Importantly for me, this award recognizes that the American dream is about not only individual achievement but also about our uplifting work together as Jewish Americans with myriad allies to create a more inclusive and compassionate society for all,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Tadmor said that the event will be worth attending for a few reasons.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s going to be a fun evening with a rich program. There\u2019s going to be good food, there\u2019s going to be good people, and there\u2019s going to be a very interesting program, including a keynote address by Dr. Gutmann herself, who is a riveting speaker,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n