Polett debuts as new chair of Board of Trustees

Temple’s Board of Trustees, the 36-member administrative body that has final authority and responsibility for the policies and governance of the University, has unanimously elected a new chair, Daniel H. Polett.

A board member since 1992, Polett replaced Howard Gittis, who had served as chair since 2000. Polett has been an active member of the Board’s Executive, Academic Affairs and Trustee Affairs committees.

He also has held leadership positions on the boards of Temple Hospital and the Temple University Health System.

Daniel H. Polett, who led the search committee that recommended President Ann Weaver Hart as Temple’s ninth president, has been unanimously elected as the Board of Trustees’ new chair.

“Dan Polett is the ideal person to join President Hart in pushing Temple to even greater heights,” said Gittis, who continues to serve on the board.

“As a veteran board member at the University, the Hospital and the Health System, he brings a deep understanding of Temple’s challenges — and as a business leader in Philadelphia, he knows what it takes to achieve even the most ambitious goals.”

Polett, who graduated with honors from Fordham University in 1960, began a long and successful career in the automotive business after attending a General Motors executive training program.

In 1967, he joined Wilkie Buick — an automobile dealership on North Broad Street that occupied the lot now graced by Temple’s Liacouras Center — as a general manager, then quickly ascended to president.

Today, Wilkie dealerships sell and service Subaru and Lexus vehicles from locations at North Broad and Green streets and in suburban Haverford.

Polett’s relationship with Temple began to evolve from North Philly neighbor to institutional leader in 1978, when he was elected to the Board of Governors of Temple University Hospital. He eventually served as chair of the boards of both the Hospital and the Temple University Health System, helping to guide the former out of a rocky period of financial instability, and earning a Modern Healthcare Trustee of the Year award in 2005 for his service to the latter.

Polett’s familiarity with Temple and the surrounding neighborhood has served him well as a University trustee. “My experiences as a businessman on North Broad Street have proved to me that, as long as we show respect for our neighbors, it is possible to thrive — and grow — in North Philadelphia,” Polett said.

“Temple has established a great deal of momentum: The physical plant has grown, academic standards and reputation are on the rise, faculty recruiting has taken off, more students are living on or near Temple’s beautiful campus, and the relationship with the community has improved. My goal is to work with President Hart to maintain that momentum.”

In order to do that, Polett says, fundraising will have to become a top priority. “We have an ambitious building program under way, and we’ll soon break ground on new, state-of-the-art homes for the Fox School of Business and Management, the School of Medicine and the Tyler School of Art,” he said. “That means that growing our endowment will be one of our highest goals in the coming years. Temple alumni are committed; I’m confident we’re up to the challenge.”

Polett has hit the ground running. In the months leading up to his election as board chair, he made what’s likely to end up being one of his greatest contributions to the University: He chaired the 17-member search committee that recommended Ann Weaver Hart to the board as Temple’s ninth president.

“Now that I’ve spent some time working with Dr. Hart, it’s clear that our first impressions were correct,” said Polett, who reviewed CVs from more than 100 applicants, about a third of whom were sitting university presidents. “She’s intelligent, passionate and an incredibly fast learner. She defines problems quickly and tackles them head-on. I think she is going to serve the entire Temple University family well.”

The feeling is mutual.

“Advancing a major urban research university requires teamwork,” President Hart said, “and each member of the team must bring dedication and sensitivity to the job. That’s a rare combination. I can think of no better partner in the enterprise of advancing Temple than Dan Polett.”

— Hillel J. Hoffmann