Welcome!
Get to Know Business Services
What We Do
What Links Our Services
With an incredibly diverse array of services among our departments, there is a common approach to our service delivery: promoting a hospitable, customer-friendly campus environment.
Our Team
As a Division, Business Services is made up of its people. With over 425 full-time and regular part-time employees and a host of relationships with outstanding service providers, Business Services is a people-driven organization. Click on the photos below for more information about our Leadership Team.
Marie Witt
Vice President
Marie Witt is the Vice President of Penn’s Business Services Divisions and is a member of the University’s executive leadership team. Under Marie’s guidance, the organization supports Penn’s faculty, staff, students, and visitors with welcoming campus amenities as well as administrative support services that manifest through 19 different departments and programs. Revenue generation and cost containment are important aspects of her responsibilities.
An alumna of Penn with over 40 years of service to the institution, Marie has served as Vice President of the division since 2006 and has been member of many executive leadership and strategic committees focused on the advancement of the University.
Christopher Bradie, Ed.D.
Associate Vice President
Chris is the Associate Vice President for the Division and serves as its business development executive. He is responsible for several administrative services that support each of the division’s departments: marketing, communications, external relations, information technology, special projects, strategic planning, and customer experience. He works in close collaboration with external corporations to offer innovative programs and services to the Penn community.
Chris is an alumnus of the Wharton School and obtained his Masters and Doctorate degrees from Penn as well.
Sandra Ardis
Director of Communications and Special Projects
As Director of Communications and Special Projects, Sandra oversees the strategic development and execution of communications supporting Division areas, which include Procurement Services, Penn Travel, Parking, Transit, Mail Services, the Ice Rink, Penn Home Ownership Services, the Penn Children’s Center, Morris Arboretum, and campus hotels.
Sandra has spent much of her career in nonprofit management, predominately at professional associations and other member-based organizations. Sandra earned a bachelor’s degree in Communications / Public Relations from the University of Delaware and holds the professional designation IOM in nonprofit management from the United States Chamber of Commerce’s Institute for Organization Management.
Ray Bates
Senior Director, Business Services
Ray Bates is a Senior Director within the Business Services Division and has overall accountability for the Human Resources function, the Penn Children's Center, and the Penn Ice Rink.
As the Senior Human Resources leader, he oversees the HR team’s delivery of HR services, across the entirety of the HR service delivery continuum. In close partnership with divisional leaders he develops, and ensures execution of, functional strategy designed to address the organizational needs of diverse client areas which extends to both unionized and non-unionized environments.
In addition to functional leadership for the HR function, Ray also provides leadership oversight and is accountable for the budgetary, long-range fiscal planning, capital planning and overall strategic execution for the Penn Children's Center and the Penn Ice Rink.
Ray came to Penn in 2020 and prior to that he spent time with Children's Hospital of Philadelphia (CHOP) and The Boeing Company in various HR and business roles. A double alumnus of Michigan State University, Ray earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in HR Management from the Broad College of Business, and a Master’s degree from the School of Human Resources & Labor Relations. Ray additionally holds an MBA from Washington State University’s Carson College of Business. He is a veteran of both the US Army, and the US Marine Corps, with a combined 15 years of military service.
Douglas Berger
Executive Director, Business Services
Doug Berger is Executive Director of the Business Service Division. Doug oversees Residential and Hospitality services which includes a wide range of University departments, business operations and initiatives, including student housing, and all campus dining services, Off Campus Services, Conference Services and the University Club
Doug came to Penn in 1998 and served as Director of Housing Services until 2009. In that role he shepherded the formation of a successful financial and operational model to support the newly created College House system. A double alumnus from Kent State University, Doug earned his Bachelor of Arts in Social Work/Counseling and a Master’s of Education in Higher Education Administration and, prior to coming to Penn, served there as Associate Director of Residence Services.
William Cullina
F. Otto Haas Executive Director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Morris Arboretum
William Cullina
F. Otto Haas Executive Director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Morris Arboretum
wcullina@upenn.edu
215-247-5777 X106
William Cullina is the F. Otto Haas Executive Director of the University of Pennsylvania’s Morris Arboretum. Under his leadership, the Arboretum is implementing a new five-year Strategic Plan, which includes finalizing and starting the implementation of the organization's new 10-year Master Plan.
Cullina has extensive experience in public garden leadership, fundraising, education, and horticulture, and is a well-known author and lecturer. He is a recognized authority on North American native plants and has won several awards, including the Scott Medal and the Award of Excellence from Garden Clubs of America.
Barbara A. Lea-Kruger
Director of Communications and External Relations
Barbara A. Lea-Kruger
Director of Communications and External Relations
bkruger@upenn.edu
215-898-2698
As director of Communications and External Relations, Barbara directs strategic communications and messaging for the Division’s departments. She manages the relationship with internal and external media and oversees the Division’s web presence, including social media. She coordinates with students groups such as the Undergraduate Assembly, the Graduate and Professional Students Association and provides leadership for communications of University-wide initiatives. She also oversees Campus Express, which provides online and in-person access for all new students to many of the University’s essential services.
She has held a variety of positions in journalism and communications and has authored articles in major publications. She has a Master's degree in journalism from the University of Minnesota -Twin Cities, Bachelor of Arts degrees in French and Linguistics from the University of Wisconsin - Madison, and a Certificate of Non-Profit Management from the Fels Institute of Government at Penn.
Mark Mills
Chief Procurement Officer, Procurement Services
As the University of Pennsylvania's Chief Procurement Officer, Mark Mills oversees approximately $1 billion in University spend. Mark's Procurement Services team performs a variety of services on behalf of Penn, ranging from strategic sourcing, supplier management, procure-to-pay systems management, travel services, and payment card administration. In performing these services, Mark and his team are driven by core goals that address service excellence, cost containment, economic inclusion, and sustainable purchasing.
Mark joined Penn in 2011 and brings over 20 years of procurement and financial management experience. Mark holds a Master of Science Degree in Organizational Dynamics from Penn and a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Temple University. He earned his Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration from the University of Delaware.
Magida Phillips
Senior Director, Information Technology
Magida is responsible for the oversight, direction and leadership of all aspects related to technology and systems infrastructure for the Division. She is also accountable for the comprehensive management of all Divisional technical operations, including oversight of the Division’s IT Support team, project managers, third-party vendor relationships, and other BSD IT managerial staff. After graduating from Penn, she began her career at the University in 1986 and held increasing positions of responsibility within the Division of Information Systems and Computing (ISC), before joining the Division in 2016.
Joseph Russo
Business Services Senior Director
Joe Russo is the Business Services Senior Director responsible for overseeing the University’s Parking and Commuter Services, Penn Transit Services, and Penn Mail Services. Before coming to Penn Joe served as Drexel's Executive Director for Business Services overseeing Parking, Campus Card operations, retail operations, and the student centers. He also had responsibility for the University’s external business relationships regional and national partners. with Barnes & Noble, Aramark, and Canteen. During his almost 20-year career at Drexel he developed a deep understanding of University auxiliary services and has also directly overseen University housing and other revenue-generating mail services. Joe received his Master of Science from Shippensburg University and Bachelor of Arts from King’s College.
Stephen Wielgus
Executive Director, Fiscal Operations
Stephen Wielgus leads financial planning, stewardship, and strategy for the Division of Business Services and provides fiscal stewardship for the Morris Arboretum. Stephen serves as a key liaison with partners across the University, including Facilities and Real Estate Services, the Office of Budget and Management Analysis, the Office of Audit Compliance and Privacy, and the Division of Finance. Stephen joined BSD in 2013, leading the Division's capital planning process and collaborating cross-divisionally to develop business cases for significant strategic initiatives. Prior to joining Penn, Stephen worked as a Senior Financial Analyst at Johnson & Johnson, fulfilling critical corporate finance functions. He holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina’s Kenan-Flagler Business School and a Bachelor's Degree in Accounting from Bucknell University.
