Office Phone: 215.898.3483
E-Mail: powelson@pobox.upenn.edu

Rob Powelson recently completed his second season as the men’s golf coach at the University of Pennsylvania in 2005-06. The year was highlighted by a pair of first-place finishes for the Quakers -- at the George Washington Invitational during the spring and Yale's Macdonald Cup in the fall -- as well as a fourth-place finish at the Ivy League Championships. For the second year in a row, Penn's Sean Barrett earned All-Ivy honors.

In 2004-05, Powelson's first season, he led the Quakers to a third-place finish at the Ivy League Championships in April including Barrett's first All-Ivy honor. That summer, Barrett qualified for the U.S. Amateur Championship, which took place in the Philadelphia region.

In 1998, Powelson helped co-found the First Tee Program for Chester and Delaware Counties in Pennsylvania. First Tee is a national junior golf program that seeks to give disadvantaged youth access to the game of golf.

Powelson currently serves as the President and CEO of the Chester County Chamber of Business & Industry which is located in Malvern, Pa.  His main duties are to promote Chester County as one of the nation’s hottest growing communities in which to live and work.  His fundraising efforts have been exemplary, while his membership in the Chamber has increased by 800 since his arrival in 1993.

Powelson is a true Philadelphian who holds a bachelor’s degree in political science from Saint Joseph’s University and holds a Master’s in Government Administration and Public Finance from the University of Pennsylvania’s Fels Institute of Government.  In 1995, Powelson was recognized by Business Philadelphia as one of the Top 100 People to Watch in the Greater Philadelphia region.  Most recently, The Philadelphia Business Journal named Powelson as one of the Top 40 Under 40 Leaders in the Greater Philadelphia region.

In 2004, Powelson was presented the Fels Leadership Award and was one of the first graduate students to go through the public finance program. This year, he was also selected to be an Eisenhower Fellow and will be heading to Singapore and Australia in July.

From 1987-1991, Powelson played for coach Bob Lynch at St. Joseph’s University. He served as team captain of the Hawks during his junior and senior seasons and was also the recipient of a J. Wood Platt scholarship. Powelson also competes in numerous Philadelphia Golf Association events during the summer months.

Rob and his wife, Lauren and son, Ryan, reside in Kennett Square, Pa.