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Harvard University seeks new president, launches search

The official search for a new Harvard president has begun, after Drew Faust recently announced she will be stepping down at the end of the 2017-18 academic year. The search will involve both members of the Harvard community and others from the world of higher education.

A request for advice and nominations is being sent to all Harvard faculty, students, staff, and alumni, as well as selected others, soliciting their views of the opportunities and challenges facing the University, and seeking counsel regarding the search. In addition, the search committee intends to pursue conversations with a wide array of individuals and groups, both within and beyond Harvard, according to a Harvard Gazette article.

A new president is elected by the Corporation, with the counsel and consent of the Board of Overseers. As it happened in the past, the search committee will consist of the members of the Corporation other than the president. They will be joined by three Overseers.

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Apart from these, there will be advisory committees of faculty, students, and staff, bringing together people from across the University.

“As we undertake the important task of seeking a new president, we are eager to hear from people across the Harvard community who have views they wish to share about the University’s future directions and leadership. What we learn from faculty, students, staff, and alumni about their aspirations for Harvard will mean a great deal to all of us on the search committee as we aim to identify a worthy successor to President Faust,” William F. Lee, the Corporation’s senior fellow and chair of the search committee, said.

Drew Faust, who became Harvard’s 28th president in 2007, announced in June 2017 that she will step down on June 30, 2018.

“It has been a privilege beyond words to work with all of you to lead Harvard, in the words of her alma mater, ‘through change and through storm. I am deeply grateful to every member of this community for the honor of being your president and for the support and, indeed, joy you have given me,” Faust wrote in a message to the Harvard community.

 

John Beckett

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