Death of the Students' Dean

Archie C. Epps IIIJon Chase / Harvard News OfficeArchie C. Epps III, B.D. '61, Harvard College dean of students from 1971 to 1999, died August...

Archie C. Epps III
Jon Chase / Harvard News Office

Archie C. Epps III, B.D. '61, Harvard College dean of students from 1971 to 1999, died August 21 of complications from surgery. Often remembered from a photograph that showed him being ejected from University Hall during the 1969 takeover, tie crisply in place, Epps is better known by thousands of alumni for his role in cultivating student organizations, for his leadership on matters of race and diversity, and for his unhurried progresses across the Yard.

Harvard University Archives

Jeremy R. Knowles, dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences from 1991 to 2002, recalled Epps as "wise but never heavy, helpful but never presumptuous, and principled but never rigid. Passionate about music, and fiercely supportive of the arts in the College, Harvard is a colder place without him." Speaking of his friend, Peter J. Gomes, Plummer professor of Christian morals and Pusey minister in the Memorial Church, said during the funeral service there on September 4, "More than anyone I have ever known in 33 years of service here, I believe that Archie actually believed every word of 'Fair Harvard.'"













     

Most popular

FAS Plans Administrative Overhaul

Facing financial pressures, Harvard’s Faculty of Arts and Sciences seeks ways to streamline.

The Artemis II Mission Included a Harvard Space Medicine Experiment

Wyss Institute researchers are observing how human bone marrow responds to radiation and microgravity.

Harvard Weathers a Year of Turmoil

The federal government has launched unprecedented actions against the University. Here's a guide.

Explore More From Current Issue

Modern building surrounded by greenery and a walking path under a blue sky.

A New Landscape Emerges in Allston

The innovative greenery at Harvard’s Science and Engineering Complex

Four Labrador puppies—two black and two yellow—sitting in green grass.

What Do Puppies Know?

Canine capabilities emerge early and continue into adulthood.

A close-up of a beetle on the textured surface of a cycad cone and cycad cones seen in infrared silhouette.

Research in Brief

Cutting-edge discoveries, distilled