Decanal Duo

Kathleen McCartney Photograph by Dina Konovalovia/A Dream Picture Kathleen McCartney, Lesser professor in early childhood development...

Kathleen McCartney
Photograph by Dina Konovalovia/A Dream Picture

Kathleen McCartney, Lesser professor in early childhood development and since July 2005 acting dean of Harvard Graduate School of Education, was named to the deanship on May 16 by President Lawrence H. Summers. McCartney, who earned her Ph.D. in psychology from Yale, has focused on interactions among childcare, parenting, and poverty in her research. She joined the faculty in 2000 and served as academic dean during the 2004-2005 year. A more detailed profile will appear in a future issue.

Jeremy R. Knowles
Photograph by Jon Chase/Harvard News Office

Separately, interim president Derek Bok named Jeremy R. Knowles interim dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) after conferring with a 10-member faculty advisory committee and consulting junior professors and the graduate and undergraduate student councils. Knowles, Houghton professor of chemistry and biochemistry, was previously dean from 1991 until William C. Kirby took office in July 2002. In making the appointment on May 22, Bok said, “A term as interim dean does not allow the luxury of learning on the job, and no other individual rivals Jeremy in his experience of FAS affairs or his capacity to begin immediately to address important administrative issues while maintaining forward motion” on matters ranging from the undergraduate curriculum review to Allston planning. Knowles, reflecting on his and Bok’s second turns at their jobs, wrote to the FAS faculty and staff, “In the light of his own generous decision, it was, of course, impossible for me to look President Bok in the eye and say ‘No.’” He would have to discover, Knowles wrote, “where things stand (academically, financially, and in spirit),” and encouraged colleagues to let him know.

Most popular

Why Men Are Falling Behind in Education, Employment, and Health

Can new approaches to education address a growing gender gap?

The 1884 Cannibalism-at-Sea Case That Still Has Harvard Talking

The Queen v. Dudley and Stephens changed the course of legal history. Here’s why it’s been fodder for countless classroom debates.

The Harvard Professor Who Quantified Democracy

Erica Chenoweth’s data shows how—and when—authoritarians fall.

Explore More From Current Issue

A bald man in a black shirt with two book covers beside him, one titled "The Magicians" and the other "The Bright Sword."

Novelist Lev Grossman on Why Fantasy Isn’t About Escapism

The Magicians author discusses his influences, from Harvard to King Arthur to Tolkien.

An axolotl with a pale body and pink frilly gills, looking directly at the viewer.

Regenerative Biology’s Baby Steps

What axolotl salamanders could teach us about limb regrowth

Man in a suit holding a pen, smiling, seated at a desk with a soft background.

A Congenial Voice in Japanese-American Relations

Takashi Komatsu spent his life building bridges.