Searches under way for new Harvard provost and Fellows

Searches are under way for new Fellows of Harvard College and for a successor to Steven E. Hyman.

Return to main article:

In the wake of the Harvard Corporation’s early December decision to increase its membership from seven—the President, Treasurer, and five Fellows—to 13 (see “The Corporation’s 360-Year Tune-Up,”  January-February, page 43), nominations for candidates to serve on the senior governing board are now being sought. An early-January announcement from President Drew Faust and Senior Fellow Robert D. Reischauer solicited ideas and names from the Harvard community at large; they may be submitted to corporationsearch@harvard.edu or by mail to Corporation Search Committee, Harvard University, Loeb House, 17 Quincy Street, Cambridge 02138; all communications will be held in confidence.

Consistent with the Corporation’s earlier steps to include members of the Board of Overseers in its review of its governance structure and procedures, the search for new Corporation members will include three Overseers: Joshua Boger, Ph.D. ’79, founder and former CEO of Vertex Pharmaceuticals and chair of the Harvard Medical School Board of Fellows; Diana Nelson ’84, director of the Carlson Companies and former co-chair of the Harvard College Fund; and Robert Shapiro ’72, J.D. ’78, a partner at Ropes & Gray, past president of both the Harvard Alumni Association and the Harvard Law School Association. (Shapiro also served on the governance-review committee.)

Faust and Reischauer reiterated their earlier expectation that the Corporation’s expanded membership would be put in place within the next two to three years.

A week later, Faust announced the appointment of a faculty advisory committee to help her search for a successor to Provost Steven E. Hyman. Comments from the wider Harvard community on the provost’s role and nominations of candidates may be sent in confidence to provostsearch@harvard.edu or by letter addressed to her at Massachusetts Hall, Harvard University, Cambridge 02138.

Most popular

Öberg to Lead Harvard Faculty Recruitment and Retention

The astrochemist will become senior vice provost for faculty affairs this summer.

The True Cost of Grade Inflation at Harvard

How an abundance of A’s created “the most stressed-out world of all.”

What Bonobos Teach Us About Female Power and Cooperation

A Harvard scientist expands our understanding of our closest living relatives.

Explore More From Current Issue

Older man in a green sweater holds a postcard in a warmly decorated office.

How a Harvard Hockey Legend Became a Needlepoint Artist

Joe Bertagna’s retirement project recreates figures from Boston sports history.

Illustration of a person sitting on a large cresting wave, writing, with a sunset and ocean waves in vibrant colors.

How Stories Help Us Cope with Climate Change

The growing genre of climate fiction offers a way to process reality—and our anxieties.

Three climbers seated on a snowy summit, surrounded by clouds, appearing contemplative.

These Harvard Mountaineers Braved Denali’s Wall of Ice

John Graham’s Denali Diary documents a dangerous and historic climb.