Setti Warren, the director of the Institute of Politics at the Harvard Kennedy School, died this week at age 55, Harvard Kennedy School Dean Jeremy Weinstein and Harvard College Dean David Deming announced in an email to the Harvard community. Warren is survived by his wife and two children.
“It’s often said that the measure of a person’s life is found in their service to others—and by that standard, Setti’s life stands as an example to us all,” the email read. “Whenever he saw a challenge, he ran toward it—not away from it—and our university and country are better for it.”
Prior to leading the Institute of Politics, Warren served as the executive director of the Shorenstein Center on Media, Politics and Public Policy. He was also an adjunct lecturer at the Kennedy School. “He will be remembered at Harvard by the many students he helped to teach, nurture, and mentor,” Weinstein and Deming said. “Setti’s students loved him, and their impact—like his—will reverberate for generations to come.”
A mayor of Newton, his hometown, from 2010 to 2018, Warren was the first African American to be popularly elected to lead a city in Massachusetts. He had an extensive career in public service, including as a special assistant in the Office of Cabinet Affairs at the Clinton White House, as New England director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and as a deputy state director for John Kerry, the U.S. senator from Massachusetts who later went on to serve as secretary of state under U.S. President Barack Obama. Before running for mayor, Warren completed a tour of duty in Iraq as a naval intelligence specialist.
“Everyone connected with Setti because he was just a kind, authentic, caring person who loved people and loved making everyone around him feel [like] they belonged,” Kerry said in a message of remembrance provided to Harvard Magazine. “We were just together on campus in the Fall after the election. It was so evident that he was right where the students needed him to be, in his element, sharing everything he’d learned by doing public service the right way for 35 years. No one could have asked for a better role model. Setti was always an optimist about what citizens could do to make democracy and government respond to people. He loved it and he lived it.” Kerry added, “He wasn’t afraid to meet people where they were and create mutual understanding which starts by really listening. That’s who he was and that’s a legacy to be treasured. We need more people with Setti’s moral compass who do the right thing for the right reasons.”
Several Harvard Kennedy School (HKS) faculty who worked with Warren during his tenure at the University also shared their tributes with Harvard Magazine:
“I’m devastated by the loss of Setti Warren, our great friend and the consummate public servant,” said Dean Jeremy Weinstein. “I’ll always keep an image in my mind of Setti standing in the back of the JFK Jr. Forum at the Institute of Politics, smiling—proud to have created a space for his students and our community to engage with a wide range of perspectives and ideas on the most challenging issues of our time. Setti always encouraged students from across the political spectrum to run toward politics rather than away from them, just like he did throughout his life. His students loved him, and he will live on through their legacies of service.”
“Teaching Policy Design & Delivery, the first-year MPP core course at HKS, with Setti brought me such joy,” said Fatema Sumar, the executive director of the Harvard Center for International Development and an adjunct lecturer. “Setti modeled the kind of grounded, generous leadership we hope our students will carry into the world.” She added, “He always made me laugh, really laugh, no matter how long the day had been.”
“Setti Warren and I served together as mayors and crossed paths many times in the years since,” said Bloomberg professor of practice of public leadership Anthony Foxx. “At every turn, he led with a tremendous sense of purpose, humility, and courage. He believed American society and the world would be better off if people of good will insisted upon it. That’s how he lived his life, and we are all better for knowing him.”
“As a former mayor and public servant, he was an inspiring speaker who shared his wisdom generously with new generations of public leaders,” said Jorrit de Jong, the director of Harvard’s Bloomberg Center for Cities. “I will miss our wide-ranging conversations, which were always filled with both laughter and seriousness. This is a tremendous loss for our entire community.”
“Few have embodied the Kennedy School’s ethos more than Setti Warren,” said Kirkpatrick professor of the practice of international affairs Meghan O’Sullivan, who directs the Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. “Setti taught students that politics and policy can be forces for good—and cultivated a space where intense but civil debate could thrive.” She added, “A gracious colleague, he never shied from a chance to collaborate or try something new. I will miss him dearly.”
UPDATE (11/06/2025): This story was updated to include a tribute from former Secretary of State and U.S. Senator John Kerry.
