President of Harvard University

Template:Short description Template:Use mdy dates Template:Infobox official post The president of Harvard University is the chief administrator of Harvard University and the ex officio president of the Harvard Corporation.<ref>Central Administration Template:Webarchive Governance of the University, from Office of the Provost</ref> Each is appointed by and is responsible to the other members of that body, who delegate to the president the day-to-day running of the university.

Harvard's current president is Alan Garber, who took office on January 2, 2024, following the resignation of Claudine Gay. In August 2024, the Harvard Corporation announced he would be in the position until mid-2027.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Role

The president plays an important part in university-wide planning and strategy. Each names a faculty's dean (and, since the foundation of the office in 1994, the university's provost), and grants tenure to recommended professors. However, the president is expected to make such decisions after extensive consultation with faculty members.

Recently, however, the job has become increasingly administrative, especially as fund-raising campaigns have taken on central importance in large institutions such as Harvard. Some have criticized this trend to the extent it has prevented the president from focusing on substantive issues in higher education.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Each president is professor in some department of the university and teaches from time to time.

The university maintains an official residence for the president's use, which from 1912 until 1971, was President's House, and since then has been Elmwood.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>

Influence

Five Harvard University presidents, sitting in order of when they served. Left-to-right: Josiah Quincy III, Edward Everett, Jared Sparks, James Walker and Cornelius Conway Felton.

Harvard presidents have traditionally influenced educational practices nationwide. Charles W. Eliot, for example, originated America's familiar system of a smorgasbord of elective courses available to each student; James B. Conant worked to introduce standardized testing; Derek Bok and Neil L. Rudenstine argued for the continued importance of diversity in higher education.

History

At Harvard's founding it was headed by a "schoolmaster", Nathaniel Eaton. In 1640, when Henry Dunster was brought in, he adopted the title of president. Since Harvard was founded for the training of Puritan clergy, and even though its mission was soon broadened, nearly all presidents through the end of the 18th century were in holy orders.

All presidents from Leonard Hoar in 1672 through Nathan Pusey in 1971 were graduates of Harvard College. Of the presidents since Pusey, nearly all earned a graduate degree at Harvard. The only exception has been Drew Gilpin Faust, who was the first president since the seventeenth century with no earned Harvard degree.

Presidents of Harvard

The following persons have served as president of Harvard University:<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Template:Abbr	Image	Presidents	Term start	Term end	Length	Template:Refh
Headmaster of the New College (1637–1639)
–		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	1637	1639	Template:Time interval	<ref>Template:Cite magazine</ref>
Presidents of Harvard College (1639–1780)
1		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	August 27, 1640	October 24, 1654	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2		Template:Sortname	November 2, 1654	February 19, 1672Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
3		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	December 10, 1672	March 15, 1675	Template:Time interval	<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
acting		Template:Sortname	April 7, 1675	February 2, 1680	Template:Time interval
4			February 2, 1680	July 25, 1681Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="hist"/>
5		Template:Sortname	April 10, 1682	July 12, 1684Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name=":2">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="hist"/>
acting		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	June 11, 1685	June 23, 1686	Template:Time interval
rector			June 23, 1686	June 27, 1692	Template:Time interval
6			June 27, 1692	June 29, 1701	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="hist"/>
acting		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	September 6, 1701	September 12, 1707	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
7		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	January 14, 1708	May 3, 1724Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
8		Template:Sortname	July 7, 1725	March 16, 1737Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	<ref name=":2" /><ref name="hist"/>
9		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	1737	1769Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	<ref name=":2" /><ref name="hist"/>
acting		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	1769	1769		citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
10		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	May 21, 1770	December 1, 1773	Template:Time interval	<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>[1]
acting		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	1773	1774		citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
11		Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	July 18, 1774	August 30, 1780	Template:Time interval	<ref name="hist"/><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
Presidents of Harvard University (1780–present)
acting		Template:Sortname	1780	1781		[2]
12		Template:Sortname	September 5, 1781	September 25, 1804Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
acting		Template:Sortname	1804	1806
13		Template:Sortname	May 6, 1806	July 17, 1810Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
acting	File:Henry Ware Sr. (1764-1845).jpeg	Template:Sortname	1810	1810		[3]
14	File:JohnThorntonKikland.jpg	Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	November 14, 1810	April 2, 1828	Template:Time interval	[4]
acting	File:Henry Ware Sr. (1764-1845).jpeg	Template:Sortname	1828	1829		[5]
15	File:Josiah Quincy 1772-1864.jpg	Template:Sortname	January 29, 1829	August 27, 1845	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
16	File:Edward Everett, 1794-1865, three-quarter length portrait, standing, facing left (cropped closein 3x4).jpg	Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	February 5, 1846	February 1, 1848	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
17	File:Jared Sparks.jpg	Template:Sortname	February 1, 1849	February 10, 1853	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
18	File:James Walker Harvard.jpg	Template:Sortname	February 10, 1853	January 26, 1860	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
19	File:Cornelius Conway Felton (cropped).jpg	Template:Sortname	February 16, 1860	February 26, 1862Template:Efn	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
acting	File:Andrew Preston Peabody.jpg	Template:Sortname	1862	1862
20	File:Thomas Hill b1818.jpg	Template:Sortname	October 6, 1862	September 30, 1868	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
acting	File:Andrew Preston Peabody.jpg	Template:Sortname	1868	1869		citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
21	File:Appletons' Eliot Charles William.jpg	Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	March 12, 1869	May 19, 1909	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
acting		Henry Pickering WalcottTemplate:Efn	1900	1901		citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
			1905	1905
22	File:Picture of Abbott Lawrence Lowell.jpg	Template:Sortname	May 19, 1909	June 21, 1933	Template:Time interval	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
23	File:James Conant 1932.jpg	Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	1933	1953	Template:Time interval	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
24	File:Nathan Pusey Boston College 1963 (cropped).JPG	Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	June 1, 1953	June 30, 1971	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
25		Template:Sortname	July 1, 1971	June 30, 1991	Template:Time interval	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
acting		Henry RosovskyTemplate:Efn	1984	1984		<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
			1987	1987		citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
26		Template:Sortname	July 1, 1991	June 30, 2001	Template:Time interval	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
acting		Albert CarnesaleTemplate:Efn	November 29, 1994	February 1995		<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
27	File:Lawrence Summers 2012.jpg	Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	July 1, 2001	June 30, 2006	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
interim		Template:Sortname	July 1, 2006	June 30, 2007	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref name="hist"/>
28	File:Women in Economic Decision-making Drew Gilpin Faust (8414040540) (cropped).jpg	Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	July 1, 2007	June 30, 2018	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
29	File:Lawrence Bacow in San Francisco pictured 2006.jpg	Template:Sortname	July 1, 2018	June 30, 2023	Template:Time interval	<ref name="hist"/><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
30	File:Inauguration of Claudine Gay as President of Harvard University (3) (cropped).jpg	Template:SortnameTemplate:Efn	July 1, 2023	January 2, 2024	Template:Time interval	<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
interim	File:Harvard Alumni Day 2025 - Alan Garber 28 (cropped).jpg	Template:Sortname	January 2, 2024	August 2, 2024	Template:Time interval	<ref name=":3">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=":1">Template:Cite news</ref>
31			August 2, 2024	present	Template:Time interval	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Table notes: Template:Notelist

Timeline of Harvard University presidential terms

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External links

• Official Website
• History of the Presidency