University Elects New Overseers

Four prominent male businessmen and one lawyer assumed positions on the Board of Overseers on June 6, fulfilling the University's announced intention of increasing the representation of members of the financial community on the larger of Harvard's two governing boards.

The new Overseers, who were elected by members of the Associated Harvard Alumni to six-year terms, are: Albert V. Casey '43, president of American Airlines; Thomas Jefferson Coolidge, Jr. '54, chairman of Back-Bay-Orient Enterprises and a prominent figure in American-Korean trade relations; Thornton F. Bradshaw '40, president of Atlantic Richfield, one of the nation's largest oil companies; Rilbert D. Storey '58, a partner in the Ohio law firm of Burke, Haber and Berick; and Frank Stanton, former president of the Columbia Broadcasting System.

None of the new Overseers have been available for comment since the announcement of their election.

A controversy over the nomination of candidates for the board arose last November, when one Overseer alleged that the AHA had attempted to "rig" the elections by nominating an unusually large percentage of members of the financial community.

University officials replied at the time that although they hoped more financially-oriented candidates would be elected to the board, and in turn aid in Harvard's fundraising efforts, there had been no "rigging" of the election.

A high-ranking AHA official, who asked not to be identified, said this weekend that the election of the five new Overseers "was about what we had been hoping for." He added, however, that the alumni organization had "not "interfered in any way with the normal election process."

The Board of Overseers is a 30-member panel that is responsible for heading the various visiting committees that periodically assess the educational status of various branches of the University. Harvard's other governing board, the seven-member Corporation, oversees the University's financial and administrative affairs.