Aga Khan Discusses Administration of Grant

Prince Karim Aga Kahn '58, leader of 20 million Ismaili Muslims, met with advisory committees from Harvard and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) yesterday to discuss the use of an $11.5 million grant he made to the two universities last April.

The grant seeks to promote Islamic art and culture in architecture.

"It [the program] spans an enormous area of the world and an enormous area in time," the Aga Kahn said last night. "It will have to address itself to teaching faculty in other countries."

He met with deans of the professional schools in the morning, conferred with the program's advisory committees in the afternoon, and dined on filet of beef at 17 Quincy St. in the evening.

The Aga Kahn's money will endow a chair at Harvard, one at MIT, and a visiting professorship and assistant protessorship at each university, as well as expanded information programs at their libraries and museums. It will also finance exchange programs and a fellowship program for doctoral students.

In his meetings with the Faculty Council, the advisory committee and the library committee yesterday afternoon, the groups discussed the organization of the library's document centers and started procedures for hiring people next year, Oleg Grabar '50, chairman of the Fine Arts Department, said last night.

Sheer Energy

The Aga Khan said, "We're talking about a concern for information. That in itself means coordinating the library." He said he chose Harvard and MIT because the United States will lead architecture around the world, and these two institutions "offer strong components in initiating a program."