The Next Harvard President

The search for the next University president is now in its final days. Though the deliberations have unfortunately been kept secret, it appears likely that only four candidates remain in consideration by the Search Committee: University of Michigan President Lee C. Bollinger, Harvey V. Fineberg '67, Princeton professor Amy Gutmann '71 and former Treasury Secretary Lawrence H. Summers. These candidates are all exceedingly strong, and we are sure the University would prosper under any of them. But because the deliberations have been conducted outside of the public eye, and because students have been repeatedly excluded from meaningful participation, we feel it necessary to express to the committee our views on the candidates and the criteria on which they should be assessed.

The first and foremost consideration should be undergraduate education. The administration of President Neil L. Rudenstine has been marked by relative disinterest in issues of undergraduate education in favor of fundraising and administrative activities. Now that Harvard's capital campaign is complete and the coffers full, the new president must not squander the opportunity to invest in the undergraduate experience, especially in areas where Harvard may be falling behind such as science and technology. The College remains the central part of this University, and the next president's strengths and interests should reflect this fact--he or she should have an intense interest in, and significant experience with, undergraduate education. Second, the next president of the world's leading university should be a powerful national voice on education issues. Third, the next president should have a strong scholarly background. Finally, Harvard's next president should be a significant actor on the political stage, wielding a political influence commensurate to Harvard's stature in the nation and the world. With these criteria in mind, we now turn to the candidates, in alphabetical order.

Lee C. Bollinger

Bollinger has little on his resume relating to direct connection to undergraduates, but he is reportedly very well regarded by students at the University of Michigan. His public advocacy on issues of affirmative action and minority education show him to have the potential to be a powerful player on the national stage. He is also a renowned First Amendment scholar and, perhaps more than any of the candidates except Summers, has articulated a political platform. But Bollinger is the diametric opposite of Fineberg in terms of Harvard affiliation; though his daughter is a member of the Class of 1998, Bollinger did not attend and has never taught at Harvard and may have much to learn about Harvard's administration.

Harvey V. Fineberg

Fineberg has been a front-runner in the presidential search perhaps even before it began. He has been a strong administrator and an invaluable player in the Rudenstine era, and has a good record of pushing for science and technology improvements in the College. His long tenure at the University gives him better knowledge of Harvard than any other candidate. But he has played a relatively small role in undergraduate education. Fineberg is well-liked by students in his role as a professor at the School of Public Health, but undergraduates have had little interaction with him. And while he has spoken out on issues of public health, he has not articulated a broader vision for undergraduate education. Fineberg has been constrained in the last few years by his role as a central member of the Rudenstine administration, from which it would have been difficult for him to differ on policy issues. Yet we would feel more comfortable knowing that Fineberg has a vision for the University more expansive than that shown during the Rudenstine years.

Amy Gutmann

Gutmann, the only woman on the short list, is currently the director of the Center for Human Values at Princeton. She easily meets the criterion of interest and experience in undergraduate education. She has written several books on education reform, advocated tenure reform and embraced faculty diversity during her short stint as Princeton's Dean of the Faculty. Gutmann's efforts to engage undergraduates and to promote the progress of women in the sciences indicate her concern for the undergraduate experience. Furthermore, Gutmann is a renowned scholar in her field. Though she is not as well-known in the political arena as Bollinger or Summers, her work at the Center for Human Values has equipped her well for the national stage. She has more experience at Harvard than any candidate except Fineberg; she attended Harvard as an undergraduate, received her doctorate here, served as a visiting professor at the Kennedy School and has a daughter who is currently an undergraduate.

Lawrence H. Summers

Summers has strong academic and political credentials. An academic superstar, he received his doctorate in economics from Harvard and at 28 became the youngest tenured professor in Harvard history. His rise to the post of Treasury Secretary during the Clinton Administration was equally swift and marked with success. A major participant in the Mexican bailout, he is a respected thinker on issues of globalization. Though Summers is well-connected in Washington, there is little indication that undergraduate education is his primary interest. And while he has a broad view of education from a global perspective, his views on specific issues of pedagogy and higher education are unknown.

No one yet knows which of these four candidates will eventually be chosen--or even if another, thus far hidden from public view, will emerge to take the post. The efforts of the Search Committee to shroud the process in secrecy have effectively prevented students from assessing the candidates' major interests or visions for change.

Under these circumstances, we do not feel it would be appropriate to endorse a candidate. But we are gravely concerned that the deliberations thus far have been nearly free from student influence. Though all four candidates are qualified for the position, there are important differences between them. Though the next president of Harvard will not be chosen by undergraduates, he or she must be prepared to lead them, and we urge the committee to take undergraduates' concerns into account.