High Above Manhattan, Overseers Confirmed Pick Just Hours Before Announcement

NEW YORK--The Harvard Board of Overseers, the University's second highest governing board, met yesterday on the 64th floor of a Rockefeller Center skyscraper in midtown Manhattan to confirm Lawrence H. Summers as the 27th president of the University.

Eighteen of the 30 Overseers arrived at the G.E. Building shortly after 10 a.m. Summers arrived earlier in the morning.

The presidential search committee began the 10:30 a.m. meeting, held in a private conference room with a view of the Twin Towers and the Empire State Building, by formally recommending Summers as the successor to outgoing University President Neil L. Rudenstine.

Overseers present at the meeting said committee members individually explained their reasons for selecting Summers--highlighting his intelligence, vision and focus on undergraduates. Afterwards, Summers himself discussed the importance of Harvard's mission, describing it as a catalyst for new ideas.

Overseer C. Dixon Spangler Jr., who was present at the meeting, described Summers' presentation as "well thought-out."

Summers and members of the Harvard Corporation then left the room, allowing the Overseers to conduct a private vote.

The vote was unanimous--18 yeas, zero nays.

"The Fellows recommended, and we discussed, considered and approved that choice," Spangler said.

Overseers said they did not just provide a rubber stamp to the search committee's decision. In the end, they said, accepting the choice is a matter of trust in the search committee's judgment.

"This is a consultative process. We are not the search committee. In the end we must trust them," said Overseer Aida Alvarez.

After the entire group dined together, President of the Board of Overseers Sharon E. Gagnon announced the results of the vote, prompting a series of celebratory toasts.

After the meeting, Overseers said they were pleased with the pick.

"Larry is someone who has been part of the Harvard community--he's both an insider and an outsider," Alvarez said. "He'd bring a fresh perspective, without a steep learning curve."

Overseers said they were not surprised or frustrated that many found out the search committee's pick from national news reports, rather than personal phone calls.

"I suspected that it would leak. I wasn't surprised at all," said Overseer Steven A. Schroeder. "It's not a big deal to me. What matters now is how good a job he does."

"Perhaps because I'm an elected official, I assume everything will always be leaked," said Overseer Sheila J. Kuehl, who is a state senator from California.

Early last week, Overseers received a Fed-Exed letter from the search committee inviting them to attend a meeting this weekend to confirm the committee's pick, although Monday's snowstorm delayed the delivery of some letters.

"It seemed like short notice and a strange sense of urgency," Kuehl said.

The letter also requested phone contact information from those who would not attend, in the event that a conference call would be necessary, but no conference calls were conducted at the meeting.

After the official announcement, Summers and members of the search committee chatted on the sidewalk outside of the building. Some waited for coach sedans to take them to the Newark Airport. They flew on a six-seat private jet to Cambridge for yesterday's evening press conference.

Prior to the official announcement, committee members remained tight-lipped about the search.

"I have absolutely nothing to say," Conrad K. Harper, a member of the Harvard Corporation who served on the presidential search committee, told reporters before the 10:30 a.m. meeting.

Afterwards, Harper smiled and said, "Now I can talk to you."

"I think [Summers] will be an excellent president," he said.

As the president-designee made his way toward his chauffeured sedan, he eagerly discussed the future with reporters.

"I'm excited and exhilarated and looking forward to the challenges ahead," Summers said.

--With additional reporting by Joshua E. Gewolb in Cambridge and David H. Gellis in Washington, D.C. and Cambridge.

--Staff writer Kate L. Rakoczy can be reached at rakoczy@fas.harvard.edu

--Staff writer Catherine E. Shoichet can be reached at shoichet@fas.harvard.edu.