Recent Grad Takes On Social Post

After emerging from the foam of the Mather Lather and trading his Hahvahdparties.com t-shirt in for a graduation gown, Zac A. Corker ’04 will move into a University Hall office Monday to begin as special assistant for social programming, University officials announced yesterday.

For the next nine months, Corker will work with Assistant Dean of the College Paul J. McLoughlin II and Associate Dean of the College Judith H. Kidd to expand the range of social activities for students in a position created after Corker approached the deans last spring.

In addition, he will work directly with student groups including the Undergraduate Council’s First-Year Social Committee, Crimson Key Society and the Freshman Prefect Program as well as the athletics department and other student organizations.

“Dean Kidd and I are happy to have Zac [Corker] join us in supporting students’ social opportunities,” McLoughlin said in a statement. “Zac’s prior HoCo [House Committee] and Class Marshall work, plus his creativity, are a strong combination that will be an asset to the campus.”

When Corker returns to Cambridge this weekend after working in Washington, D.C. for the Kerry campaign, he’ll be taking up residence in Pforzheimer House.

He said that living on campus and being a recent alum will make him accessible to students. Dean of the College Benedict H. Gross ’71 also said that there are advantages to having a recent grad in this social position.

“I think having recent alums working with the College gives us a better feel for student life,” Gross wrote in an e-mail on Monday.

Corker and University officials say the new position was necessary to help students deal with the confusion surrounding College and city policies and procedures—all of which affect planning a social event.

Corker doesn’t have any specific events planned yet, but he said he has many ideas about the way the administration can help support student activities.

“There’s plenty of creativity and ideas among undergraduates,” he said. “I want to integrate social life with the college experience.”

Erin K. Sprague ’05, president of the Crimson Key Society, agreed that this new position will aid student groups in planning social events.

“I think it will do a lot to connect students to undergraduate life,” Sprague said. “I think the fact that he’s young, just graduated and still very connected to student body will help him relate very well to students.”

—Rebecca D. O’Brien contributed to the reporting of this story. —Staff writer Bari M. Schwartz can be reached at bschwart@fas.harvard.edu.