Harvard President Search Committee Names Student Advisory Group

Harvard on Thursday unveiled an 18-member student advisory group that will counsel the search committee tasked with selecting the University’s 30th president.

The student advisory group, chaired by graduate student Christopher H. Cleveland ’14, represents all of Harvard’s graduate schools and the College. Only the College, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, and the Business School are represented with more than one member.

Cleveland previously served on the student advisory committee in 2017 during the search that selected University President Lawrence S. Bacow.

In the Thursday announcement, Penny Pritzker, senior fellow of the Harvard Corporation, who leads the presidential search committee, said she looks forward to working with the student advisory panel and learning “about the varied perspectives of their peers.”

“Harvard is home to some of the world’s most remarkable students, and it will be invaluable to benefit from the views of this group of outstanding students from across the university, as our search committee thinks about Harvard and its future leadership,” Pritzker said.

The timing of the formation of the student advisory committee closely mirrors previous searches. Following former University President Lawrence H. Summers’ departure from Massachusetts Hall, the 2006 search committee appointed the first student group following a chorus of complaints about a dearth of student involvement in the presidential search process.

The announcement comes roughly a month after the University announced the faculty and staff groups that will advise the presidential search committee.

Though the search committee has not provided a timeline for its process, some long-time donors and higher education experts expect the committee will deliver a final recommendation to the Board of Overseers by the first or second month of 2023. Bacow and his predecessor, Drew G. Faust, were both named to Harvard’s top post on February 11.

—Staff writer Cara J. Chang can be reached at cara.chang@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @CaraChang20.

—Staff writer Isabella B. Cho can be reached at isabella.cho@thecrimson.com. Follow her on Twitter @izbcho.