Bok to Announce Choice Of New Treasurer Today

The appointment of a new Harvard Treasurer to replace George F. Bennett '33 will come today, concluding a nine-month search.

The replacement of Bennett, who has consistently backed corporate managements in proxy fights involving Harvard's investments, may signal a change toward more liberal attitudes on shareholder responsibility.

President Bok said yesterday that he expects the announcement of the new Treasurer to come this afternoon, after the Board of Overseers confirms the appointment.

The appointment was ratified by the Corporation last Monday.

Besides being the University's chief financial officer, the Treasurer is a full member of the Corporation, and is traditionally considered to be the President's foremost adviser.

Worldly Occupations

The new appointee will be the first Treasurer to hold the position as his principal occupation. All previous Treasurers have held outside jobs, usually in the financial world, as their major occupation.

Last September, when Bennett announced his intention to resign from the post, he cited an overload of work as his principal reason for leaving. On top of the Treasurership, he has headed the State Street Research and Management Corporation, one of Boston's largest investment counseling firms.

Aside from his normal duties, the new Treasurer will be charged with working to determine a new system for managing Harvard's $1.4 billion of investments.

He will help to choose among several alternatives including setting up an investment department within the University, dividing the endowment among several outside firms for them to invest, or continuing under the current system of having one outside firm manage all of Harvard's money.