Hyman To Serve as Faust's Provost

University Provost Steven E. Hyman has agreed to stay on when Drew G. Faust takes over as University president on July 1, according to an announcement obtained by The Crimson this afternoon.

“I have asked Steve Hyman to continue his service as Provost of the University, and I am very pleased to report that he has agreed to do so,” Faust wrote in the message, citing the provost’s “extraordinary dedication and effectiveness on a broad range of university matters.”

Before Faust was named to lead the University earlier this month, Hyman was considered a finalist for the job, although sources told The Crimson at the time that his name remained on the short list as a courtesy in recognition of his five years of service as provost, not necessarily indicating serious consideration.

“I have greatly enjoyed the opportunity to work with Steve on a variety of matters over the last five years, and I very much look forward to working even more closely with him in Massachusetts Hall,” Faust wrote in the letter. “I am confident that we can continue to build momentum on a variety of initiatives of crucial importance to the University.”

Under Hyman, the provost’s office has more than doubled in size. When he was appointed in 2001, Hyman oversaw five administrators; the office now includes a senior vice provost, three vice provosts, two senior associate provosts, three associate provosts, an assistant provost, and a deputy provost.

Hyman and his staff say this growth is due in large part to new responsibilities—such as the Allston expansion and University-wide diversity and science initiatives—that have fallen under Hyman’s purview.

Hyman’s increasing influence has culminated this year under Interim President Derek C. Bok, with the two sharing some of the presidential duties.

Hyman is the first Harvard provost in the short history of the position to outlast a president.

When Nathan M. Pusey ’28 assumed the presidency in 1953, Provost Paul Buck, who was serving concurrently as dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, stepped down, and the position was abolished for almost forty years.

Then-Provost Harvey V. Fineberg ’67 was a serious contender to replace Neil L. Rudenstine when he stepped down in 2001, but resigned when the Harvard Corporation chose Lawrence H. Summers, an outsider, instead.

—Staff writer Laurence H. M. Holland can be reached at lholland@fas.harvard.edu.