Lawrence Bacow

From Grokipedia

Lawrence S. Bacow is an American academic administrator, lawyer, and economist who served as the 29th president of Harvard University from July 2018 to June 2023. Prior to Harvard, he held the position of chancellor at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology from 1998 to 2001 and was the 12th president of Tufts University from 2001 to 2011, where he advanced commitments to teaching, research, public service, need-based financial aid, and institutional streamlining. A faculty member at MIT for nearly 25 years, Bacow specialized in environmental policy, negotiation, and dispute resolution, authoring books and articles on these topics while chairing the MIT faculty from 1995 to 1997. His leadership at Harvard included navigating the COVID-19 pandemic and launching initiatives on the university's historical ties to slavery, amid broader debates on institutional legacies and equity in higher education. Now Harvard Professor of Public Policy Emeritus, Bacow is recognized for fostering academic innovation, civic engagement, and expanded student opportunities across his tenures.

In brief

Bacow started as a professor of environmental studies at MIT and rose to chancellor there before taking the presidency at Tufts. He knew campuses from the faculty side first.

Harvard called him back as a steady pair of hands. He held the office for five years, then stepped aside so the corporation could choose a successor.