Woman Chosen to Lead Harvard

Faust will end the succession of 27 white men who have held the president's title at America's oldest institution of higher education. She will take the reins from Derek Bok, 75, a former 20-year Harvard president who took over as interim leader when Summers left.

"And it has only taken them 371 years," said Kim Gandy, president of the National Organization for Women. "Larry Summers, we couldn't have done it without you."

Faust became dean of the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study in 2001 and taught history and African American studies there. Before coming to Radcliffe, she taught for two decades at the University of Pennsylvania -- where she earned her doctorate in American civilization in 1975 -- and served as director of the Women's Studies Program. She is the author of five books.

Sheldon Hackney, who was president of Penn from 1981 to 1993 while Faust was a teacher there, said Faust was not only a great educator but always displayed sound judgment and was well-respected by her peers.

"She will be really good for Harvard," he said. "There is no big significant change that you can make in the university for which you don't need faculty support, and she will be able to get that."

Some educators said the choice of Faust was a surprise because she does not have extensive administrative experience. That was probably a plus, said George Washington University President Stephen Joel Trachtenberg.

"They didn't want anybody with administrative experience," he said. "They wanted an inspirational leader, a political symbol, a decent person that everybody could feel good about to help them do what the presidents do best."

The decision is expected to be formalized at a special meeting of the university's Board of Overseers tomorrow, according to the Harvard Crimson student newspaper, which broke the story in yesterday's editions, along with the Boston Globe.