The University has created a new office within its central administration to oversee the growing number of interdisciplinary programs.

Sean T. Buffington '91, a development officer, will take over as the assistant provost for interfaculty programs on May 17.

Buffington will supervise "interfaculty initiatives"--academic programs that cut across several of Harvard's schools.

Harvard began with five interfaculty initiatives on ethics and the professions; children; environmental studies; mind, brain and behavior; and health policy.

But now the University is adding new interdisciplinary programs, including several international centers and the Native American Program.

With the initiatives expanding, the University decided it needed someone to oversee them and created the assistant provost position.

Buffington currently works in Harvard's fundraising office, focusing on raising money for the interfaculty initiatives. Officials at the development office said his appointment as assistant provost will help coordinate fundraising and the interfaculty initiatives themselves.

"It's a wonderful thing for us," said Tamara Elliot Rogers '74, Buffington's supervisor at the development office. "It makes us that much stronger--it's great to have a link from the development office to the Provost's office...It shows how important the Provost's office thinks this is."

With a mere six months remaining in the University's five year, $2.1 billion capital campaign, Harvard has only raised about $20 million of its $40 million goal for interfaculty initiatives.