Since Nathan M. Pusey '28 resigned from the Harvard presidency in February 1970, the University has chosen two presidents and is now on the brink of picking a third.

Although the issues facing the Harvard presidential selection committee are drastically different today than they were in 1970, the Harvard's presidential selection process, rooted in tradition, has changed little over the past three decades.

The search for Pusey's successor Derek C. Bok provides a glimpse into the procedures and timing of the current process.

The presidential search of 1970-1971 that resulted in Bok's selection lasted nearly nine months and eliminated 1,200 candidates.

In February 1970, Pusey said he would resign, two years earlier than had been anticipated. Pusey had presided over a time of unprecedented student unrest and political controversy. Following on the heels of the Vietnam War and the Nixon administration, universities around the country were experiencing revolutionary change.

Harvard students took over University Hall at the end of 1969 only to be evicted by the police at Pusey's command. Students considered Pusey's action an unnecessary use of force. Following the take-over of University Hall, a number of top administrators involved resigned, opening up Harvard for a new administrative overhaul. Pusey officially stated his resignation in February of 1970, giving the Board of Overseers one year to find a replacement.

Seeking Bok

A committee of five Corporation members--two lawyers, two professors and one retired New York entrepreneur, led by Francis H. Burr '35--immediately set to work, sending out 203,000 letters to alumni, faculty and students, asking the community to help compile a list of candidates. They received 1,200 names--800 more than the search committee received this year. The search committee spent more than 30 hours each week on the selection.