Students in all faculties will also receive a request for input as the academic year begins.

During the last presidential search, the committee received about 2,000 responses to its requests for outside input, said University spokesperson Joe Wrinn.

The Harvard Corporation, the University's highest governing body, is charged with finding its 27th president. The group must also obtain the approval of the Board of Overseers, the second highest governing body.

The search committee consists of the Corporation--minus Rudenstine--and three Overseers.

"We will, of course, be seeking a person of high intellectual distinction, with proven qualities of leadership, devotion to excellence in education and research, a capacity to guide a complex institution through a time of significant change, and a dedication to the ideals and values vital to a community of learning," Stone writes.

"We aim to reach out broadly across the Harvard community--to faculty, students, staff, alumni, and friends--to solicit both general advice and specific nominations. Responses to this letter will be a critical element of that process," he adds.

The two names most often mentioned at this stage are prominent figures within the University--Provost Harvey V. Fineberg '67 and Dean of the Business School Kim B. Clark '74.

During the summer, popular speculation even swirled around whether either half of the first couple might trade the White House for Mass. Hall. However, both the first lady and the president are widely seen as too controversial to take the reins. University insiders instead point to what may be more realistic, less sensational choices--administrators already within Harvard's gates.