Richard E. Oldenburg `54 has been elected President of the Board of Overseers for the 2001-02 school year.

The director emeritus of the Museum of Modern Art in New York, Oldenburg recently served on the search committee that selected Lawrence H. Summers to fill the post being vacated by University President Neil L. Rudenstine in July.

Oldenburg, who was elected at the March meeting, will assume his post after Commencement. He will succeed Sharon E. Gagnon as the head of Harvard's second-oldest governing body just as Summers prepares to move into Mass. Hall.

"I feel most honored to have the privilege to serve as president of the Board, especially during a year when we will welcome a new president of the University," Oldenburg said in a statement.

Rudenstine also noted that Oldenburg's term, coinciding with Summers' first year, is of particular importance.

"In what will be an important year of transition for Harvard, I am sure that Dick will lead the Overseers with a discerning eye, a steady hand and a strong commitment to the university as a place of learning and of culture," he said in a statement. "Dick Oldenburg is both a leading figure in the world of arts and culture and an admired alumnus who has served the Board of Overseers with great devotion and wisdom."

First elected to the Board of Overseers in 1996, Oldenburg has served on many of its committees, including the executive committee, the ad hoc committee on women undergraduates and the committee on humanities and arts, of which he is the chair.

Oldenburg said the Overseers would likely focus on undergraduate education during the following year.