University President Lawrence H. Summers returned to Washington on Wednesday for the first time since assuming the Harvard post.

Summers’ first visit as president comes in the context of comments by friends and colleagues who have said that Summers is ideally suited to use the bully-pulpit of his position at Harvard. While Rudenstine spoke out on the national stage in measured ways, some at Harvard have said they hope that Summers could do so more vocally and more often.

Summers was one of seven university presidents in town for an event sponsored by the Science Coalition, an organization of research institutions that lobbies for increased science funding.

The event included faculty from the coalition’s 62 member schools, and was intended to focus lawmakers on the need for additional funding of science endeavors. Presidents from Columbia University, the University of Pennsylvania, Yale University, MIT, and the State University of New York at Stony Brook attended in addition to Summers.

Former University President Neil L. Rudenstine had attended similar events in the past, but according to Director of Federal and State Relations Kevin M. Casey, the early timing of Summers’ first visit was symbolic of the attention the new president will pay to Washington affairs.

“Neil was very engaged down here, but [for Summers] to come down so soon is symbolic,” Casey said. “Larry comes with a natural feel for the pulse down here. And while it’s not necessarily the same folks he’s used to dealing with, he comes with a name and face that’s known,” he said.

At a dinner on Wednesday night, Summers introduced a familiar face in former Speaker of the House Newt Gingrich, who he worked with during his time at the Treasury Department.

“Here were two people on seemingly opposite sides of the aisle coming together on the issue of science funding,” Casey said. Despite his reputation as a budget cutter, Gingrich has been a strong supporter of the universities’ goal of greater funding, Casey said.