Appiah said the primary factor behind his decision to go to Princeton was his daily commute between Cambridge and New York City, where he lives with his partner.

“I realized that I was very worn down by the past seven years,” Appiah said, noting that he has racked up every possible type of frequent flyer bonus.

Given his dissatisfaction with the commuting life, Appiah said Princeton’s offer proved too difficult to pass up.

Princeton has appointed Appiah as Laurance S. Rockefeller University Professor of Philosophy. He will also continue his work in philosophy and ethics at the University Center for Human Values.

“It was not so much that I couldn’t do those things [at Harvard], but I could do them [at Princeton],” Appiah said.

At Princeton, he will join his close friend and academic collaborator Princeton Provost Amy Gutmann ’71, who founded the Center for Human Values. In 1996, Appiah and Gutmann co-authored Color Conscious: The Political Morality of Race.

Princeton’s board of trustees voted Saturday morning to officially approve Appiah’s appointment.

In a statement released Saturday, Princeton University President Shirley M. Tilghman said she was “delighted” to bring Appiah to Princeton.

“Anthony Appiah brings even greater distinction to our philosophy department, to our Center for Human Values, and to our distinguished and growing work in African-American studies,” Tilghman said.

Prior to Appiah’s Friday announcement, students launched a last-ditch effort to keep him at Harvard.

Ryan L. White ’04, who took a philosophy course with Appiah this fall, e-mailed various lists asking students to e-mail Appiah to urge him to remain at Harvard.

White said Appiah’s departure is “unfortunate” for students interested in studying the intersection between philosophy and race relations.

“He’s so brilliant, but there are a few other people here involved in the same field,” White said.

The renowned philosopher has been a member of the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) since 1991, shortly after his friend and colleague Gates took the helm of the Afro-American studies department. He is also chair of the African studies committee.

Appiah is perhaps most well-known for his critically acclaimed book In My Father’s House.