A new fellowship to support students enrolled in a joint degree program between the Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Law School will be granted beginning in the fall of 2012, the Kennedy School announced yesterday.

The fellowship will be granted in memory of Henry A. Hubschman, a 1972 graduate of the Law School and 1973 graduate of the Kennedy School, who died of cancer at the age of 63 last February.

The fellowship, which is funded by a permanent endowment, will be one of the limited merit-based competitive fellowships offered by either school.

“Educating students about the issues at the intersection of law and public policy is key to the Kennedy School’s mission of training exceptional public leaders,” said Kennedy School Dean David T. Ellwood in the school’s press release.

“This gift will help us attract and engage the very best students to Harvard,” Ellwood added.

Since being formalized in 2006, the objective of the HKS/HLS Joint Degree Program has been to promote interdisciplinary education in public policy and law, in order to prepare students for public service leadership.

The fellowship aims to encourage the brightest students to pursue this joint academic venture, especially in a world where critical issues demand cross-field knowledge in law and policy, said Law School Dean Martha L. Minow in the press release.

The fellowship also honors Hubschman’s own involvement in careers pertaining to law, government, and business during his lifetime.

In business, Hubschman was widely recognized as a leader in the aviation industry, as President and CEO of GE Capital Aviation Services.

Prior to his time at GE, Hubschman worked in Washington D.C. as a nationally recognized litigation partner at the law firm of Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver and Jacobson. During the Carter era, he served as Executive Assistant to the Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development and later served as a board member of the Federal National Mortgage Association.

“This fellowship is a perfect tribute to Henry,” said Ben W. Heineman Jr., a longtime friend of Hubschman and a distinguished senior fellow at the HLS Program on the Legal Profession. “He had a brilliant professional career at the intersection of law, policy, politics and business, and was always grateful for the skills and perspectives he developed as a joint degree student almost 40 years ago.”