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The Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences elected six new members to its Faculty Council, elevating several professors hoping to exert more control over the University’s governance amid the Trump administration’s attacks on higher education.

The Faculty Council, a 19-member board chaired by FAS Dean Hopi E. Hoekstra, is arguably its most powerful faculty committee. The body oversees Harvard’s largest division, which includes Harvard College, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, and the Division of Continuing Education.

The new members are Economics professor Pol Antràs, Government professor Ryan D. Enos, Women Gender, and Sexuality professor Durba Mitra, Applied Physics professor Kevin K. “Kit” Parker, Philosophy professor Alison J. Simmons, and Mathematics professor Melanie E. Matchett Wood. They will begin their terms on July 1.

Six faculty members are elected annually to serve three-year terms. The election results, announced by Hoekstra at a Tuesday faculty meeting, come as Harvard faces unprecedented threats from Washington.

On Monday, the Trump administration announced a review of over $8 billion in grant commitments to the University as part of an ongoing investigation by its task force on antisemitism. Three days later, the White House made the funding conditional on Harvard eliminating its diversity, equity, and inclusion programming and banning protesters from wearing masks.

Matchett Wood said in an interview part of her motivation for joining the council was ensuring Harvard’s leadership would carefully consider how its response will affect the faculty.

“Even if we face challenges, it’s really important for faculty to be able to teach and research, guided by their scholarly expertise — and not forced to choose what to teach or research by political pressure,” Matchett Wood said.

The Faculty Council election also comes amid a wider effort by faculty to expand their role in Harvard’s governance. A planning body tasked with designing a University-wide faculty senate began work in December, taking a significant step towards giving professors a greater say in how the University is governed.

“My intent is to support the effort to re-identify the Faculty as the University’s main effort and re-emphasize the support and service support roles of the staff and administration,” Parker wrote in a statement.

Antràs said that he was looking forward to his new role on Faculty Council because it presented an opportunity to shape the future of Harvard at a particularly turbulent time.

“I’m excited about the possibility to learn more about how the university makes decisions, and I hope to contribute to guiding the university through this difficult time,” Antràs said.

Enos said that while he would prefer to be focused on his teaching and research, he also felt a responsibility to contribute to the University’s governance.

“Many faculty have been heavily involved in governance, but in general, we have given up our power of self governance as faculty,” Enos said. “What I hope the Faculty Council can do is try to regain some of that democratic governance that has characterized Harvard for most of its history.”

—Staff writer William C. Mao can be reached at william.mao@thecrimson.com. Follow him on X @williamcmao.

—Staff writer Veronica H. Paulus can be reached at veronica.paulus@thecrimson.com. Follow her on X @VeronicaHPaulus.