Mr. Pusey - President of Harvard University

HH Priya Nath would ever afterwards recall the intense humility of the Americans. He recalled how the President of Harvard, in 1967, Mr. Pusey, had been present at a welcoming party for the new students at the University. He walked around the large hall in the midst of the hundreds of students shaking hands with as many as he could and simply saying: "I am Pusey!" He wore a small badge on his coat lapel with that name.
Pusey, Nathan M. (Nathan Marsh), {1907-2001}, was the twenty-fourth President of Harvard University from 1953 to 1971. He was also President of Lawrence College (1944-1953), President of The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation (1971-1975) and President of the United Board of Christian Higher Education in Asia (1978-1983). Pusey's tenure as President of Harvard University was defined by the construction of new buildings, expanded fundraising, and emergence of student unrest and the social activism of the late 1960s.

An excellent student, Pusey attended the Abraham Lincoln High School and became editor of the school paper, President of the Philomathian Literary Society, a member of the debating club, basketball team, and President of the Junior Class. Entering Harvard University on a Charles Elliott Perkins Scholarship, Pusey was known for his methodical work habits and scholarship. He was selected to the Dean's List for four years and elected to the Harvard chapter of Phi Betta Kappa his senior year.

Pusey's post-graduate activities consisted of a trip to Europe (1929), teaching at the Riverdale Country Day School in the Bronx, New York City (1929), spending a summer studying Greek (1931), and attending the American School of Classical Study in Athens, Greece, as an Archibald Cary Coolidge Fellow (1932).

Pusey began a teaching career as a sophomore tutor at Lawrence College in 1935. He moved on to Scripps College in 1938 as an Assistant Professor of history and literature. Later, Pusey became a professor of Greek and ancient history at Wesleyan University (1940), where in addition to his history instruction, Pusey taught physics to naval aviation students during World War II.

Pusey's organizational abilities and administrative skills were recognized when he was elected President of Lawrence College in 1944. At Lawrence College, Pusey increased the endowment, enhanced faculty benefits, and improved the curriculum by adding a new course, Freshman Studies, which emphasized the discussion of ideas through the study of classic works of literature, art, and music.

In 1953, Nathan M. Pusey became Harvard University's twenty-fourth president, the first non-New Englander to head the school. Known as a tireless fundraiser and educational reformer, Pusey was charged with the task of improving undergraduate education and the liberal arts program. Pusey's presidency was marked by several major accomplishments.

Under Pusey's stewardship, Harvard University grew. Faculty and administrative ranks increased from 3000 to 8500, student enrollment rose from 10,000 to 15,000, and Summer and Extension School enrollment expanded from 4,400 to 10,000. The operating budget of the University increased from $39 million to $200 million.

After his Harvard Presidency, Pusey lent his name, time, and administrative talents to several charitable organizations. Pusey served four years as President of the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation (1971-1975) and was President of the United Board for Christian Higher Education in Asia from 1979 to 1983. He also served on the boards of many charities including Fountain House, a charity that counsels the mentally ill. In addition to his charitable work, Pusey was an active member of the Episcopal Church, a member of the Central Committee of the World Council of Churches, and Chairman of the Fund for Theological Education.