Harvard appoints Alan Garber as president through 2026-27 academic year

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (AP) — Harvard University announced Friday that its interim president Alan Garber will serve as president of the school through the end of the 2026-27 academic year.

The university plans to launch a search for his successor in the late spring or summer of 2026. Garber has served as interim president since January 2, when former president Claudine Gay resigned after facing backlash over her congressional testimony about antisemitism on campus as well as plagiarism accusations.

Penny Pritzker, senior fellow of the Harvard Corporation, wrote in a message to the campus that after serving as Harvard’s provost for more than twelve years, Garber did an outstanding job leading the school through what she described as extraordinary challenges.

“We have asked him to hold the title of president, not just interim president, both to recognize his distinguished service to the University and to underscore our belief that this is a time not merely for steady stewardship but for active, engaged leadership,” Pritzker wrote.

Garber helped shepherd the school during a time of deep divisions. Harvard was one of a number of colleges where students participated in a wave of pro-Palestinian tent encampments protesting the war in Gaza.

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