Claudine Gay recently became inaugurated as Harvard University’s latest president, becoming the first Black person to lead the school.
In a ceremony held on Friday, Gay, a professor of politics, gender and race, officially gained the title of the president of Harvard after assuming the role in July.
Attended by leaders of 185 learning institutions across the globe, the ceremony featured a variety of speeches as Gay was officially presented by the Ivy League school’s last three presidents, the senior fellow of the Harvard Corporation, Penny Pritzker, as well as the president of the Board of Overseers, President Meredith Hodges.
With her inauguration, Gay became not only the first Black person to lead the school but also the second woman to lead the school.
“Our stories — and the stories of the many trailblazers between us — are linked by this institution’s long history of exclusion and the long journey of resistance and resilience to overcome it,” said Gay in her speech per The Harvard Gazette. “And because of the collective courage of all those who walked that impossible distance, across centuries, and dared to create a different future, I stand before you on this stage — in this distinguished company and magnificent theater, and at this moment of challenge in our nation and in the world, with the weight and honor of being a ‘first’ — able to say, ‘I am Claudine Gay, the president of Harvard University.’”
The daughter of Haitian immigrants who attended CUNY schools to earn their degrees in nursing and engineering, Gay graduated from the Phillips Exeter Academy in New Hampshire and attended Stanford University where she earned an undergraduate degree in economics. The scholar later attended Harvard University where she received her doctorate in 1998.
ICYMI: Claudine Gay was inaugurated on Friday afternoon as the 30th president of Harvard University, symbolically assuming leadership of the University during a ceremony held in Tercentenary Theatre amid a heavy downpour.@claireyuan33 and @mherszenhornhttps://t.co/FH1biOS8DL
— The Harvard Crimson (@thecrimson) September 30, 2023
Gay eventually joined the faculty staff at the Ivy League school as a professor of government in 2007 before becoming a professor of African American studies a year later.
Before becoming president of Harvard, she served as the dean of Harvard’s social sciences and most recently, as the dean of the school’s faculty of arts and sciences.
With her newest role, Gay will be leading the school in its newest initiative to end legacy admissions and discrimination in the student admission processes.
In July, Harvard was accused of admitting as much as 15% of their student body based on them being white and due to donor and legacy preferences; according to the lawsuit, BIPOC students were all underrepresented amongst the total admitted students due to legacy and donor admissions.
Overall, the school’s admitted students are overwhelmingly white, as roughly 41% of their student body is made up of white students. Meanwhile, Black students made up only 15% of those who were admitted, while Latinx admissions represented only 11% of the students.
Although Harvard did not comment on their latest lawsuit, the school emphasized that they have an increasingly diverse class back in March as they announced a new financial aid program dedicated to making the Ivy League school more accessible.
“Each year Harvard seeks extraordinarily talented students from across the nation and around the world,” said William R. Fitzsimmons, dean of admissions and financial aid, in a press release. “The students admitted to the Class of 2027 are remarkable by any measure, and we hope they choose to bring their diverse ideas, beliefs, and experiences to our campus.”
