Harvard Announces New Board of Overseers President with a History of Promoting DEI
Harvard University has named Vivian Hunt to serve as the next president of the Board of Overseers. Hunt, who graduated from the university in 1989 and has been on the board since 2019, has a long history of advocating for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) practices.
According to the Harvard Crimson, Hunt was announced to serve as the board’s president on Monday. She is set to serve in this position of overseeing the university’s second highest governing body for the 2024-2025 academic year.
Hunt’s advocacy for diversity is underscored by her co-authorship of the 2015 paper “Why Diversity Matters,” where she argues that companies with more diverse leadership perform better than those without.
Hunt has also been a critic of “meritocracy.” In a 2020 interview, she argued that “treating people evenly” perpetuates racism and bias.
“A neutral position that is meritocratic, that is good at treating people evenly, isn’t good enough. It allows the bias that is in our systems … it allows it to perpetuate,” Hunt said. “You have to proactively stand for an antiracism environment.”
Hunt’s appointment follows the resignation of former Harvard President Claudine Gay amid a plagiarism scandal and contentious remarks made during a congressional hearing on antisemitism at the university. In the House Education Committee last December, Gay refused to answer whether or not the antisemitism being promoted on campus was a violation of the institution’s code of conduct.
After Gay’s departure, several outside candidates vied for spots on the university’s Board of Overseers to move past the strong DEI sentiment being pushed by Harvard. However, these efforts were unsuccessful. Harvard has since seen a decline in donations as well as a significant decrease in applications.
Harvard spokesperson Jason A. Newton previously said in a statement that, “this has been a challenging time and a period of transition for the Harvard community.”
