Pusey, Nathan M. (Nathan Marsh), 1907-2001

Nathan Marsh Pusey (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 for Christian Higher Education in Asia (1978-1983). Pusey's tenure as president was defined by new building construction, greater fundraising, and struggles with student protestors.

Pusey graduated from Harvard in 1928 and served as President of Harvard University from 1953 to 1971.

College president.

Nathan Marsh Pusey (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.

Nathan Marsh Pusey was born on April 4, 1907 at Council Bluffs, Iowa, to John Marsh Pusey (1866-1908) and Rosa (Drake) Pusey (1877-1947). Pusey's father died when he was a year old, leaving his mother, a school teacher, to raise Pusey and her two other children, John and Esther.

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.

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.

Pusey's years at Harvard University were not without controversy or difficulty. Towards the end of his tenure, the student movements that were having an impact worldwide also came to Harvard. Campus unrest, centered chiefly on protests against the Vietnam War and Harvard's expansion came to a head in 1969. Pusey took a dim view of student demonstrations and sit-ins and was regularly attacked by students and the Harvard Crimson. For Pusey, the ideals of reason and civility on campus were being threatened and had to be protected. In April 1969, when dozens of students took over University Hall to protest the presence of the Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) on campus and forcibly evicted the Deans, Pusey engaged the police, wearing riot gear, to remove the protesters. The scene of the police battling students was broadcast on television and viewed around the world, drastically altering perceptions of Pusey's administration and overshadowing its many accomplishments. Pusey announced in February 1970 his intention to retire.

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.

Nathan Pusey led Harvard University during a time of rapid growth and turbulent change. He guided Harvard's post-war transformation and expansion, helped to build the faculty, improved student financial aid, and expanded undergraduate education. Pusey was remembered by his friends and colleagues as a caring and warm person, who made an enormous difference in strengthening every aspect of College life.

Nathan Marsh Pusey died in New York City on November 24, 2001 at the age of 94.

Nathan Marsh Pusey married Anne Woodward Pusey (1914-2004) on June 10, 1936. They had three children: Nathan Marsh (b. 1937), James Reeve (b. 1940), and Rosemary (b. 1942).

Below is a list of the members of the Nathan Marsh Pusey Family. Each is preceded by their relationship to him.