James R. Houghton
(A.B. 1958, MBA 1962)
Chairman, Corning Inc.
The Senior Member He saved his great-great-grandfather’s glass empire from the dot-com bust, when the demand for fiber optic cable plummeted, but the hands-off attitude he assumes at Corning Industries has not served him well on the Corporation. Criticized heavily from both sides for his leadership (or lack thereof) during the Summers imbroglio, the senior fellow on an inexperienced board should realize that in this presidential search, his reputation is at stake.

Robert Rubin (A.B. 1960)
Director, Chair of the Executive Committee, Citigroup
The Defender of Summers’s Legacy As Secretary of the Treasury under Bill Clinton, Rubin presided over an unrivaled period of economic growth. Though Democrats and Republicans alike still regard him as a financial and political sage, Rubin was unable to convince other Corporation members to save the Summers presidency. Previously rumored to be the least engaged fellow, Rubin is reportedly highly involved in the current presidential search.

Robert D. Reischauer (A.B. 1963)
President, the Urban Institute
The Liaison The former director of the Congressional Budget Office was one of Summers’s close Washington buddies. Even so, he was among the first on the board to conclude, along with Keohane, that the Summers presidency was lost. Considered the fellow with the deepest knowledge of the university’s administration (he served previously on the Board of Overseers) Reischauer will likely be sensitive to faculty views during the vetting process for the next president.

James Rothenberg (A.B. 1968, MBA 1970)
President and Director, Capital Research and Management Company
The Financial Whiz Though he doesn’t spend much time on campus, Rothenberg brings valuable West Coast perspective to the board. He is also a passionate alum: co-chair of his 30th and 35th College reunions, he endowed a fellowship for MBA candidates and served on the dean’s advisory councils for the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and the Business School. As the university’s treasurer, his litmus test for the next presidency will likely revolve around finances: any contender must boast stellar fund-raising skills.

Nannerl O. Keohane
Rockefeller Professor of Public Affairs, Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs at Princeton University
The Former Ringleader Widely thought to be the leader in Summers’s ouster, the former president of Wellesley and Duke has garnered her share of enemies—New Republic owner Martin Peretz slammed her in the magazine as “a recognizable type in the academic cosmos: the professor who disguises mediocrity with status.” But others admire her consensus-building style—and Summers himself once called her a “thoughtful academic leader.” Her closeness to the faculty initially led many to peg her as a presidential contender, but she has flatly rejected the proposition.

Patricia A. King (J.D. 1969)
Waterhouse Professor of Law, Medicine, Ethics, and Public Policy, Georgetown University; Adjunct Professor at the School of Public Health, Johns Hopkins University
The Newcomer The successor to Conrad Harper, King was initially wary of being asked to replace an African-American on an otherwise all-white board. An expert on the legal and ethical aspects of biomedical science and genomics, King already serves on dozens of advisory committees and is the vice chair of the Kaiser Foundation. As the newest member of the board, she would typically have the smallest role in selecting the next president. On the other hand, she is an academic with a law degree, which could give her a significant role in vetting a leading candidate, Harvard Law School Dean Elena Kagan.

Derek Bok (J.D. 1954)
300th Anniversary University Professor, Interim President
The Steady Hand In his second turn on the Corporation—he was also a member during his first presidency, from 1971 to 1991— the conciliatory law professor wants to steer clear of the search for Harvard’s next leader. Until the end of his mandate in July 2007, Bok will be focused on a list of action items beyond “just holding things in place,” as he said in September; concluding the undergraduate curricular review started under Summers is a top priority.