Office of the University Provost and Senior Vice President

Dates

• Existence: 1951

Biography

Abstract:

The Office of the Provost was created in 1951 after the retirement of George S. Miller from his posts of Vice President and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Tufts College. In 1953, after original provost John P. Tilton was elected Senior Vice President, the position was renamed Senior Vice President and Provost.

The Office of the Provost was created in 1951 after the retirement of George S. Miller from his posts of Vice President and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences at Tufts College.

After Miller's retirement, Tufts President Leonard Carmichael decided to further divide up the responsibilities of the administration to coincide with the expansion of the college. The position of provost was created to assume the academic administrative duties covered by Miller when he was Vice President. The new provost was expected to oversee the academic affairs of the institution, especially faculty appointments and curriculum problems. The provost also serves as chair of the Academic Council.

In 1953, after original provost John P. Tilton was elected Senior Vice President, the position was renamed Senior Vice President and Provost. The change in the title added control over not only the academic and financial affairs of the university, but also made the provost the immediate assistant to and stand in for the president.

Tilton, the first provost, served from 1951 until his untimely death in 1959. A month later, Leonard Mead was named to the post, and served until 1965. Mead was succeeded by Albert Ullman, who held the position until 1973. After Ullman's retirement, Tufts named Kathyrn McCarthy to the position, making her the first female provost. McCarthy resigned in 1979, citing differences with the administration on the direction of the university. After her resignation, the university conducted a nationwide search for a replacement, and in 1981 hired Tufts professor Sol Gittleman, at the time the chair of the Department of German and Russian Languages. After serving in the position for over 21 years - a tenure believed to be the longest in American higher education - Gittleman stepped down from this post in 2002. He continues to teach and pursue research at Tufts as University Professor.

Jamshed Bharucha was appointed Provost and Senior Vice President of Tufts University in August of 2002. As of summer 2006, Provost Bharucha has been active with starting the Summer Scholars program, the Provost's Fellows program and the Graduate Competitiveness Initiative and in increasing faculty recruitment and development, successfully bringing accomplished scholars and leaders as new Deans to Tufts.

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