With its strong tradition of selecting its own faculty for key leadershipLeadership positions on campus, Williams has become one of higher learning’s most dependable presidential training grounds. By Jim Mulvihill Illustrations by Robbi Behr ’97 Study nlike most of the dozen college presidents to have emerged from the Williams College faculty over the last 40 years, Steve Lewis ’60 envisioned his destiny at an early age. As a student at Williams in the late 1950s, the future president of Carleton College told revered political philosophy professor Robert Gaudino that someday he would like to be a dean or even a college president. Gaudino eyed him suspiciously and responded pointedly with mock surprise, “But, Mr. Lewis, I thought you were interested in education!” While the majority of colleges and universities keep faculty and administration separate and beyond arm’s reach, Williams has mingled the two branches success- fully for decades. With faculty taking turns as deans or provosts every few terms, Hopkins Hall has become one of higher learning’s most dependable presidential training grounds. Williams, in turn, has inadvertently established itself as a “go-to” institution for liberal arts schools in need of leaders. “The fact that a number of people in senior positions at Williams have gone on to be presidents means that they’re interested in doing so and have had good training,” says Madeleine Green, VP and director of the Center for Institutional and International Initiatives at the American Council on Education (ACE), where she develops pro- grams on leadership and change manage- ment. The former interim president of Mount Vernon College, who has served on the boards of several small colleges, adds, “What boards usually look for is a person with senior administrative experience or experience as president at an institution that looks somewhat like theirs.” That is precisely what happened in January when Provost Catharine

14 | Williams Alumni Review | September 2006 “Cappy” Hill ’76 was named the 10th president of Vassar College. dents are recruited from within their own institutions, according Hill replaces Frances D. Fergusson, who held the post for 20 years. to ACE’s survey “The American College President,” Williams has “The minute you move into one of these positions—the provost chosen one of its own (including Hewitt) 41 percent of the time. or the dean of the faculty’s office—you start getting called about “It has to do … with the atmosphere of civility at Williams,” possibilities,” Hill says. “Once you’re in the job for five or seven says Chandler, who joined the faculty in 1955 as an assistant pro- years you really learn the ropes and get a very broad exposure to fessor of religion and then climbed the ladder to department chair, how the institution works. It puts you in a pretty good position to provost, dean of the faculty and then president, first at Hamilton go be a president.” and then at Williams from 1973 to 1985. “The sense of loyalty to and responsibility for the College contributes to the fact that the iring top administrators from within is “quite faculty, to a rather large extent, runs the College. Colleagues are common in major research universities,” says John taking turns at the big jobs, and there’s not the animosity between Chandler, Williams’ 13th president, who as a consul- faculty and administration. Many colleges and universities have tant has helped to place at least 40 college presidents rather intense political divisions internally, but the Williams faculty using his contacts and understanding of the requisite doesn’t seem to get caught up in that.” skills to identify qualified candidates. To illustrate that point, Lewis recalls when serving as provost he “But at most institutions, particularly the smaller colleges, they shocked the wife of a new hire from California with a housewarm- look to the outside,” Chandler says. “It’s a little mysterious as to ing gift of wine and a six-pack of beer. “If you bring in a bunch of why they look to those giants striding across other lands. They may people from big state universities, there is not the sense of institu- appear better because you see them at a greater distance, and their tional loyalty and that culture of collegiality,” he says. blemishes and warts are not as obvious.” Despite Gaudino’s friendly chiding, Lewis served two separate Not so at Williams, which in its 213- terms as provost at Williams, where the assimilation of faculty year history counts six former faculty into administration propelled him toward his goals at an unusu- members among its 16 presidents, ally young age. The economics professor was 30 when he was plus John Haskell Hewitt, the appointed provost his first time around. Garfield Professor of Ancient “I felt like I was taking my turn as a citizen of the College who Languages, who served as knew some things and was trusted by a reasonable number of interim president from 1901 people,” Lewis says. “I wanted to be helpful if I could. to 1902. While 27.8 per- It was really that, rather than a career perspective, cent of U.S. college presi- that moved things along.” At the age of 50, having served nine years total as provost, Lewis was named the ninth president of Carleton in 1987. (Today’s typical college president is 58.) Morty Schapiro, another young president to emerge from the economics faculty, was an assis- tant provost at Williams before University of Southern California tapped him to be chair of its eco- nomics department and, in 1994, dean of the College of Letters, Arts and Sciences and later VP for planning. He became Williams’ 16th president in 2000. Lewis, along with Neil Grabois, a former dean and provost at Williams and president of Colgate University from 1988 to 1999, and Michael McPherson, a Williams

September 2006 | Williams Alumni Review | 15 Williams Faculty Members Who Have Become College Presidents Since 1960

William G. Cole (religion), Lake Forest College (1960-1969)

Vincent M. Barnett (political science), Colgate University (1963-1969)

Dwight J. Simpson (political science), Robert College (1965-1967)

John W. Chandler (religion), econ professor who was president of picked John Chandler to be acting pro- Hamilton College (1968-1973); Macalester College from 1996 to 2003, vost. Then it was just a series of us folks Williams College (1973-1985) “are all people who served the College in from inside.” Francis C. Oakley (history), Hopkins Hall and had a chance to prove Sawyer’s influence reached well beyond Williams College (1985-1993) themselves,” Schapiro says. “More impor- organizational changes. The faith he had in tant, they had a chance to decide that this his charges was just as important in push- Steven R. Lewis ’60 (economics), was a life they might want to pursue. Some ing them to assume greater responsibility. Carleton College (1987-2000) people really like it and want to stay on, “My apprenticeship with Jack Sawyer and others try it for a few years and say, was really quite thoroughgoing,” says Neil R. Grabois (mathematics), ‘Thank you, but that’s enough.’” Chandler. “He had me working on a lot Colgate University (1988-1999) of issues, even though my official title was Peter Berek (English), illiams’ first president acting provost, then dean of faculty.” Mount Holyoke College (interim, 1995) to arise from the Chandler was typically in charge of faculty was none other personnel matters, but Sawyer insisted he Michael S. McPherson (economics), than Mark Hopkins, become involved in other areas, includ- Macalester College (1996-2003) Class of 1824, a ing many of the most polarizing issues 30-something profes- of the late 1960s and early 1970s. When Charles Karelis (philosophy), sor of moral and intellectual philosophy fraternities were abolished, Chandler Colgate University (1999-2001) when he was tapped to succeed Edward gained valuable experience meeting with Dorr Griffin. The College’s next three alumni and student groups to explain the Morton Owen Schapiro (economics), Williams College (July 2000-) presidents—Paul Chadbourne, Class of controversial decision. 1848; Franklin Carter, Class of 1862; and “I learned a lot of lessons from Jack, Catharine B. Hill ’76 (economics), Hewitt—likewise were former faculty. especially about bringing constituents Vassar College (July 2006-) Following a 70 year-gap, the trend along,” Chandler says. “No president can reemerged in 1973, when Chandler, a for- succeed without having opinion leaders Provided by the Office of Public Affairs mer chair of the religion depart- from the student body and the faculty ment, was named the College’s and the alumni accompanying you in the 14th president. It was Chandler’s direction you’re going.” mentor, John Sawyer, who cre- Another Sawyer protégé was Grabois, ated the positions of provost who was the dean of the College under and dean of faculty, the key Sawyer and a provost under Sawyer and stepping-stones to a presi- Chandler. dency at Williams or any other “It was all a matter of chance, hardly liberal arts college. aspiration, that an opportunity came up “Jack started in 1962 and to take on the provost’s position, which I brought Joe Kershaw in from did for a few years before going on leave,” the RAND Corporation to be Grabois says. “It was around that time the first provost of the College,” that I began to be aware of the fact that I Lewis explains. “Kershaw went had a lot of experience in administration on leave in ’65-’66, and Sawyer at Williams and that I was fortunate to

16 | Williams Alumni Review | September 2006 have worked with some extraordinary econ department meetings in 1985 went to the illustrious list of faculty members presidents. It seemed I ought to at on to become college presidents.” who have become college presidents. least think about the possibility of a Yet the anomaly is no accident, as any “The fact that a very surprising number presidency.” of the four—Lewis, McPherson, Schapiro of people had this opportunity doesn’t Many of the presidents marvel at and Hill—will tell you. mean, in my judgment, that the College Sawyer’s uncanny ability to see potential “The economics department spent a lot should be grooming people for presiden- they had yet to realize in themselves. of time in our meetings thinking about the cies,” Grabois says. “I do think it is a con- “He was always five moves ahead of good of Williams as a whole,” McPherson tinuing part of the Williams tradition that everybody on the chess board and was says. “I think of the great leaders I relatively young people who have demon- always thinking about long-term con- experienced—Bill Gates, Henry Bruton, strated some talents are given opportuni- sequences,” Lewis says. “Jack was very Roger Bolton, Gordon Winston, Ralph ties and that they are not obliged by virtue explicit with us youngsters about what he Bradburd, Steve Lewis. At department of those opportunities to think that they was doing, why he was doing it, how he meetings, of course, we would deal with are now and forevermore administra- was doing it, what the sequence was and the business of the department, but we tors. In a sense it’s the very structure of so on. It was just a continual seminar on would also talk about policy issues that Williams and the way it’s managed that leadership and governance.” were affecting Williams as a whole.” gives you a very broad perspective on During his tenure as provost, Lewis the College and how it develops. That he latest generation of col- regularly sought the advice of departmen- is implicitly incredibly good training for lege presidents from the tal colleagues on issues he was wrestling considering going beyond Williams.” Williams faculty includes a with at the college level. A final reason for the parade of presi- highly improbable number “In rather subtle ways, though I wasn’t dents marching out of Hopkins Hall, and of economists, which Lewis particularly conscious of it, we were being one that should not be underestimated, attributes to “The Sawyer- socialized into thinking of ourselves as is the stellar reputation Williams has as a Gates-Kershaw Effect.” The theory citizens of a college,” McPherson says. premier liberal arts college. In the case of recognizes a powerful chain of economists “I didn’t know Jack Sawyer, but I potential leaders, it is not simply a matter at Williams that ran concurrently from the sure knew Steve Lewis,” says Schapiro. of what they have done, but where they influential president to department chair “When he went off to become president have done it. Bill Gates ’39 to Sawyer’s earliest provost, of Carleton and was so successful and “People naturally look to the institu- Kershaw. enjoyed it so much, it was natural that tions that they think are well run and at “Gates, I think, was responsible for in the back of my mind, and in other the top of their games,” Schapiro says. creating the culture in the department,” people’s minds, presumably, we thought, “It’s not surprising that when a place is Lewis says. “He made it clear at our ‘Well, Steve really likes it, maybe we looking for a president they would look departmental lunches that we, collec- should think about it.’” at a provost or dean of the faculty at tively, as a group of economists and as a Williams. Quite a lot of schools admire department, had a responsibility to think s long as Williams continues what we do and think that maybe they about the whole institution. The people to develop top administra- can import part of what makes Williams who have succeeded since I was there have tors from within for its own so special.” ■ continued that.” benefit, there is no reason to Schapiro calls it “bizarre” to consider think more of them won’t Jim Mulvihill is a freelance writer based in that “four of us who were sitting around eventually add their names Houston, Texas.

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