This week, as the campus prepares for the upcoming inauguration of President Christina Paxson, The Herald is publishing a three-part series, “Shaping the Presidency,” examining the role of the presidency through almost 250 years and 18 previous presidential tenures. These stories take a look at the evolution of the University’s top leadership post and the mantle Paxson has inherited.
As leadership transitions to the Paxson administration and focus shifts to the programs she will put forth, questions regarding the role of a modern-day University president gain salience. What started as supervision of the day-to-day facets of the workings of the school has transitioned to a position of great power in fundraising, framing the direction of the University’s vision, and impacting higher education at as a whole.