Alan Garber

Alan Michael Garber (born May 7, 1955) is an American physician and health economist, who has served as the 31st president of Harvard University since December 7, 2024. Previously, he served as provost of Harvard University from 2011 to March 2024. Prior to joining Harvard, Garber was a faculty member at Stanford University.

Alan Garber
Garber in 2025
31st President of Harvard University
Incumbent
Assumed office August 2, 2024 interim: January 2, 2024
Preceded by	Claudine Gay
Provost of Harvard University
In office September 1, 2011 – March 14, 2024
Preceded by	Steven Hyman
Succeeded by	John F. Manning
Personal details
Born	(1955-05-07) May 7, 1955 (age 70) Illinois, U.S.
Spouse	Anne Yahanda
Children	4
Education	Harvard University (BA, MA, PhD) Stanford University (MD)
Scientific career
Fields	Health economics
Institutions	Stanford University Harvard University
Thesis	Costs and control of antibiotic resistance (1982)
Doctoral advisors	Martin Feldstein Zvi Griliches Richard Zeckhauser

Early life and education

Garber was born in Rock Island, Illinois, in 1955, to Jean and Harry Garber. His mother was a social worker, while his father owned a liquor store.^[1] Garber's twin sister, Deborah is an artist, and his older brother, David, made aliyah and lives in Jerusalem.^[2] Belonging to a Jewish family, Garber grew up attending synagogue and a Jewish summer camp.^[3] He graduated from Rock Island High School in 1973.^[4]

Garber received a Bachelor of Arts with a major in economics in 1976, a Master of Arts in economics in 1977, and a PhD in economics in 1982.^[5] While pursuing his PhD at Harvard, he enrolled simultaneously at Stanford University, where he received a Doctor of Medicine degree in 1983.^[6] He later reflected that he was "a reluctant and ambivalent pre-med" when starting college, switching his major from biochemistry to economics, but that his education led "eventually to a career that combined the two interests".^[7]

He completed his residency training in internal medicine at Harvard Medical School-affiliated Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston in 1986.

Career

Garber began his career as an assistant professor at Stanford University in 1986.^[8] His research focused on cost-effectiveness in healthcare .^[9] While at Stanford, he also worked as a clinician at the Veterans Affairs Medical Center in Palo Alto.^[10] Garber's tenure at Stanford ended in 2011, when he left to succeed Steven Hyman as the provost of Harvard University on September 1, 2011. He served as provost until March 14, 2024, when John F. Manning took on the position on an interim basis.^[11]

Garber has held various positions and titles since joining Harvard, including the Mallinckrodt Professor of Health Care Policy at Harvard Medical School, Professor of Economics in the Harvard Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Professor of Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School, and Professor in the Department of Health Policy and Management in the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health.^[12][13]

He succeeded Claudine Gay as the president of Harvard University in 2024.^[14][15] Garber was initially appointed as an interim president, on January 2, 2024. On August 2, the Harvard Corporation announced that he would be the permanent president of the university for a fixed term of three years ending at the conclusion of the 2026–2027 academic year. He was installed as the 31st president of Harvard University on December 7, 2024, in a private ceremony at Menschel Hall, one of the Harvard Art Museums.^[16] In 2025, he was elected to the American Philosophical Society.^[17]

Tenure

Opposition to graduate student unionization

In July 2016, the Harvard University Office of the Provost launched a web page in response to efforts to unionize its graduate students.^[18] On August 23, 2016, following the Columbia decision that restored union rights to teaching and research assistants, the provost office wrote in an email to students, "we continue to believe that the relationship between students and the University is primarily about education, and that unionization will disrupt academic programs and freedoms, mentoring, and research at Harvard."^[18] Following a decision by the regional director of the National Labor Relations Board that Harvard was in violation of the Excelsior rule, Garber defended the university appeal to the National Labor Relations Board in Washington, D.C.,^[19] writing that the university "believes that the November 2016 election results, which reflect the votes and voices of well-informed students, should stand, and has appealed the Regional Director's decision to the contrary".^[18]

Private corporation board memberships

In October 2019, The Harvard Crimson reported that SEC filings record that since being appointed as Harvard's provost in 2011,^[20] Garber earned more than $2.7 million by serving on the boards of directors for two pharmaceutical companies, Exelixis^[21] and Vertex Pharmaceuticals.^[22] Garber responded that he had thoroughly disclosed his industry affiliations in conflict of interest forms for the university,^[20] and the companies indicated that his compensation was normal for board members.^[20]

2024 commencement

The Harvard administration drew criticism for preventing 13 undergraduates from collecting their diplomas at the May 2024 commencement ceremony as a consequence of their participation in pro-Palestinian protests.^[23] Nearly 500 Harvard faculty and students criticized the sanctions as disproportionate, unprecedented, and designed to stifle open discourse,^[24] while others identified the action as an example of an "Exception" to free speech.^[25] The decision was initially overturned by 115 faculty members of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, but ultimately was reinstated by the Harvard Corporation in May 2025.^[26]

Clash with the Trump administration

Garber applauded at Harvard Alumni Day (June 6, 2025)

On April 11, 2025, the Trump administration sent a letter to Garber threatening to cut back billions in federal funding unless Harvard accepted government demands that included requirements to "audit" the viewpoints of student body, faculty, staff, and to "reduc[e] the power" of certain students, faculty, and administrators targeted because of their political views.^[27] It also demanded several pro-Palestinian student organizations to be dismantled and banned. On April 14, Garber announced that it had informed the administration through its legal counsel that the university had refused the Trump administration's proposed agreement.^[28] Garber's decision was hailed by many left-leaning political activists, including Barack Obama and Bernie Sanders.^[29] In response, the Trump administration began a series of legal assaults against the university, including asking the Internal Revenue Service to revoke the tax-exempt status of the university,^[30] freezing 2.2 billion dollars in federal funding to the university,^[31] and barring the university from enrolling international students.^[32][33] At the University's 2025 commencement, Garber received multiple standing ovations during his speech for his defiance of the Trump administration.^[34] He received similar applause at the annual Alumni Day celebration the following week.^[35] According to the The Atlantic, Garber believes that Havard has failed to confront Campus anti-Semitism similarly to the position of the Trump administration.^[36]

Personal life

Garber married Anne Yahanda, an oncologist, in 1988.^[7] They met at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, where both were completing post-graduate training. They have four children, all of whom attended Harvard University.^[1] Garber is an observant Jew.^[36]