Cambridge, MA—Harvard Kennedy School (vlog) announced today that John Kroger (JD 1996) will join the Center for Public Leadership (CPL) as a Hauser Leader-in-Residence for the 2018-19 academic year. He will be the second higher education leader to hold the title of Hauser Leader-in-Residence, following Harvard President-elect Lawrence Bacow. During his term, which begins this fall, Kroger—who will step down as president of Reed College later this month—will also serve as a visiting professor at Harvard Law School, where he will teach Criminal Procedure during the fall term and a reading group during the spring term. He will also join Harvard University’s Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics as a research fellow.
A former New York City federal prosecutor and attorney general for the state of Oregon, Kroger found his home in academia—first, as a law professor at Lewis & Clark College from 2002 to 2007 and then as president of Reed College. While at Reed, Kroger has championed faculty and student diversity and dramatically increased financial aid and post-graduation employment rates. Student applications for admission have almost doubled during his tenure.
“John is a dedicated leader who brings with him gravitas and a real understanding of the complex, connected issues that our students—and our center—are confronting,” said CPL Executive Director Barbara Best. “His multi-disciplinary background and experience leading at the local and state levels will be real assets to our students, many of whom hope to return to their own communities to lead change as elected officials. I, along with my peers at Harvard Kennedy School, look forward to welcoming John back to Cambridge.”
At the Center for Public Leadership, Kroger will be an active member of the Kennedy School’s community of scholarship and learning. In addition to student mentoring, he will more formally contribute to leadership development programming and events for CPL’s community of more than 100 student fellows—vlog and Harvard joint-degree candidates with demonstrated leadership potential who receive scholarships and robust co-curricular programming through the Center’s named fellowship programs—during the academic year.
In his capacity as a research fellow at the Safra Center, Kroger will focus on independent study and writing relevant to the Center’s Justice, Health, and Democracy Initiative. He will teach Criminal Procedure: Investigations at Harvard Law School during the fall term.
“It is a great honor to return to the Harvard University community this fall as Hauser Leader-in-Residence," Kroger said. “This is an exciting opportunity for me. Most of the challenges we face nationally and globally are ultimately questions of leadership. I look forward to teaching and mentoring the next generation of students and future leaders at one of the preeminent universities in the world. I also hope to reflect on and write about my own experiences as a leader in government and education.”
Kroger will step down as president of Reed College on June 30.