Overseers name new senior officers

Sheryl WuDunn and Raymond J. Lohier Jr.

Veasey Conway/Harvard Staff Photographer

May 21, 2026 5 min read

Raymond J. Lohier Jr. to serve as president, Sheryl WuDunn as vice chair

Raymond J. Lohier Jr. ’88, a federal judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, has been elected president of the Harvard University Board of Overseers for the 2026-2027 academic year. Sheryl WuDunn, M.B.A. ’86, an author, management consultant, and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, will serve as vice chair of the board’s executive committee for the same term.

“Raymond Lohier and Sheryl WuDunn are distinguished alumni whose devotion to the University shines through their service,” said President Alan Garber. “They share a deep commitment to the well-being of our students, as well as a keen interest in strengthening our visitation process. I appreciate their work on behalf of our community. I am eager to see the ways in which their leadership will advance the efforts of the board.”

The larger of Harvard’s two governing boards, the Board of Overseers is composed of and elected annually by Harvard degree holders. Overseers play an integral role in the governance of the University and direct the visitation process, the primary means for regular external assessment of Harvard’s Schools and departments. Through its array of standing committees, and the roughly 50 visiting committees that report to them, Overseers examine the quality of Harvard’s programs and assure that the University remains true to its charter as a place of learning.

Drawing on its members’ diverse experience and expertise, the board also provides counsel to Harvard’s leadership on priorities, plans, and strategic initiatives. It also has the power of consent to certain actions, such as the election of members of the Corporation, Harvard’s other governing board.

“This is about giving back,” said Lohier. “It’s a privilege to serve on a board of dynamic, committed, and extraordinarily talented people of all backgrounds and experiences who offer their time, expertise, and thoughtfulness to the task of advising the University. No matter the circumstances, the board is committed to ensuring that Harvard’s departments and Schools continue to deliver the best education and academic scholarship in the country and the world.”

Lohier has served as a federal judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit since December 2010. After earning his undergraduate degree from Harvard College in 1988 with a concentration in philosophy, and his J.D. from New York University School of Law in 1991, Lohier began his legal career as a clerk to Judge Robert P. Patterson Jr. of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York before becoming an associate at Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton in New York. He later served as a senior trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and as assistant U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, where he led the Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force, among other roles.

Alongside his judicial responsibilities, Lohier has held leadership positions at a number of professional and academic institutions, including at the Judicial Conference of the United States, the American Law Institute, and the board of trustees of New York University School of Law. He also recently co-chaired an ad hoc committee of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine.

As a Harvard Overseer since 2021, he has chaired both the standing committee on arts and humanities and the elections working group. He also serves on the executive committee, the committee on institutional policy, the subcommittees on visitation and governance, and the governing boards’ joint committee on alumni affairs and development. He has also played a key role in University visiting committees, including those for classics, philosophy, and Harvard Law School.

WuDunn, the first Chinese-American reporter to win a Pulitzer Prize, is the co-author of five books and the co-founder and principal of consulting firm FullSky Partners. She previously served as a vice president in the private wealth investment management division at Goldman, Sachs & Co., and held a range of roles at The New York Times, both as an executive and as a journalist. WuDunn holds a B.A. from Cornell, an M.P.A. from Princeton, and an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

“It is a tremendous honor to serve as vice chair alongside Ray Lohier, all my dedicated fellow Overseers, and in partnership with President Garber and leaders across the University,” said WuDunn. “At a moment when higher education faces extraordinary challenges and scrutiny, I believe the role of the Overseers in helping safeguard the University’s academic excellence, integrity, and long-term mission has never been more important.”

WuDunn is a member of the board of directors of BayFirst Financial Corp., and a trustee at Oregon Public Broadcasting and the Oregon Journalism Project. She is also a former member of the boards of trustees at Princeton University and Cornell University and has been a Hauser Visiting Leader at the Harvard Kennedy School.

As a Harvard Overseer, WuDunn serves on the executive committee; the committees on humanities and arts and Schools, the College, and continuing education; the elections working group; the subcommittee on visitation; and the advisory committee on honorary degrees. She has also served on the committee on social sciences and the governing boards’ joint committee on alumni affairs and development, and has been engaged on visiting committees for Harvard Business School, Harvard University Information Technology, and Earth and Planetary Sciences.

Lohier and WuDunn will take up their roles after Commencement, succeeding outgoing Overseers president Sylvia Mathews Burwell ’87 and executive committee vice chair Monica Bharel, M.P.H. ’12.