On September 18, 1890, William Rainey Harper was elected by the Board of Trustees as the first President of the University of Chicago. President Harper assumed office on July 1, 1891, beginning the succession of thirteen chief executives who have led the University for more than a century. The current President, Robert J. Zimmer, assumed office on July 1, 2006.
The progression of Presidents has been varied only once during the University’s history, from 1945 to 1961, when the Board of Trustees designated the head of the University of Chicago as the Chancellor. From 1945 to 1951, Ernest C. Colwell served as President, acting as chief operating officer under Chancellor Robert M. Hutchins. From 1951 to 1961, during the administration of Chancellor Lawrence A. Kimpton, the title of President was not used. In 1961, at the decision of the Board of Trustees, George M. Beadle, who had been elected as Chancellor, resumed the title of President, and the chief executive of the University of Chicago has since been designated as the President.
Vice Presidents of the University of Chicago were appointed as the demands of the President’s Office increased. The first Vice President was James R. Angell, appointed in 1918 to act in the absence of President Harry Pratt Judson, who was traveling abroad as a member of the international American-Persian Relief Commission. In December 1923, Trevor Arnett was appointed the first Vice President and Business Manager, and in January 1924, James H. Tufts was appointed the first Vice President and Dean of the Faculties. In 1963, the title Vice President and Dean of Faculties was discontinued, and Edward H. Levi was appointed as the first Provost of the University of Chicago.