Of Note
A Wonderful Whirl
Mounted atop the Soldiers Field Park Garage, two wind turbines — 40-foot towers with 11.5-foot blades — represent Harvard’s biggest wind-energy project to date. Weighing more than 1,000 pounds each, the turbines are expected to supply 5 to 10 percent of the seven-story garage’s electricity needs and contribute to a University-wide goal of cutting greenhouse gas emissions 30 percent by 2016.
Houghton Steps Down
James R. Houghton (MBA ’62), the longest-serving member of the Harvard Corporation and chair of the University’s 2006–07 presidential search, will step down at the end of this academic year. Houghton, chairman emeritus of Corning Inc., joined the University’s executive board in 1995 and became its senior fellow in 2002. Houghton was praised by Harvard President Drew Faust for his “extraordinary devotion” to Harvard and his “profound concern for the well-being of the University and its people.”
Cyberposium 15
Last November’s Cyberposium, titled “Navigating the Digital Storm,” marked the fifteenth anniversary of what many call the premier on-campus tech gathering in the United States. Organized by the HBS student-run TechMedia Club, the event attracted some 700 attendees and speakers who addressed topics ranging from cloud computing and converging devices to venture capital. Keynote speakers included YouTube CEO Chad Hurley and Jim Balsillie (MBA ’89), co-CEO of RIM, maker of the BlackBerry. For more, visit http://tinyurl.com/yc7yfox.
Kerr, Nanda Win Fellowships
In January, the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation granted two of five fellowships in the amount of $50,000 each to HBS assistant professors William Kerr and Ramana Nanda to fund ongoing research on innovation and entrepreneurship. Awarded through the Kauffman Emerging Scholars Program, the fellowships recognize the achievements of young scholars who are making significant contributions to research in entrepreneurship.
Jensen Donates Grant
HBS professor emeritus Michael Jensen, an influential expert in the areas of agency theory, organizational design, and incentives, was awarded the 2009 Morgan Stanley–American Finance Association Award for Excellence in Financial Economics. Jensen, whose research was cited for its far-reaching impact on corporate finance, corporate governance, and law and economics, announced in January that he will donate the $200,000 cash grant to the National Bureau of Economic Research, Harvard Business School, and the Simon Graduate School of Business at the University of Rochester.
Search in Progress
Twelve senior HBS faculty are working with Harvard President Drew Faust and several other faculty members from across the University as part of an advisory search group to consider the opportunities and challenges facing HBS as it selects a new dean. The group’s work is part of a broad outreach process that is expected to culminate with the announcement of a new dean sometime this spring. (See Q&A with outgoing Dean Jay Light.)
You Have to Save to Win
Playing off the popularity of lottery games, HBS professor Peter Tufano has designed a savings program called “Save to Win,” now being tested at eight credit unions in Michigan. To participate, individuals open a one-year certificate of deposit, earning a chance to win a $100,000 prize for every $25 saved. Aside from better odds, the program offers something much more tangible for thrill-seeking lotto players: money in the bank. Since its launch in January 2009, Save to Win has attracted $3.8 million in new deposits from almost 9,500 members in its first 28 weeks of operation.
