Hanna Holborn Gray

Hanna Holborn Gray, born in 1930 in Heidelberg, Germany, served as president of the University of Chicago from 1978 to 1993, the first woman to head a major research institution in the U.S. Through her many initiatives the school saw increased applications and enrollment, ambitious building expansion, and new ventures such as the creation of a Department of Computer Science, the Chicago Humanities Institute, and the Irving B. Harris Graduate School of Public Policy Studies. Gray received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 1991. Updated 2007