Dive Brief:
- The Massachusetts Institute of Technology revealed Monday that Provost Chris Kaiser will step down at the end of October, returning to the faculty as a professor of biology.
- Kaiser served as provost since July 2012, and previously served as head of MIT's Department of Biology for eight years.
- Along with Faculty Chair Steve Hall, Kaiser will still co-lead the community engagement process centering around July's report on MIT's role in the Aaron Swartz prosecution and the issues stemming from it.
Dive Insight:
Kaiser's tenure as MIT's provost was short but eventful. In just over a year on the job, he had to contend with the suicide of digital activist Aaron Swartz, who was being prosecuted by the school for allegedly stealing millions of documents. In a July report, MIT contended that it committed no wrongdoing and didn't target Swartz. The rise of edX, MIT's MOOC collaboration with Harvard, also happened under Kaiser's watch. That last bit of information should make it no surprise that Kaiser plans to take a more active approach to online learning upon his return to teaching.