Harvard Fills New Legislative Liaison Post

The man who is filling Harvard's newly-created post of director of government relations is a combat veteran from the demilitarized zone separating higher education from government.

Peter L. Coddington started work last Monday as a liaison between Harvard and the state and national legislatures. He says he is responsible for representing the University's views to lawmakers on all important issues that involve Harvard.

Long Road

Coddington comes to Harvard from Vanderbilt University, where he served as director of external affairs since 1966. Before that, he headed Princeton's summer studies program and did consulting work in education for the Reading Lab in Philadelphia. He began his academic career in 1950, teaching History and Philosophy at Wesleyan University.

Coddington's work at Vanderbilt was similar to his new assignment. He said yesterday that one of the matters he had to deal with was an unsuccessful attempt by some members of the Tennessee state assembly to abolish all co-ed dorms.

"The legislation even contained detailed construction requirements for future dorms, to keep students from clawing their way through to each other," Coddington said.