Charles Vest memorial service set for March 6

The MIT community will gather to honor and celebrate the life of Charles M. Vest — who served the Institute as its 15th president, from 1990 to 2004 — on Thursday, March 6. Vest died of pancreatic cancer on Dec. 12 at age 72.

On March 6, a memorial service will be held at 4:30 p.m. in Kresge Auditorium; this will be followed by the unveiling of a portrait of Vest at 6 p.m. and a reception, both to be held in the newly renamed Charles M. Vest Student Street in the Ray and Maria Stata Center. Shuttle service will be provided from Kresge to the Stata Center.

The services will be open to the MIT community and friends of the Institute, who are also invited to share memories and condolences with the Vest family via an electronic guest book.

During Vest’s presidency — the third-longest in the Institute’s 152-year history —MIT renewed its commitment to education and research through major innovations in both areas; developed strong ties with academic, government, and industry partners around the world; broadened the diversity of its people and programs; and transformed its campus with dramatic new buildings.

After stepping down as MIT’s president, Vest served as president of the National Academy of Engineering from 2007 to 2013. The National Academy of Sciences will hold a memorial service in Washington on Thursday, Feb. 20.

Vest’s family has asked that gifts in his memory be made to the Charles M. Vest Presidential Fellowship Fund at MIT or to the Charles M. Vest President's Opportunity Fund at the National Academy of Engineering.