William Harris (April 29, 1765 – October 18, 1829), an Episcopal priest, was the sixth president of Columbia College, serving from 1811 to 1829.
[1] In a compromise, John Mitchell Mason, a Presbyterian minister who was denied the presidency, became the university's first provost and chief operating officer.
After rectoring in Marblehead, Massachusetts, he was made a deacon on October 16, 1791, in Trinity Church, New York, and advanced to the priesthood on the following Sunday in St. George's Chapel.
Harris continued to officiate both as teacher and preacher until 1801, when he received a unanimous call to St. Mark's Church in-the-Bowery to fill the vacancy caused by the death of the Rev.
At the same time, Dr. John M. Mason, the prominent Presbyterian divine, who had been proposed for the presidency, was made provost, an office created for him and carrying with it some of the administrative duties.