A message from Dean Jeremy M. Weinstein

Dear Harvard Kennedy School Faculty and Staff,  

I write today with profound sadness to let you know that José Antonio “Tony” Gómez-Ibáñez, Derek C. Bok Professor of Urban Planning and Public Policy, Emeritus, has passed away. Tony was a long-time faculty member at Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard Graduate School of Design, a leading scholar of infrastructure and transportation policy, and a giant of the Harvard community. In the telling of his many friends and colleagues, Tony’s brilliance was matched only by his kindness.

Tony first arrived at Harvard as an undergraduate student in 1966. He continued his education at HKS, completing his MPP in 1972 and his Ph.D. in 1975, before beginning his academic career in the City and Regional Planning Program at GSD. Tony’s service to GSD and HKS — spanning over 45 years — was remarkable in its breadth and tenure. At GSD, he served as chair of the Department of Urban Planning and Design and program director of doctoral programs and of the Master’s in Urban Planning program. At HKS, he served as faculty chair of the MPP program, co-chair of the Infrastructure in a Market Economy executive program, and chair of the Social and Urban Policy Area.

Tony had an enormous impact on some of the world’s most innovative infrastructure projects. As a young professor, he chaired Boston Mayor Raymond Flynn’s Transportation Advisory Committee. In addition, he worked closely with the National Research Council’s Transportation Research Board on issues of congestion pricing, highway cost allocation, and airline industry competition, and served as a consultant to governments, multinational institutions, and private companies. He was the author or co-author of four books and nearly 40 journal articles and book chapters on transportation and infrastructure policy. He was also a prolific author of economics, teaching cases on topics ranging from the Bolivian National Railway to the Australian fuel tax.

Perhaps most of all, Tony was beloved for his dedication to teaching and advising. Alumni described him as a “patient listener” and “marvelous mediator” who was “one of the most down-to-earth professors” with “a cool head and a warm heart.” That trademark kindness and generosity are why more than 500 colleagues, friends, and former students joined his retirement celebration in 2021, spending more than two hours sharing their stories, accolades, and gratitude for Tony’s wisdom and mentorship, as well as his signature fondness for bow ties. Many also contributed to a 46-page photo album to celebrate Tony’s 46 years of teaching at Harvard.

Graham Allison, who knew Tony across many decades — first as Tony’s college thesis advisor and then as Dean of HKS when Tony was hired as a faculty member — summed him up perfectly as “a wonderful human being and great teacher.” Henry Lee described Tony as “a serious scholar and a wonderful teacher” who will be remembered by friends and colleagues as a “uniquely kind and empathetic person, who touched each of us and made our lives so much richer.” Akash Deep, who led EE infrastructure programs after Henry and Tony did, said Tony “embodied the rare ideal of a true teacher” who “did not merely have students and colleagues; he had disciples in the classical sense: people inspired by his example who carried his approach to teaching, research, and intellectual life into their own work.” Ed Glaeser, the Fred and Eleanor Glimp Professor of Economics, noted Tony’s “elegant mind and great personal charm” along with his “significant contributions to the field of transportation economics,” adding that Tony “managed to combine policy expertise and scholarship to an almost ideal degree.”

As a tribute to Tony’s work on the study and practice of transportation and infrastructure policy, the Taubman Center offers a summer fellowship for HKS students (including joint-degree students) to work with a state or local department of transportation in the United States. That program will live on in his honor.

Our hearts are with Tony’s wife, Nan, and all in the HKS community who knew and loved him.  

Best,  
Jeremy