The White House’s Office of Management and Budget confirmed the end of last week that America’s first ever federal Chief Information Officer (CIO), Vivek Kundra, is leaving his government position for a fellowship at Harvard here in Boston.

After his two and a half year stint leading the White House on the tech front, Kundra will leave in mid-August for a joint fellowship at Harvard’s Shorenstein Center on the Press, Politics and Public Policy at Harvard Kennedy School and the Berkman Center for Internet & Society.

“When [Kundra] began at the White House, he brought with him the promise of good ideas and a hard-charging style focused on getting things done, necessary qualities to tackle the difficult issues facing Federal IT – an aging infrastructure with rising operating costs, too many major projects failing to deliver, and increasing vulnerability to outside threats,” explained OMB director Jack Lew in White House blog post. “He has cracked down on wasteful IT spending, saved $3 billion in taxpayer dollars; moved the government to the cloud; and strengthened the cybersecurity posture of the nation while making it more open, transparent, and participatory.”

At Harvard Kundra’s research will focus on cloud computing, open data and open government, as well as implications of digital media and technology on governance.

You can read more about Kundra’s aggressive moves while in the White House, including his plans to move the government to the cloud in this Washington Post article.