Posted on 02/16/2005 10:53:47 PM PST by FairOpinion
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (Reuters) - Harvard University President Lawrence Summers faced pressure from some faculty to resign on Wednesday as a controversy over his comments about women evolved into a broader indictment of his leadership.
One professor spoke of a brewing "rebellion" against Summers following a meeting of at least 250 undergraduate faculty on Tuesday at which speaker after speaker criticized the Ivy League school chief.
"It would not be exaggerated to call this a rebellion," said the professor, who asked to remain anonymous. "It was quite a remarkable atmosphere at the meeting. People who have taught here for decades said they have never seen anything quite like it."
The meeting, held in the Faculty Room -- an ornate, high-ceilinged hall decorated with enormous oriental carpets and chandeliers, concluded with a vote to meet again next week to discuss what some are calling a lack of confidence in Summers's leadership.
There is a chance that faculty will next week take a vote of confidence in Summers, the former U.S. Treasury secretary who since 2001 has led the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States.
Summers' remark last month that innate differences between men and women may help explain why fewer women work in the academic sciences has become a rallying cry for many Harvard professors upset with his overall management style.
It was not the first time Summers' sensitivity has come into question. Early in his Harvard tenure, Summers upset black professors by questioning the academic output of star professor Cornel West, who then left Harvard for Princeton University.
SUMMERS SAYS MEETING 'DIFFICULT'
Summers, who has apologized for his remarks on women, attended Tuesday's meeting and described it as "difficult," a spokeswoman said. She declined further comment.
Professor of the History of Science Everett Mendelsohn was among those who spoke at Tuesday's meeting and said the lack of confidence in Summers dates back to the scuffle with West.
"What has happened is that a significant number of senior faculty have brought real focus to the question of his abilities as a leader and his ability to continue providing leadership to the university," Mendelsohn told Reuters.
Mendelsohn said he was "not at the point" of declaring no confidence in Summers, but said many of his colleagues were. Arthur Kleinman, chairman of the anthropology department, told the meeting that there was a "legitimation crisis" concerning Summers's leadership and that many faculty were "dismayed and alienated and demoralized."
On Wednesday, Kleinman told Reuters he had heard colleagues say Summers should resign or be fired by the school's governing body, the Harvard Corporation.
"This president has got to change the way he acts both within Harvard and what he projects publicly. He's done us a disservice and we can't continue to let that happen," he said.
Summers's faculty allies said they were caught off-guard at Tuesday's meeting but would not be next week.
Claudia Goldin, an economics professor, hailed Summers's leadership while conceding he needed to work on his style. She said the real dispute was over his drive to centralize power and budgeting which had upset some faculty and administrators.
"This is best compared to some period in English history where there is a weak king and strong feudal lords, and all of a sudden a strong king comes in and the feudal lords aren't too happy," she said.
Which statement is more eggregious?! Typical liberals.
Follow the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$
I recall that some decades ago we used to refer to Harvard as "the first red brick outhouse on the right as you enter the United States". How perceptive we were ...
Ridiculous! And why did Summers ever apologize? This is a witch hunt by liberals.
Looks to me like the leftist professors are trying to get rid of a middle of the road Harvard President. They will fail because Lawrence Sommers has the backing of alumni and donors who don't appreciate the rampant leftism on American campuses
There's the real problem, because this is standard high-level-GOP-personality behavior. Make a common sense statement and when liberals scream, immediately start apologizing. The apology is like blood to sharks and they won't stop now until they run him out. He should've laughed and ignored them.
MM
He is currently spinning so fast in his grave, he powers both the house and barn.
I agree with you. Liberals always asking conservatives to apologize. It is almost like they can't have their martini (unless the name is Ted Kennedy)until a conservative apologizes.
Curious, is Dudley MA (just south of Worcester) named after him?
Dudley is an old New England family. It's name will be found in a few places.
I didn't mean Grandfather, that would be RIDICULOUS!!!
Yeppers - through his daughter and son-in-law, Gov. Bradstreet and Anne Bradstreet.
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