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February 16, 2005

Harvard to Throw Derision at Summers, and Money at "Summers Problem"

As a followup to my recent post, I read an article in the New York Times. (Registration required.)

Professors at Harvard Confront Its President
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. Feb. 15 - President Lawrence H. Summers of Harvard was confronted at a meeting of his own faculty on Tuesday by some of the university's most influential professors, who expressed strong dissatisfaction with his leadership and charged that he was damaging the institution.

These professors, including two department heads, said after the meeting that they had emphasized that their concerns went well beyond the furor that resulted from Dr. Summers's recent comments suggesting that innate sex differences could account for the lack of women in science and math careers.

"Many of your faculty are dismayed and alienated and demoralized," Dr. Arthur Kleinman, chairman of anthropology in the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, said at the meeting, referring to a "crisis concerning your style of leadership and governance."

Yeah, they SAY their concerns go beyond the recent comments about innate sex differences, but from reading the rest of the article, it sure doesn't sound like it.
Most speakers took aim at Dr. Summers for what they described as an autocratic management style that has stifled the open debate that is at the core of the university's values. While their comments were respectful, they were forceful and were greeted by strong applause.
In all this, it sounds like Dr. Summers is the one that has felt the consequences of stifled debate.
The 90-minute meeting ended with a unanimous vote to hold an emergency meeting of the faculty next Tuesday so professors could continue to discuss their lack of confidence in Dr. Summers's leadership.
Yes! Lets have another meeting.
Several, including Barbara J. Grosz, chairwoman of a new task force on women in science and engineering, called on Dr. Summers to release a transcript of his remarks about science and women. Theda Skocpol, a professor of government and sociology, said, "President Summers appears to be apologizing profusely, yet he refuses to release for honest discussion his actual remarks." The result was that commentators have cast his critics as "unreasonable opponents of academic inquiry and openness," with Harvard "ridiculed as a center of close-minded political correctness."
I'm all for releasing the transcrips of his remarks, but somehow I think that if that happens, Harvard will continue to be "ridiculed as a center of closed-minded political correctness." We have reports of what he said there and Dr. Summers is not denying the correctness of those reports. Somehow I don't think the transcript is going to read:

Professor: So, Dr. Summers, why do you think there are less women in faculty positions in the sciences?

Dr. Summers: Because women are stupid.

One of two professors who spoke in support of Dr. Summers was Ruth R. Wisse, the Peretz professor of Yiddish literature, who said her colleagues were allowing sexual politics to silence the open discussion Dr. Summers intended when he spoke about women at a conference last month, The Crimson reported.

Lawrence Katz, an economics professor and admirer of Dr. Summers, said afterward that he thought Dr. Summers was "humble and forthcoming, and he clearly articulated that he in no way intends to intimidate."

Gee, certainly sounds like Dr. Summers is practicing his "autocratic management style that has stifled open debate."
I don't know much about the man other than in this context, so I can't say whether he is a good University President or not, but I sure hope that he doesn't get kicked out over THIS.
And of course now Harvard is calling for a task force to tackle women's issues and supporting a study of female Harvard graduates' careers. (I'll note, though, that the article points out that the people doing the study support Summers.) Ich. A bunch more money being wasted on diversity that probably won't make a bit of difference.
Hat tip to Powerline.
Also see this post by SteveL who says that Summers is an excellent president.
And this post at "what if" that compares the treatment of Summers with the treatment of Ward Churchill.

Posted by illuminaria at February 16, 2005 11:30 AM

Comments

I noticed that you tracked back to my post on this topic. Proper blog etiquette would require that you provide to link to my post as part of your post (as you did with Powerline). My policy (as is usual for almost everyone) is to delete trackbacks without a corresponding link back.

By the way, Summers is a pretty darned good president at Harvard.

Posted by: SteveL at February 16, 2005 12:16 PM