Bok Limits New Masters To Terms of Five Years

President Bok has eliminated open-ended House Master appointments and instituted a new policy of appointing Masters to five-year terms.

Ann and Martin Peretz, co-Masters of South House, and Ursula and Paul R. Levine, co-Masters of Currier House, said yesterday they had been appointed to five-year terms.

"All the new Masters are being appointed for five-year terms," Peretz said. He said he believed the terms were renewable.

A source close to William Liller '48, outgoing Master of Adams House, said Sunday that Bok, as part of his new policy, had "encouraged" Liller not to return in 1975 as Adams Master. Liller will spend next year on sabbatical.

Bok yesterday said he had neither "directly nor in so many words" encouraged Liller to leave the post permanently. Bok also denied that new Masters had been appointed for specific terms.

Choice of Term

Levine said that Bok had offered him either a three- or a five-year term and that he had chosen the longer one. He said that he and his wife would leave the post at the end of their term.

"I doubt that anyone should be a Master for more than five years," he added.

The source close to Liller said that Bok had urged Liller not to return as Master because there were many Faculty members who wanted the position. The source said Liller would have preferred to return as Adams Master, but assented to the President's wishes.

Bok said that he would not reveal the details of any conversations concerning specific appointments because he considered them confidential.

"But I want to make clear," Bok said, "that I did not force Liller to get out. I did not."

Liller was unavailable for comment yesterday.

Although he declined to use the word "term," Bok said that he had come to an understanding with all new appointees that they would have to serve a specific minimum number of years.

After that time, Bok said, he and the Master would review continuing the appointment. He said the review would be an informal one, consisting of his evaluation of the Master's performance and of discussions with the Master.

Until now, Masters have been appointed for indefinite periods of time, restricted only by the mandatory retirement age of 66. The longest tenure as a Master was held by John H. Finley '25, professor of Greek Literature, who was Master of Eliot House for 26 years.

New Masters

Since taking office, Bok has appointed new Masters to South, Currier and Leverett Houses. Next Fall new appointees at Dunster and Adams will begin their terms.

With the mandatory retirement next year of Arthur Smithies, Master of Kirkland House, and Bruce Chalmers, Master of Winthrop House, Bok will have two new appointments to make. Bok appointees will then hold the positions at more than half of all the Houses.