Affirmative Action Will Provide Limited Results, Experts Say

Although affirmative action is an important social tool, it is slow, limited and legalistic, a panel of administrators and professors said yesterday at a Mather House Black Table Colloquium.

The hiring demands of a university make affirmative action harder to implement at Harvard than in industry, the panel said, and has led to some unpredictable results.

Panelists pointed to the small number of jobs available to women and minorities in higher education. "Education is a 'no-growth' industry and the arena for minorities to enter is shrinking," Nancy R. Randolph, special assistant to the president, said.

The pool of minority applicants for faculty positions is shrinking at the same time. Talented students prefer professional school and a guaranteed future to the uncertain life of academia, panelists said.

"There were only four black Ph.D.s in economics last year," Martin L. Kilson, professor of Government said. "Getting a Ph.D. instead of going to law school and climbing the social ladder can be a traumatic experience," he added.

The pool of female applicants is also limited, Nathan Glazer, professor of Education and Social Structure, said. There is a concentration of female Ph.D.s in fields that are not hiring, such as romance languages, he added.

Requirements of affirmative action have brought unpredictable results, Daniel Steiner '54, general counsel to the University, said. Advertising often attracts more white males than minorities, he added.

In cases where Harvard hires minority workers, it is difficult to determine "whether the number of minorities working has actually increased or whether more minorities are just working at Harvard," Steiner added.

Panelist disagreed on the initiatives government should take. "The success of affirmative action ultimately depends on government," Randolph said. Glazer disagreed, saying government should not legislate specific percentage requirements.

Court decisions like the Bakke case have made the task of implementing affirmative action more difficult, Steiner said. "But if you care, you won't let Bakke slow you down," he added.