Reporter's Notebook

"Denial of equal opportunity on the grounds of race, gender, religion, nationality or political affiliation (among other criteria) has long since been barred. Discrimination based on sexual orientation thus reamins a curious anomaly."

--A letter to Defense Secretary Richard Cheney sent last week by the Association of American Universities and three other college organizations.

"It is the Department of Defense's policy that we still feel that homosexuality is incompatible with military service. At this point there is no intention of changing the policy."

--Maj. Douglas W. Hart, a Pentagon public affairs officer, after the MIT faculty passed its own resolution two days later condemning the exclusion of gays and lesbians from military service.

Opposites Attract--When President Bush and Soviet President Mikhail S. Gorbachev agreed to hold a summit in the United States sometime in June, both Harvard and Brown Universities reportedly tried to lure the Soviet leader for speaking engagements. Since Harvard has prominent research centers for both European and Russian Studies, and since Brown President Vartan Gregorian is said to have close ties to Soviet officials, many believed Gorbachev would accept one of the invitations. As it turns out, Gorby snubbed both Harvard and Brown, instead choosing to visit Stanford, home of the notoriously conservative Hoover Institute. Gorbachev said he chose Stanford because his foreign minister was impressed with the Hoover Institute's work, but observers said Gorby was especially eager to visit Hoover because it has historically been so anti-Soviet.

"Things are looking good. These are very good signs. We're bringing ourselves back into a decent size."

--Robert J. Kiely, chair of the English Department, on the decision by three scholars to accept tenured positions in the department.

"It won't happen again for another 20 years. It's an exception. It doesn't represent a change in policy. It will have absolutely no effect at all on the detioration of the junior faculty."

--One junior faculty member in the English Department, who spoke on the condition of anonymity.

No Clear(y) Exceptions--New Athletic Director Bill Cleary was among the spectators in Princeton on Sunday when the Harvard women's lacrosse team won its first ever national championship. And after senior attacker Jenny Walser scored the go-ahead with only four minutes to play, Cleary, who coached the men's hockey team to its first national championship last year, headed to the field to congratulate the new champions. But Cleary forgot his field pass, and the officer guarding the field made him wait in the stands. Guess the guard wasn't a hockey fan-or else he was from Minnesota.

"I was worried, but I knew this team would never quit. It's pretty much the same team that came back last year on Penn State. This year, we were not going to lose by one goal. I had faith."

--Women's lacrosse co-captain Julia French '90, on her team's victory over Maryland in Sunday's national championship game.

"I'm in shock. I can't believe we came back being down that much."

--Sarah Leary '92, the team's goalie.