Of Drums, Bells, Bills, Waves, Whales, Doughnuts and Donations

IF A TREE FELL...?

Elm trees in the Yard and across Harvard have been dropping like, well, trees. Dutch Elm disease is wreaking havoc on the University's arboreal population.

In June, a tree in front of Holworthy and a tree in the Yard's center--both about 80 years old--met their untimely demise. In the past 10 years, 10 to 12 trees across the University have succumbed to the disease. About 40 percent of Harvard's elms are reportedly infected.

Now, University officials are researching ways to replenish Harvard's tree supply, investigating disease resistant tree species with elm-esque tall trunks and full canopies.

As part of the Yard's refoliaging, the University may have a chance to increase its much-touted diversity. A greater range of species, officials say, reduces the risk of destructive tree epidemics.

411 PAGES, $115 BILLION

On July 23, President Bush signed into law an act expanding federal student aid programs and allowing Harvard to once again cooperate with other universities in allocating financial aid dollars.

Ivy league presidents praised the act, saying it will help them insure that financial aid dollars are equitably distributed.

The 411 page, $115 billion law also will make Harvard report to the government about large donations from foreign sources. It may force changes in the College's sexual assault policy. [See related story, page B-6.]

The Higher Education Reauthorization Act expanded federally guaranteed student loan programs. Elizabeth M. Hicks, assistant dean of admissions and financial aid for federal and special programs, said students from all parts of Harvard University already borrow about $40 million a year under the programs, and she said the new law may increase that by as much as $10 million.

MARITIME MESSIAH

The Tall Ships came to Boston this July amidst hype and fanfare. And one Russian tall ship sailed away with a bit of Michael Berry magic on board.

The Mealtime Messiah, along with many other New England residents, responded to a plea from hungry sailors on the undersupplied tall ship Sedov. The Sedov, participating in this summer's Sail Boston festivities, found both its money and its food supply had run dangerously low as the ship arrived in Beantown.

Attending a cocktail party on the Sedov, Harvard Dining Services Director Berry heard about the ship's woes and agreed to provide the sailors with much-needed provisions.

It took about six hours for dining services workers to amass items from Harvard's food suppliers. The Sedov set sail for England stocked with hundreds of pounds of chicken legs, peeled tomatoes, ketchup and cabbage.

The Sedov sailors, most of them teenagers, also embarked on their journey with a full supply of Harvard hats.

GRO 1, WHALES 0

At last June's Commencement exercises, Norway Prime Minister Gro Harlem Brundtland--fresh from the Earth Summit in Rio de Janiero, Brazil--delivered an idealistic keynote speech about the importance of the environment.

Less than a month later, the acclaimed environmentalist was under fire from wildlife defense groups who criticized her decision to resume Norway's commercial whale hunt.

Brundtland, who gave the keynote address at the Rio conference, based her decision on scientific evidence she said showed that certain whale populations are no longer endangered.

But representatives of Greenpeace and other organizations said the scientific evidence may be full of blow holes. In addition, they said, Norway's economy does not rely on the whale trade, and whale meat only appeals to a very small market of affluent Japanese.

BANG THE DRUM SOFTLY

Street musicians and Square residents clashed before the City Council this summer over an act that critics claim will effectively ban drum playing in Cambridge.

In August, the Council passed the act, which restricts the allowable noise from public performances to 80 decibels from a distance of 25 feet--half the distance previously required. From 150 feet, street musicians' dulcet tones must must now be inaudible.

Square residents called drumming "a worm on the brain" and complained about its effects on mental health. But street musicians complained of cultural elitism, bias and censorship, and warned that when percussion is suppressed, the Square's eclectic atmosphere will dampen.

MOVING UP IN THE WORLD

The library's Government Documents and Microforms Division--currently housed in dark, cramped Lamont subbasement--may move to the first floor of Lamont.

Larsen Librarian of Harvard College Richard De Gennaro commissioned architectural plans for a revamped Gov Docs workspace, which would fill Lamont's seldom-used first floor reading room. The project would cost between $400,000 and $500,000, and would come from building reserves and other funds.

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences library committee must approve the changes this fall before any construction can begin.

THE BELL TOLLS

Derrick A. Bell is Weld Professor of Law no longer.

The former law professor captured public attention two years ago when he announced that he would take an unpaid leave of absence until the Law School tenured a woman of color.

In July, Rudenstine dismissed Bell from his position for exceeding the two-year limit on unpaid leave. In an unprecedented hearing, Bell appealed to a special committee of Harvard's governing boards. But in August, the Corporation denied his request to extend his leave of absence.

Bell will remain a visiting professor at New York University Law School.

FAMILY VALUES

As the nation plunged into a rowdy debate about "family values," Cambridge began its own efforts to address the issue this summer.

At several hearings throughout the summer the City Council debated the merits of a proposed "domestic partnership" law which would extend rights to some unmarried couples.

Councillor Alice K. Wolf introduced the ordinance, which would allow unrelated couples--both heterosexual and homosexual--to gain a "domestic partnership" license from city hall for the cost of a marriage license.

With the license, non-biological parents could access the school records of a domestic partner's children, and domestic partners could obtain visiting rights at Cambridge hospitals and health care benefits for domestic partners.

Several councillors said they would oppose the law because it does not allow siblings and other couples to register as domestic partners.

But some on the council's progressive majority accused the dissenters of trying to torpedo the entire ordinance.

The Council will vote on the bill in September.

WINDFALL

The largest donation ever from an individual--$3 million--wouldn't ordinarily cause many complaints from Harvard Law School alumni or faculty.

But some say they are worried that Reginald F. Lewis's donation may send the wrong message to an administration that has been lax in promoting faculty ethnic diversity.

Lewis, a New York lawyer, heads the largest Black-owned corporation in the country, TLC Beatrice Holdings. The international law center to be renamed for him will be the first building at Harvard to be named for a Black person.

But Law School critics, including former Weld Professor of Law Derrick A. Bell, say they worry that Law School Dean Robert C. Clark may get the wrong idea from the gift. A sizable gift from a Black donor might foster a sense of complacency among administrators, causing them to recruit minority professors less vigorously, according to Bell and others.

HOLE IN THE THEORY

Those hoping for McDonald's in the Square shouldn't hold their breath; stringent area regulations won't even let a Dunkin' Donuts franchise slip through the cracks.

The Board of Zoning Appeals voted to prohibit owners from opening a doughnut shop at the former site of TCBY. City law requires fast food businesses to receive special permits before opening shop in the Square.

The Harvard Square Defense Fund, a citizens' action group, argued at several heated hearings that they wanted to keep the Square distinct from "Everywhere, America." They said ice cream shops and doughnut shops are different from other fast food establishments.

Doughnut advocates blasted Defense Fund members' fear of fast food, insisting that the Square needs reasonably-priced food.