Student Leaders Want Input Into Dean Search

Tomorrow, when Dean of the Faculty Jeremy R. Knowles decides on the future structure of Harvard College, the search for a new dean will officially begin. Student leaders say they want to ensure that they are an integral part of the process.

"The administration has not been all that open to students in terms of decision making," said Alex H. Cho '96, co-president of the Asian American Association (AAA).

Cho said Harvard's administrators do not have the best track record when it comes to representing students fairly. He recalled a panel on diversity at last year's Junior Parents Weekend that had no Asian-Americans on it.

Cho said diverse student involvement is the only way to ensure a fair search. He said he fears the search for a new dean will not represent minority interests sufficiently.

"If there aren't students of color sitting on that committee," Cho said, "the pressure to consider candidates of color for that position won't be there either."

Cho said he was pessimistic about the possibility of any serious student involvement in the process of selecting a successor to Dean of the College L. Fred Jewett '57, who will step down this spring.

But not all campus leaders feel the same way. David L. Hanselman '94-'95, president of the Undergraduate Council, pointed out that administrators have so far been receptive to student input.

"I'm encouraged that the administration will at least take our position into consideration," Hanselman said. "They have gone out of their way to listen to us."

In an editorial titled "Say No to the Super-Dean", which appeared on The Crimson's Opinion page yesterday, Hanselman insisted that students be included in the search.

"Quite simply, students do not want to be shut out," he wrote.

Echoing similar concerns about the administration's accessibility to students, Hanselman wrote that the council strongly favors the "Two-Dean" model that Knows is considering.

The Report on the Structure of Harvard College, made public earlier this fall, recommended restructuring the dean's job in several ways.

Dean Models

The "Two-Dean" model would retain separate deans of the College and Undergraduate Education as under the current system.

The "Super-Dean" model would combine the two posts into one. The second model would add several assistant deans, including one specifically for Undergraduate Education, to help shoulder some of the administrative burden.

Hanselman said maintaining two separate deans for the College and Undergraduate Education will insure that students will have continued access to administrators.

"Because most decisions are made at the Dean level (Dean of the College and Dean of the FAS)," he wrote, "student concerns with regard to policy issues would be diluted by one more level of administrative personnel."

Jewett himself has indicated that a single dean structure would compromise the dean's ability to set time aside for students.

While Hanselman is optimistic about the prospects for student involvement, he doubts that his objective of equal student and faculty representation in the search for Jewett's successor will be achieved.

"I don't expect that that objective will be fully realized," Hanselman said of his proposal.

Knowles could not be reached for comment yesterday.