Fitzpatrick Will Stay Through Spring Semester

Students hoping to enroll in Associate Professor of History Ellen Fitzpatrick's spring courses will not be disappointed.

In December, rumors circulated that Fitzpatrick would leave Harvard this month because she had not been granted tenure.

But Fitzpatrick said yesterday that she is looking forward to teaching History 90e: "Themes in American Historical Writing" and History 1636: "America in the Progressive Era" next semester.

Yesterday, she declined to comment on her plans for next year.

Known as a friendly and accessible professor, Fitzpatrick has been consistently popular with students, earning a 4.5 out of 5 for teaching ability in last year's CUE Guide.

When she didn't gain a permanent faculty position, many of her students said they were greatly disappointed. Last month, Vi T. Ngyuen '98, a student in Fitzpatrick's History 1637, spearheaded a student petition drive protesting the University's decision to refuse her tenure.

Fitzpatrick sits on several faculty committees, and has edited several works on the women's rights movement and the Progressive Era.

This year, she published two textbooks in conjunction with noted historian Alan Brinkley.