Master Turnovers Reflect Changes in Nature of House Life

The House system--an institution perhaps most proud of its sense of tradition and continuity--trembled this year when a couple of "giants" announced they would step down from their posts at the end of the term.

Lowell House Master William H. Bossert '59 and Leverett House Master John E. Dowling '57 announced earlier this year they would resign this June, freeing up the positions which the two men and their wives and co-Masters, Mary Lee and Judith, have held for a combined total of 40 years.

In their respective 23- and 17-year tenures, the Bosserts and Dowlings have been among the most influential of the College's 24 Masters and co-Masters and have been outspoken on issues affecting House life--though sometimes on different sides of the debate.

But with their departure and the College's appointment to Lowell House of Professor of Comparative Religion and Indian Studies Diana L. Eck and her partner Dorothy A. Austin--the first same-sex couple ever to serve as House masters--and of Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics Howard Georgi '67 and his wife Ann to Leverett House, the House system finds itself in new, less-tested hands.

Tradition Embodied

Known for their weekly teas and strong sense of House spirit, the Bosserts said they never expected what was intended to be a one-year appointment to turn into a 23-year tenure at Lowell's helm.

Originally asked to serve as temporary masters for one academic year, William Bossert said when they did not hear anything from University Hall at the end of that term, he and his wife simply stayed on as Masters.

That one year, Bossert said, quickly extended to a decade.

"After 10 years, we made an appointment to meet with [then University president] Derek [C.] Bok," he quipped.

But while extolling their time as masters as "the biggest thing in our lives after our children," the Bosserts said more than two decades of service was enough for them.

"Twenty-three years is too long [to be masters]," Professor Bossert said. "We're a little tired," he added jokingly.

Not having taken a sabbatical during their mastership, the Bosserts' time as Masters has not been without sacrifice. Bossert, who is also Arnold professor of science, said he "submerged" his research in order to dedicate more time to his position--a trend he hopes to reverse in the coming years.

Though departing, the Bosserts leave an indelible print both on Lowell House and the College as a whole.

In a letter to House affiliates publicizing their resignation, the Bosserts said they are especially proud of Lowell's strong Senior Common Room.

"We mean what we say frequently that if Lowell House should secede from Harvard it would have one of the finest small-college liberal arts faculties in the world," the Bosserts wrote.

As stalwart supporters of maintaining strong House identities, the Bosserts had also been vocal and consistent opponents of randomization, the policy which disallowed choice for upper-class housing beginning with the class of 1999.

But despite their opposition, Dean of the College Harry R. Lewis '68, who co-authored the advisory report that advocated randomization, praised the Bosserts' legacy in Lowell House.

"They truly set the standard for dedication to the House as the living community that means so much to Harvard students," Lewis wrote in an e-mail message. "The Bosserts...will go down in Harvard annals as legends."

Over the next year, the Bosserts said they plan to travel extensively throughout Europe and have rented a house for two months in Burgundy, France.

"We're going to eat and drink a lot," William Bossert joked.

Defining Leverett

Following the lead of their more senior colleagues, the Dowlings announced in January that they too would step down as Masters of Leverett House after 17 years of service.

Although they only planned to stay in Leverett for 10 years when they assumed the post, the Dowlings said they postponed their retirement from mastering at the request of their daughter, Alexandra, who asked her parents not to move until she graduated from high school.

As Cabot professor of natural sciences, John Dowling said the increasing demands of his scientific work of late had meant less time for the House. This, in conjunction with a greater workload at Judy Dowling's Boston art gallery, played a large role in the couple's decision to step down.

Dowling said one of his main goals during his tenure was to strengthen the tutorial staff within the House, asserting that tutors are a key component of House life.

"That's really the secret of the House system," he said.

But in addition to a strong staff of tutors, observers said the Leverett masters have done much to increase the sense of House community, especially through biweekly open houses in their residence.

"They have emphasized student concerns as central to the life of Leverett House," said Dean of Students Archie C. Epps III. "They have been strong advocates for the House system in College forums."

The arrangement to leave Leverett, the Dowlings said, is bittersweet.

"We made many wonderful friends both with undergraduates and members of the Senior Common Room," Professor Dowling said. "We're leaving with regrets."

But he said the key to staying for any sort of extended period is knowing one's limits.

"You have to pace yourself to be a long-term master," Dowling said. "What's important is to prioritize things. Masters can get burned out early on if they try to do everything."

Shoes to Fill

Although Bossert and Dowling's resignations served to shake up a system that does not like change, the ensuing vacancies presented the administration with a unique opportunity to diversify a mostly homogeneous group.

At the time of the Dowlings' announcement in January, Dunster House co-Masters Karel and Hetty Liem were the only Masters of color and Mather House Master Sandra A. Naddaff '75 was the only woman directly appointed to the position of Master, rather than co-Master.

At a meeting with Lowell House residents in December, the administration met with criticism by students who noted a lack of diversity among the existing pool of Masters.

"We very, very, very much want to appoint one woman and one person of color...," Lewis told students at the meeting. "I'd be very happy to have you think double or triple hard about these categories, as we have already."

And with a pool of student suggestions that ranged from DuBois Professor of the Humanities Henry Louis "Skip" Gates Jr. to Rabbi Sally Finestone, member of the University Ministry at Harvard-Radcliffe, Lewis announced in mid-March the first of two appointments: that of Diana L. Eck to head Lowell House along with her partner, Dorothy A. Austin.

The announcement, Lewis said, was the first time the University had appointed a same-sex couple to be House Masters. However, he said an applicant's marital status plays no role in the Masters selection process.

Eck brings an impressive list of credentials to her new post at the head of Lowell House. In addition to her professorship, Eck is also a member of the faculty of the Divinity School and the director of the Pluralism Project, a research project studying religion in the United States. She also chairs the Committee on the Study of Religion, but had previously announced she will step down from that post in June.

Her partner, an associate professor of psychology and religion at Drew University in New Jersey and an ordained minister, will commute from Cambridge to New Jersey as part of her new role as co-Master.

Eck said she and Austin looked forward to being part of the House.

"Both of us are excited and feel this is a very challenging opportunity," Eck said. "It's going to mean trying ourselves out in a new community and that's always challenging."

Bossert said he was heartened by the University's decision.

"In the very best way, we have a Master who was looked on in favor by both the president, the Dean [of the College] and the internal House committee, and that's nice," Bossert said. "It's a tribute to Eck. There wasn't the feeling that we were working at cross purposes."

Although student members of the Lowell House committee said they were pleased with the University's choice in Eck, they acknowledged that this monumental appointment of Masters who are lesbians might make a few waves in the House.

"I think she is a brilliant scholar...[and] a really great role model as a scholar," said of the Lowell House Committee Co-Chair Lisa M. Mignone '98, who has taken two courses taught by Eck. "It was just a surprise that [the College] would pioneer this, especially in a House that touts its traditions."

Mignone said she thought a small number of students might prefer the opportunity to bring concerns to a Master who is male.

"There are some issues that students would prefer to discuss with a woman and some with a man," she said.

Katherine A. Hamm '99, who also co-chairs the Lowell House committee, similarly acknowledged that not everyone might be happy with the decision to appoint a same-sex couple as Masters.

"I'm sure there are students in Lowell who are more conservative and the idea of a lesbian couple taking the Bosserts place might be a little shaky," Hamm said.

But Hamm said her expectations of Eck and Austin, like those of any potential new Master, would include making students a priority and carrying on House traditions.

Acknowledging such concerns, Eck said she too was committed to preserving the House's unique features.

"Our intention is to maintain that tradition [of weekly teas] in one form or another," Eck said. "We believe tradition is the way to create community."

The high profile position for a same-sex couple has also brought with it both some public praise and criticism.

In recognition of the University's choice, the Harvard Gay and Lesbian Caucus has announced it will award Eck its Visibility Award during its annual Commencement Dinner tonight.

According to Robert W. Mack '71, the former caucus co-chair and presently a member of its board of directors, the award reflects the importance of Eck and Austin's future position on campus.

"There are closeted students now [at Harvard]...and those people need to know they're okay," Mack said. "That's something that's been said and demonstrated in many ways at Harvard, never so clearly to undergraduates as now by this appointment."

But John L. Adams '50 criticized the College and called for Eck and Austin's resignation in a letter to The Crimson, the only such letter the newspaper received.

"I am absolutely disgusted with Harvard for this appointment," Adams wrote in a letter dated April 15. "Doesn't Harvard stand for anything that is honorable, decent and God-fearing?"

Adams' letter, however, brought a flurry of responses to the Crimson that criticized his letter and defended Eck's appointment.

"I am looking forward to having [Eck and Austin] in the House my senior year," wrote Lowell House resident Marnie A. Friedman '99 in her May 6 letter to The Crimson. "I feel sorry for Adams, who is closing himself off from two vibrant, incredible women."

One Down

Without wasting any time after announcing the Eck-Austin appointment, Lewis the next day announced the University had filled the vacancy in Leverett House with Mallinkcrodt Professor of Physics Howard Georgi '67 and his wife Ann, a lab manager at Harvard Medical School.

With two sons grown and moved out of their Topsfield, Mass. home, the Georgis said they are ready to devote their efforts to sustaining a sense of community within the House.

But the Georgis said they will refrain from making any sweeping changes until they are better acclimated to the House.

"One of the things we loved about Leverett was that there was a kind of family atmosphere to the House that was very important and that we'd like to do our best not to mess up," Howard Georgi said. "I don't foresee making any dramatic changes in the immediate future."

For the physicist who is well-known for his tofu hot dogs, and the lab manager who is an avid equestrian, the new position in Leverett brings an opportunity to further strengthen the House advising system.

According to Howard Georgi, who is also a member of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) administrative committee on women, he and his wife hope to establish a program to encourage and support undergraduate women who are involved in the sciences.

Though the name "Georgi" was new to many House residents in the humanities, many students in the sciences said Professor Georgi is accessible--and fun.

"He has dedicated much time into trying to teach his students rather than lecturing alone," said Danh C. Dang '98, who took Physics 15c: "Wave Phenomena" with Georgi.

"He's always available outside the class to answer questions and just socially interact with students," Dang said.

As an undergraduate student in the mid-1960s, Georgi says his master in Eliot House, John H. Finley '25, was a paragon of leadership--devoting a great deal of personal attention to students and memorizing each resident's name.

"We had a very colorful House master," Howard Georgi said of Finley. "He was terrific. That's, I think, an impossible standard, but in some senses, that's my picture of a House master."

Without the Master Masters

With the departure of Bossert and Dowling, the collective House system loses a tremendous amount of experience. But perhaps more importantly, it also loses two vocal players in the debate over House life at the College.

According to Dunster House Master Karel F. Liem, while the departure of the Lowell and Leverett leaders may not expressly change the "dynamic" of masters meetings, it does have the potential to affect the way other masters vote on issues that issue administration decisions on House policy.

"They quietly were really in a leadership position," Liem said. "If Bossert votes in a particular way, I would certainly take that into consideration. The same thing [goes] with Dowling."

And with randomization slated for review in the coming year, the departure of two masters who in the past have espoused strong but differing opinions on the topic promises to make the group a bit more moderate.

Although Eck and Georgi said they hope to get a better feel of their respective Houses before taking up positions on the future of randomization at Harvard, the two professors and their co-Masters undoubtedly enter the exclusive club of Masters with a set of ideas unique from those who are departing.