Hiring for Vacancy in EALC Dept. Remains Uncertain

The hiring of a new Chinese Language Program director for the upcoming academic year remains uncertain for the Department of East Asian Languages and Civilizations, according to Department Chair Wilt Idema.

The department currently awaits the administration’s final word on the possible authorization of a search to fill the vacancy created by current director Shengli Feng, who is slated to leave Harvard this fall, Idema said in an interview yesterday.

The decision to open a new search—a process that can take many months—will not be finalized until April, when Faculty of Arts and Sciences Dean Michael D. Smith determines which searches to authorize for the upcoming year, according to Idema.

Feng, a Chinese professor who has served a key role in the development of Harvard’s Chinese Language Program, will leave Harvard for the Chinese University of Hong Kong. Feng said he will be better compensated in a tenure-track position that allows him to devote more energy to his scholarship than he currently can in the managerial post of director.

Finding a replacement for Feng is “extremely important” for the health of Harvard’s Chinese language offerings, said Idema, who added that he hopes the department will be allowed to run a search within the next year.

Though FAS is in a better financial situation than last spring, Smith has said in the past that he plans to reduce the size of the faculty through attriation to help eliminate FAS’ deficit.

This past year, EALC had two searches authorized, one of which resulted in the hiring of David Howell, who will teach early modern Japanese history beginning next fall.

“Although a search for a new director of the Chinese Language Program has not been authorized at this time, the program continues to be well-staffed, organized, and coordinated,” FAS spokesman Jeff A. Neal wrote in an e-mailed statement.

“The student-teacher ratio is low, demonstrating that we are investing seriously in the teaching of Chinese,” Neal added, citing the nine preceptors and ten drill instructors whom Feng currently oversees.

Diana Sorensen, the FAS divisional dean for the arts and humanities, wrote in an e-mailed statement that finding Feng’s replacement is among the priorities of the division.

“[Feng’s] leaving is a great loss for Harvard,” said Yu Feng, Shengli Feng’s former college roommate and a former Chinese language preceptor at Harvard who now heads Brandeis’ Chinese language program. “This is really sad to say, but that’s true. You won’t find anyone who can really replace him.”

—Staff writer Noah S. Rayman can be reached at nrayman@fas.harvard.edu.

—Staff writer Elyssa A.L. Spitzer can be reached at spitzer@fas.harvard.edu.