Bill Kirby, In Conclusion
So...what to make of the ouster of FAS dean Bill Kirby?
Some thoughts.
1) As embarrassing as it is to Kirby, this craziness is also embarrassing to Summers, who lost control of this story. The Crimson broke the story on Friday night, publishing its web article about half an hour before Kirby and Summers released their statements of pap.
Even I can not believe that Larry Summers really wanted this to happen while he was off in Davos...although I have heard some feedback suggesting that he likes that idea, because it means he's busy getting adulatory press for sitting on panels and being pithy about India while the Kirby mess erupts back home in cold Cambridge.
2) The Crimson is becoming a real problem for Larry Summers, and the reasons why should worry the Harvard president. In its tick-tock of last January's events, the Crimson found people inside Mass Hall willing to talk. And in its Kirby scoop, the Crimson found sources close to the Corporation willing to talk.
What does this mean? That people in Mass Hall and close to the Corporation are no longer covering for Summers. No, even stronger, I think: That people very close to Summers have turned against him.
Larry Summers can no longer assume that his innermost councils are safe from disclosure. That makes governance a very difficult proposition.
3) Who will be the next dean? Summers has learned that putting in a weak figure can create more problems than it solves. But what strong figure would want the job? One would have to ask the Corporation for guarantees of independence from Mass Hall...and, of course, once that person took office, those guarantees would be unenforceable and, therefore, worthless.
One possibility: Summers appoints a strong figure who happens to be already close to him. But would the faculty work with/trust such a figure?
Another scenario: scientist Jeremy Knowles comes back for a year to try to rescue the curricular review and position himself as a possible replacement for Larry Summers...but would Summers really want the crafty Knowles back in power?
4) The curricular review has already had a pretty tepid base of support. That is instantly weaker. After all, the passage of that review would depend on deals cut with the dean, promises made, barters agreed-upon. All of those are now dead letters, as any incoming dean would never agree to honor promises made by his predecessor in exchange for votes.
Since Bill Kirby was essentially the only person who had a self-interest in pushing for the curricular review, who will be its advocate now?
It is impossible not to conclude that this review—one of Larry Summers' highest and most publicized priorities for Harvard—is dead. And the really sad thing is, given the quality of the review, that is probably a good thing.
5) Whither Benedict Gross? The dean of Harvard College isn't much present these days... Would any incoming dean want to keep him on when he's barely there anyway?
6) It is also hard not to conclude that Bill Kirby's tenure as FAS dean has been an unmitigated disaster for the Harvard faculty. During his term, Kirby agreed to allow Mass Hall to solicit FAS alumni for their gifts and redirect those gifts to other parts of the university, a huge loss of power; sold Mass Hall to the central administration in a secret deal; committed to building projects that have created a deficit that's soaring toward nine-figures; and overseen a tragically inept curricular review that even its authors seem disinclined to defend. It's hard to take much positive out of this.
7) Of course, the ultimate responsibility for the Kirby fiasco lies with the man who hired him and constantly worked to subvert his authority: Larry Summers.
I believe that one test of leadership is the fate of the people who work for the person in the seat of power. Does the president of Harvard make the people who work for him look good? Does working for him benefit their reputations and careers?
Could anybody find me one person—honestly, just one—whose public reputation and professional career have benefitted from a close working relationship with Larry Summers? (And no, Lisa New doesn't count.)
Because at Harvard, Summers is making everyone who works for/with him (Lucy McNeil, Bill Kirby, Dick Gross, Steve Pinker, Bob Rubin) look bad.
You certainly have to think that Bill Kirby's dream of becoming a university president is now dead.
It's something the next crop of decanal candidates might want to consider......
