A Dean's Dismissal Harvard faculty of arts and sciences dean Bill Kirby has been fired by Larry Summers.

(Well, according to the Crimson, which broke the story, Kirby was "forced to resign." Same difference.)

Below are his statement of resignation and Larry Summers' de riguer but patently disingenuous statement of praise. I'll write later about what this all means, in my opinion, but now, it's a beautiful Saturday morning...

Bill Kirby:

Dear Colleagues,

I am writing to let you know that after four years of serving as Dean,
I have decided to return to the Faculty at the end of the current
academic year.

I do so in the belief that, together, we have set a strong foundation.
First, we have invested heavily in the Faculty: by expanding our
ranks in every division and discipline; enhancing time for research
and discovery; appointing younger colleagues, who, with our support,
will flourish here as scholars and teachers; and committing ourselves to
a Faculty as diverse as it is strong. Second, we have invested in the
architecture and infrastructure that give form to our ambitions in the
sciences, international studies, and the arts: the laboratories, centers,
studios, and theaters that are now permanent parts of our collective
future. Third, and most important, we have recommitted ourselves to
our students: by processes of curricular review and renewal; increased
financial aid for undergraduate and graduate students alike; and expanded
educational opportunities for them across Harvard and around the world.
For our continued growth in all these domains we have developed a strong,
long-term, financial plan.

The events of the past year have posed serious challenges. Yet we have
continued to focus on the essential business before us. As we look to
the future, it will be important for the President and the Dean to work
closely together, in collaboration with the Faculty, toward our common
objectives. I feel confident that my successor, President Summers,
and the Faculty as a whole will have a solid basis on which to build.
Meanwhile, there is work to be done, and we have a full agenda before
us this spring.

For myself, the allure and the increasingly dynamic nature of my field
of study -- modern and contemporary China -- have made my decision a
timely and compelling one. I look forward to working with colleagues
and students as we extend our study of China's past, present, and future
role in the world.

No one can serve in this office without being grateful for the privilege
of working with this stellar faculty, no small number of whom I have
had the honor to recruit; of being supported by the dedicated staff that
serves us all in FAS; of meeting and befriending our wonderful alumni;
and -- above all -- serving the students for whom, at the end of the day,
this University exists.

Thank you.

Sincerely yours,

William C. Kirby


Larry Summers:

Dear Members of the Harvard Community,
As he announced earlier today, Bill Kirby has decided to step down as
Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and return to the faculty at
the end of the 2005-06 academic year. Starting this summer, he will
take the lead in guiding Harvard's growing array of initiatives focused
on China, his longtime field of scholarly expertise, as director of the
Fairbank Center for East Asian Research. I want to express my
gratitude, personally and on behalf of the Harvard community, for
Bill's imaginative and dedicated leadership of the FAS these past
several years.
As Dean, Bill has guided the Faculty with remarkable foresight,
openness to change, and deep devotion to the University's highest
values and purposes, during what I believe will prove to have been a
transformative period in the life of the FAS.
* He has shown a deep commitment to assuring the best possible
experience for students at Harvard College - both by launching and
leading the first comprehensive review of Harvard's undergraduate
curriculum in a generation, and by pursuing innovative ways to enhance
residential and extracurricular life.
* He has stimulated and steered the ambitious growth of the FAS faculty -
now more than 700 strong - through intensive recruitment efforts and
with special attention to charting new scholarly directions, improving
our faculty-student ratio, and bettering the tenure prospects of
outstanding junior faculty members.
* He has worked creatively with colleagues to expand opportunities for
study abroad and to spur closer student-faculty engagement -- including
a dramatic rise in freshman seminars and the advent of faculty-led
junior seminars in several of the largest concentrations.
* He has pursued essential enhancements in financial aid for both
undergraduate and graduate students, to keep Harvard's doors open to
outstanding and diverse students from across the economic spectrum.
* He has initiated critical large-scale investments in the Faculty's
facilities, in the sciences and beyond, that will augment Harvard's
academic capacities for decades to come.
* He has undertaken to strengthen the administrative structure of the
FAS, both to involve more faculty members in planning and
priority-setting and to ensure responsiveness to student concerns.
To these and other initiatives -- and through what has been a
not-uncomplicated time in the life of the University -- he has brought
a consistent commitment to the best interests of the FAS and its
faculty, students, and staff, and to fruitful collaboration with
Harvard's other faculties and schools.
With Bill, I look forward to a productive spring semester for the FAS,
which will be an important one for the curricular review and in other
key areas. I look forward, as well, to supporting Bill's leadership in
guiding Harvard's efforts to deepen and widen our scholarship and
teaching about China in the years ahead. We are fortunate to have
someone of his experience, collaborative outlook, and deep knowledge of
China to shape our thinking about creative new ways to engage with the
most populous nation on earth, at the start of a century whose defining
developments seem sure to include China's rising influence around the
globe. Few areas of academic interest hold greater promise for the
University in the decades ahead, and Bill is exceptionally well
positioned to help Harvard move forward.
The search for Bill's successor as Dean will begin promptly. After
consultation within the faculty, I plan to invite a broad-based faculty
advisory group to work with me on the search, in line with customary
Harvard practice. As the search proceeds, I also intend to consult more
widely with members of the faculty, including the FAS Faculty Council
and the department chairs, and to seek the perspectives and counsel of
students, staff, and alumni. Meanwhile, members of the Harvard
community are strongly encouraged to offer their advice and
nominations, in confidence, by writing to me in Massachusetts Hall or
by e-mail, starting January 30, to [email protected].
For now, I hope you will join me in thanking Bill Kirby for his
farsighted and devoted service to the Faculty of Arts and Sciences and
to the University as a whole, and in helping to ensure both a
productive final semester of his deanship and a smooth transition in
the time ahead.
Sincerely,
Lawrence H. Summers


Oh, all right, I have two quick things to say. One, the curricular review is now DOA. And two...the search for a new dean is going to be very interesting. Who would take the job now?  ¶ 8:18 AM