Tuesday, June 05, 2024
Drew Faust in 02138
My profile of Harvard's new president is online now on the 02138 website.
Here's the blurb:
And the mag's cover:
Here's the blurb:
As Drew Gilpin Faust prepares to take Harvard’s helm, the president-elect remains a little-known figure to many faculty, students, and alumni. How did the Civil War historian and Radcliffe dean make her way to the top of the world’s most powerful university? And what does she intend to do now that she’s there? Richard Bradley reports on the big questions surrounding Harvard’s new president.
And the mag's cover:
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Hey Rich,
A couple of years ago, you clearly had good inside information about Harvard politics, and have been well-positioned to facilitate gossip. Over the last year it has seemed that you've relied on a smaller, biased set of informants.
Nevertheless, your piece on Faust nicely highlights one dimension most worthy of exploration: class, ie, money. She comes from money. Money has not been an issue in her life, practically speaking. Her new pick for dean has been running a private software company and has a spouse running a major mortage corporation -- also someone not worrying about where next month's daycare payments are coming from.
Faust's academic work demonstrates a keen, abstract sense of how race and class matter. But, given her actual experiences that you nicely summarize, it is apparent that she can work most easily with those who do not have the nagging necessity of paying the bills. This certain lack of self-consciousness shows itself in day-to-day discussions with her, and might account in part for the sense of reserve that many of us have felt. Especially those of us who actually have to make a living and can't offload caregiving responsibilities.
Not to be too skeptical. Faust and Smith both strike me as exceedingly intelligent, capable, engaging (when they want to be), etc. But the common experience of privilege does lead one to worry. Harvard is in a place now -- wrt to both students and faculty -- where we need someone who understands, existentially, how the ability to realize intellectual capacity is threatened by financial uncertainty. I sadly get the feeling that Faust only feels comfortable with those, like Smith, who do not need to grapple with the realities of paying the mortgage.
A couple of years ago, you clearly had good inside information about Harvard politics, and have been well-positioned to facilitate gossip. Over the last year it has seemed that you've relied on a smaller, biased set of informants.
Nevertheless, your piece on Faust nicely highlights one dimension most worthy of exploration: class, ie, money. She comes from money. Money has not been an issue in her life, practically speaking. Her new pick for dean has been running a private software company and has a spouse running a major mortage corporation -- also someone not worrying about where next month's daycare payments are coming from.
Faust's academic work demonstrates a keen, abstract sense of how race and class matter. But, given her actual experiences that you nicely summarize, it is apparent that she can work most easily with those who do not have the nagging necessity of paying the bills. This certain lack of self-consciousness shows itself in day-to-day discussions with her, and might account in part for the sense of reserve that many of us have felt. Especially those of us who actually have to make a living and can't offload caregiving responsibilities.
Not to be too skeptical. Faust and Smith both strike me as exceedingly intelligent, capable, engaging (when they want to be), etc. But the common experience of privilege does lead one to worry. Harvard is in a place now -- wrt to both students and faculty -- where we need someone who understands, existentially, how the ability to realize intellectual capacity is threatened by financial uncertainty. I sadly get the feeling that Faust only feels comfortable with those, like Smith, who do not need to grapple with the realities of paying the mortgage.
Richard,
If 12:16 is the sort of response your provocations are going to get, it's truly time to hang it up for a while. I suggest you refrain from putting out "What do you think of DF's appointment of X?" types of blogs and give her a year to show us how well her choices and decisions have worked. That is, how about a honeymoon, that might start, hmm, let's see, after the actual wedding, that is after she actually becomes president of Harvard?
Back to Sox, down 2-0 bottom of 8th.
If 12:16 is the sort of response your provocations are going to get, it's truly time to hang it up for a while. I suggest you refrain from putting out "What do you think of DF's appointment of X?" types of blogs and give her a year to show us how well her choices and decisions have worked. That is, how about a honeymoon, that might start, hmm, let's see, after the actual wedding, that is after she actually becomes president of Harvard?
Back to Sox, down 2-0 bottom of 8th.
Richard T is right about giving Faust and Smith a chance. 12:16 is also right to notice the class aspect well brought out in RB's profile and subsequently highlighted by Faust's choice for FAS Dean of a businessman with few ties to faculty or academic pursuits. Harvard is a very money driven place now, focused above all on graduating future donors and getting current ones to bankroll a huge campus expansion.
Drew Faust may have been trying to find somebody who didn't take a stand on one side or the other of the recent curricular debates. That may explain her choice of Michael Smith for Dean of FAS.
Richard Thomas justly enjoys his reputation as wisest man on Richard's blog, but he's a bit too snooty in his casual dismissal of 12.16 without at least some discussion of 12.16's substance. If all RT wants to say is: Money and privilege are things to be wary of, but it's too soon to make any such judgments on DGF... well, then say it that way, perhaps.
Look, I just think it is unproductive to obsess about some aspect of a president, dean, director of the library, etc. that does not have to do with proven ability or potential to do that job. That someone 'comes from money' while someone else has been 'running a private software company' (does or does not come from money?) seem to me irrrelevant to what we can expect -- except for the managerial experience, presumably a good thing. Not being snooty, and I neither come from money nor run anything that produces it; it's just that the game is over for now, and so let's just see how it all proceeds in the coming months.
On a personal note, and speaking of money, NZ just beat Italy in the Louis Vuitton Cup, out of which Ellison and Oracle were knocked after spending $250M of his own money. Next step is to beat the Swiss yacht, Alinghi (no coastline but they hold the America's Cup) and take the Cup back to Auckland, where I used to sail. Go Kiwis!
On a personal note, and speaking of money, NZ just beat Italy in the Louis Vuitton Cup, out of which Ellison and Oracle were knocked after spending $250M of his own money. Next step is to beat the Swiss yacht, Alinghi (no coastline but they hold the America's Cup) and take the Cup back to Auckland, where I used to sail. Go Kiwis!
Interesting that in the two featured articles in 02138, neither Richard or Margo interviewed their subjects.
Scoop:
Summers gets an honorary degree – but so does Conrad Harper. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.
Summers gets an honorary degree – but so does Conrad Harper. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away.
I came here to look for comments about Bill Clinton's speech--was anyone else as underwhelmed as I was?
11:25: Completely. I couldn't believe how shallow and rambling it was. And I had really looked forward to it, too.
Only Harvard could/would award an honorary degree to a President that it has recently tossed out unceremoniously for wrecking the university---or so some believe. Maybe the powers that be are already realizing that he wasnt so bad after all. If Drew Faust's glacial pace in making decisions continues, she will be a far worse President than Summers and the faculty may find themselves longing for the bad old days.
I agree with the two comments above. Usually I'm a fan of Bill--though not his wife--but yesterday was an incredibly average performance for the slick former prez.
Rich,
Thanks for the Drew Faust story. One point: I remember that when the History Department first recruited her, tenure offers were made to both her and her husband, Charles. To check my recollection, I went to the Crimson archive and found the original article:
Faust's husband Charles Rosenberg, a pre-eminent historian of science who teaches at Penn, also has received a tenure offer from Harvard. Faust said yesterday that she and Rosenberg were "very seriously considering" their offers and planned to visit Cambridge next month before reaching a final decision this fall. (Crimson, 7/11/89)
http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=270821
I'm sure you'll want to correct your article to reflect the truth of the matter.
Thanks for the Drew Faust story. One point: I remember that when the History Department first recruited her, tenure offers were made to both her and her husband, Charles. To check my recollection, I went to the Crimson archive and found the original article:
Faust's husband Charles Rosenberg, a pre-eminent historian of science who teaches at Penn, also has received a tenure offer from Harvard. Faust said yesterday that she and Rosenberg were "very seriously considering" their offers and planned to visit Cambridge next month before reaching a final decision this fall. (Crimson, 7/11/89)
http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=270821
I'm sure you'll want to correct your article to reflect the truth of the matter.
Thanks for that. Let me check it out and if I'm wrong, I will indeed correct that. Appreciate the tip.
Am I nuts or is the cover of that magazine consciously emulating Cosmopolitan? Are there some sex tips in there? Exercises to improve the breast size naturally? How to make him jealous and make it work for you?
To Anon 6:53
Standing Eagle wasn't going to be able to answer today, because today, as well as the last few days, is a very busy time for him. He has lots of people to see at commencement.
Sam Spektor
Standing Eagle wasn't going to be able to answer today, because today, as well as the last few days, is a very busy time for him. He has lots of people to see at commencement.
Sam Spektor
Richard,
I would be interested to hear your thoughts on the Crimson's commencement edition story on President Faust. It seems to contradict some of the points that you made in your recent 02138 article.
I would be interested to hear your thoughts on the Crimson's commencement edition story on President Faust. It seems to contradict some of the points that you made in your recent 02138 article.
I'm not sure which Crimson story you're referring to, but I read a few pieces in the paper about Faust and none seem to contradict anything I wrote. Could you be more specific?
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