Fellow Robert G. Stone Jr. '45 says that when the Corporation faces an unfamiliar issue, its first response is to consult with as many people around the University as possible. "Very seldom we say unilaterally seven people can make the best decisions, because very often we have to seek advice from as many people as we can. We don't know all the answers," he explains. This process was most evident recently when the University considered a proposal from Professor of Biochemistry Mark Ptashe to set up a profit-making genetic engineering company within the University. After extensive consultation within the Faculty and with experts inside and outside Harvard, the idea was rejected.

The issue on which the Corporation has been most visible during Bok's tenure as president has been shareholder responsibility. It first surfaced in 1972 when a group of Black students occupied Mass Hall, demanding that Harvard divest from companies doing business in Angola. The University refused and has also resisted persistent pressure to divest from firms with operations in South Africa. Except perhaps for the Mass Hall takeover, which ended peacefully after a week, there has never been a crisis and the Corporation has been able to study the issue in excruciating detail. Treasurer George Putnam Jr. '49 went to South Africa a few years ago, and as chairman of the Corporation Committee on Shareholder Responsibility Calkins has become something of an expert on the subject.

The Corporation's way of thinking about the issue reflects its characteristic caution. It refuses to discuss the problem from the purely ideological perspective divestiture activists take. Members acknowledge that there are serious problems in the apartheid state and have pledged to do all they can to alleviate conditions there, but they consistently refuse to simplify the issue.

Nothing annoys a Corporation member more than the kind of statement often heard from demonstrators, that "We are right and you are wrong." On every issue the Corporation tackles, members say they must make the best effort they can to handle the problem rationally and analyze it from as many perspectives as possible, and they resent accusations to the contrary.

Calkins' involvement in the investment issue reflects a somewhat informal arrangement within the Corporation. Although not strictly defined, the members do tend to have "spheres of influence," areas in which they have particular expertise. Calkins is the authority on investment policy. Stone is best known for his fundraising ability--he serves as chairman of Harvard's ongoing $350 million Campaign and says it is one of the most important things he does on the board. The Campaign is raising money for Harvard's fundamental programs, teaching and research, as well as such affiliated areas as housing. Stone says, "You have to get at those basic long range issues, and that takes money." Of Stone, Calkins says, "Bob Stone is the world's finest fundraiser. He is without doubt the best there is. When you talk about the sheik of somewhere who might have an interest, his eyes light up and he's off taking the next plane. He's indefatigable; he has absolutely no hesitation to say to people. 'I'm sorry, that's just not enough.'"

Andrew P. Heiskell '28 took charge of finding Roderick M. MacDougall '51 to replace Putnam--who retires this month--as treasurer, and says he is especially interested in helping choose who gets Honorary Degrees at Commencement Charles P. Schlicter, a professor of physics at the University of Illinois, is widely respected for his judgement on academic matters. The freshman member of the board, Colman M. Mockler Jr. '52, has not yet received wide attention in any specific area.

The makeup of the Corporation--one professor, one lawyer and four businessmen--reflects the way the board operates. Originally the Corporation consisted of Harvard professors and clergymen, but for more than 100 years it has been dominated by lawyers and businessmen. Members say this is because of the kind of issues the board deals with.

"Fifty years ago a university was still the great great grandchild of the original university, the place people took refuge to do research and teach," says Heiskell. "Today the university has suddenly been tossed into the world and is set upon by the environmentalists, OSHA, issues of race and religion, etc. Everything that goes on in the world swirls right through the university. Fifty years ago you could get by with just a single president and a couple of advisers. Today you have to have more management in the university, you have to have more lawyers and businessmen."

Schlicter's appointment, however, in 1970--along with Yale historian John Morton Blum '43, who has since retired--marked a significant turning point for the board. It was the first time a professor from another university had been chosen, and members say it was an important move, bringing an additional perspective to the University.

One issue that still dogs the Corporation is the question of representation. All of the current members come from the traditional Corporation member background: wealthy, successful, middle aged white males, and many critics continue to await the first woman or minority member.

Fellows acknowledge the problem and say a broader membership will surface in a matter of time, but they caution against overt tokenism. Calkins says the board must avoid having a specific slot for a woman or minority. Heiskell adds that in recent years the Corporation has made a concerted effort to appoint a woman or minority but thus far has been unsuccessful. "Unfortunately one of the qualifications of being on the Corporation is having the time and energy to do it," he says. "If you go to a successful Black lawyer the chances of his being able to give that kind of time [as much as two months a year, he says] may be slim."

Fellows say the most significant change in Corporation business over the last 15 years, and the one which will continue to pose the toughest long range problem, is the University's increasingly complex finances, complicated by the growing role of the federal government in university education.

One of the worst times for the Corporation in recent years came in the middle 1970s when recession hurt the endowment and inflation drove up operating costs. At the time the board responsed by a lot of fancy footwork on the investment side and by saving money at home, primarily by keeping faculty salaries down. Those days are past, the endowment is growing tremendously and faculty salaries are back on par with those around the country, but members remain worried.

Complicating the issue of faculty salaries, says Stone, are wealthy state institutions like the University of Texas which have begun what could turn into a bidding war with schools like Harvard by offering large salaries and research benefits to "star" professors. He says a principal reason for the Campaign is to insure that Harvard will be able to compete financially in such a market and be able to maintain the University's prestige to attract top-flight faculty.

Other looming issues Fellows cite also revolve around money. These include the skyrocketing costs of health care and how it will affect the Medical School and Harvard's affiliated hospitals. A related problem is the increasingly high cost of equipping professors, especially scientists. It costs $1 million to endow a professorship at Harvard, but a scientist's lab equipment may cost more than that.