But deciding where exactly to add new faculty members, assuming the resources are obtained to fund them, will be no easy task, professors and administrators say, as many departments compete for a relatively limited pool of money.
"The problem which always comes up in one context or another is the number of faculty we have," says Government Head Tutor Mark A. Peterson, whose remarks are echoed by members of many Harvard departments.
Making the Case
Potential donors will also want to know whether increasing the faculty merits their gifts, administrators say.
"In order to make that case, both to ourselves and ultimately in the context of a campaign, you have to essentially have gone through exactly the kind of process of analysis that David [Pilbeam] is spearheading," says Spence.
But a former associate dean for undergraduate education says that the fundraising campaign could raise other questions about the undergraduate curriculum.
Professor of History Steven Ozment says Harvard may be called to task for its reputation of not caring about undergraduates and their interaction with professors. Alumni, he says, may be reluctant to see their fundraising dollars go to aloof research professors.
"I think [Pilbeam's] got to be prepared to prove to people outside that this is not a problem," says Ozment. "I think that is going to test his agility."
Administrators say they would like to see the curriculum include more contact between senior facuty and students as well as more small classes. But they say a solution to the problem is not likely to be found within the scope of this current review.
"I'm not sure that those are the grand policy statements to be made in this report," says Wolcowitz.
Still, administrators stress that the curriculum review is more than just a precursor to the capital drive.
Pilbeam is open to the possibility that the rather informal review process could lead to something more sweeping, although he says it is still too early to tell.
"I suppose one way of thinking about what we're doing now is sort of walking our way around the landscape, learning about the landscape in order to decide to what extent we want to have a more formal look at any particular aspect," says Pilbeam.
Pilbeam, whose three-year term as dean ends after the spring semester, says that one of his last acts in office will be recommending to Spence whether a more dramatic review is warranted.
Says Pilbeam, "Long before this particular educational process is over I'm going to write Mike [Spence] a letter telling him whether I think there is any reason for a curriculum review with a capital `c', capital `r'."