In fact, many at Dartmouth evaluate Freedman primarily on the basis of how he has handled The Review.

"Harvard would be crazy to appoint this man president," says Jeffrey Hart, professor of English and a member of the board of directors of The Review. "He is personally unstable. He is a liar...The few faculty members I've spoken to think it's mind-boggling that Harvard is considering him."

Elsewhere in Hanover, the opinions of Freedman are quite different.

"It would be a shame to lose him so soon," says Deb Karazin, former editor-in-chief of The Dartmouth, the College's daily newspaper. Freedman took over at Dartmouth in 1987.

The Dartmouth published a self-parody this fall announcing that Freedman was leaving for the Harvard presidency.

"I like the fact that he stimulates constructive debate about the way we do things and the way we treat people," says George Dunstan, head of a student committee that meets with Freedman. "I think that's positive."

Freedman has embarked on an ambitious program to promote "scholarship" at Dartmouth, hiring new faculty and attempting to strengthen the undergraduate curriculum.

Like Rupp, Freedman has been accused of trying to shape his institution in the image of Harvard.

"Some people on campus think that Freedman is trying to `intellectualize' Dartmouth and trying to make it another Harvard," says Karazin.

"Dartmouth students are not the kind of students he wants," she adds. "He seems to want more intellectual-type students. Dartmouth students are more well-rounded and into their activities."

Wellesley Loves Its President

Wellesley President Keohane is said to be one of the few women under consideration by the Harvard selection committee.

With degrees from Wellesley, Oxford and Yale, she is recognized for her achievements in the improvement of education for women. She received national publicity last year when the first ladies of the United States and the Soviet Union jointly delivered the Wellesley commencement address.

At the college, most faculty and students agree that Keohane enjoys almost uniform popularity.

"As president of Wellesley, she's been fantastic," says Goldman, the Wellesley economist. "She has a wonderful sense of what is important and she conveys that. The only other person with this quality to reach the heart of the issue that I've seen is [Harvard's Acting Dean of the Faculty Henry] Rosovsky."