Although the Afro-Am chair said there waspotential for backlash from scholars who might beturned away by such campus unrest, so far, sheadded, she has seen none.

"Concentrators are right to think offers haveto be timely to be successful," Johnson said,referring to students' demands that the Universityset deadlines for itself in identifying candidatesand in making job offers.

History Search

History is seeking to fill a vacancy left byProfessor of History and Afro-American StudiesNathan I. Huggins, who died last spring.

In the past, the department has had difficultyfilling open tenured posts. Still, someadministrators say the general push for Afro-Amfaculty appointments may help move the searchcommittee forward. That panel is chaired byProfessor of History William E. Gienapp, who alsosits on Afro-Am's executive committee.

A few top candidates have already come toHarvard over the last weeks to meet professors andgive lectures. The rest will be coming in Decemberand January, Johnson said.

Only the Psychology Department will havebrought all of its short-list candidates to thecampus for interviews and speeches before thewinter holidays, she added.

The Afro-Am executive committee, made up of 10senior scholars and administrators from across theFaculty, was expected to meet tomorrow. Thatmeeting has been postponed until January becauseit conflicted with a speech by Arnold R. Hirsch,professor of history at the University of NewOrleans, who is being considered for a tenuredposition in History and Afro-American Studies.

Announcements about short-list speakers aresent to Afro-Am concentrators and variousprofessors associated with searches in that field,Johnson said. Many undergraduates, as well asfaculty members, have made a concerted effort toattend the talks, she added