"You don't have as many faculty directly involved in the governance of the area," he says, "but they are involved in other ways."
This fall, 70 faculty members, including senior faculty, entered the first year dorms to discuss racial issues with proctor groups.
A handbook on race relations at the college was distributed to the houses and dorms last spring, and a second handbook will be distributed in the near future.
The second book consists of student and faculty-written essays on various aspects of the situation of race, and an introductory essay by Epps himself titled "The Common Pursuit."
"I have a strong philosophy of race relations work which is articulated in the essay," Epps says. "The title itself suggests what I think. You want to stress the common experience of people with different backgrounds and not their differences."
Epps took charge of the College's policies on race relations after the campus tensions during the spring of 1992. He later admitted he was "out of touch" that spring when the Black Students Association distributed a flyer titled "On the Harvard Plantation" stating a battery of grievances against the College.
Epps says he has no plans to further modify the race relations hierarchy and will continue to oversee the entire issue. But he says in the future he may need more help if it becomes too difficult for one person to handle.
"[Epps] is not saying that this is necessarily the final staffing arrangement," Jewett says. "He's trying some new things, and we'll want to assess how they work through this year."
Epps admits he has been in the "hot seat" due to racial tensions within the College. Yet he says he still wants to preside over the area of race relations.
"You cannot do this work without being at the point of tension," Epps says. "I have to do that for the College. I have to take the risk."