Last night--as Harvard and Radcliffe administrators continued to decline comment about ongoing negotiations that may eliminate Radcliffe's official role as an undergraduate college--Dean of the College Harry R. Lewis '68 presided over the first annual Women's Leadership Awards, sponsored by Harvard College.

Only last October, Harvard College celebrated 25 years of co-residency with a dedication ceremony in the Yard officiated by Lewis and Harvard President Neil L. Rudenstine--with Radcliffe President Linda S. Wilson standing by as a spectator.

One thing's for sure: Harvard College is courting the long-forgotten girls next door. And its recent efforts, combined with Radcliffe's difficulty competing with Harvard for alumnae dollars, may have prompted Harvard and Radcliffe officials to rethink Radcliffe's relationship to the University as its role in the lives of undergraduate women becomes increasingly nominal.

The Harvard Woman

The creation of the Women's Leadersip Awards--only one of the College's recent attempts too woo women--coincides with capital campaigns being conducted by both the University and Radcliffe that often vie for the same donors.

In an unprecedented letter to all Harvard and Radcliffe graduates last April, Dean of the Faculty Jeremy R. Knowles highlighted the lack of alumnae involvement in Harvard's campaign. Under the 1977 agreement between Harvard and Radcliffe, Harvard cannot solicit donations from alumnae who graduated before 1976.

Many alumnae said they saw Knowles' letter as a tacit appeal for donations, adding that they had not received such letters before.

According to several active Radcliffe alumnae, many female graduates do not donate to the University because they have been suspicious of the final destination of their gifts.

At a meeting of alumnae at the Radcliffe Club of Boston yesterday, members said some women feel reluctant to give to the University capital campaign because women are insufficiently represented in Harvard's leadership.

"What Harvard needs is a woman president," said Bettina H. Harrison, who earned a degree from the Graduate School of Education (GSE) in 1940, in a lighter moment during the club's discussion of its alma mater's future. "I nominate myself." "And I'll vote for you," laughed Marie M. Costello '35.

As the women at the club noted, the College's record in placing women in leadership roles has not been outstanding.

The percentage of female tenured Faculty hovers slightly above 10 percent. Only one woman has ever headed one of the University's 10 schools. Patricia A. Graham stepped down as the GSE's dean seven years ago, the same year Rudenstine assumed Harvard's helm.

In the past year, the College has tried to reposition itself in the minds of graduates and current undergraduates, beginning with a glossy brochure published this fall featuring prominent women on campus, both faculty and students.

This is also the first year of the Harvard College Women's Initiative, a program funded by a $1.25 million grant from two graduates who wanted to acknowledge Harvard's--not Radcliffe's--place in undergraduate women's educations.

In the spring, the University--under Lewis' direction--named Diana L. Eck as master of Lowell House, doubling the current number of female House masters. Mallinckrodt Professor of Physics Howard Georgi, who will become master of Leverett House in the fall, is touted as a supporter of undergraduate women in the sciences.

Wilson said yesterday that she is pleased by the College's recent show of support. "How could Radcliffe be anything but supportive?" she asked.

Room for Radcliffe?

Still, FAS's new attitude toward women may leave Radcliffe in the lurch.

Lewis and Knowles have, in effect, presented the College as a place for alumnae gifts, a place where undergraduate women do reap the benefits of the FAS coffers.

But since both FAS and Radcliffe are engaged in fundraising efforts, the two institutions have, at times, butted heads. The College's efforts to show women they care are accompanied by several recent conflicts with its sister institution on Garden Street.

Although Wilson and Dean of Educational Programs Tamar March were invited to October's gate dedication and panel discussions on women at Harvard, the ceremony featured Harvard officials. "We had hoped President Wilson would have a role in the ceremony," March said.

Tension between the two institutions emerged again earlier this year when Radcliffe requested rent for the use of Byerly Hall, which currently houses the Undergraduate Admissions Office and the offices of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. In the past, FAS has used the space free of charge.

While Wilson declined yesterday to provide details of recent discussions by the Radcliffe College's Board of Trustees over its future, she said Radcliffe will continue to provide "meaningful experiences and opportunities" for undergraduate women.

"What will not change is our commitment to students--just how it might be expressed, which changes all the time," Wilson said. "If it didn't, it wouldn't be in touch with students."

Wilson characterized the current "comprehensive strategic planning" discussions as part of Radcliffe's ongoing evolution.

"We had a plan very well thought out for the 1990s, and we're almost done carrying that out....Now we're thinking about what's the best thing to do in the next century," she said.

March also emphasized that although most of the senior staff at Radcliffe have been involved in the strategic planning, "they were discussions, not decisions," she said. "As far as I know, there are no decisions.