Yale's program began offering a master's degree in 1978 and a Ph.D. in 1993. Currently, Harvard's Afro-American studies department offers bachelor's degrees only to undergraduates, though the Faculty will vote tomorrow on whether to create a graduate program in the field.

"If you are 'jealous' of the Afro-American Studies Department at Harvard, why do you not support us with resources that are commensurate with our collective achievements and equal to theirs?" Carby wrote toward the end of her letter.

The letter also alleges that Levin has asked Gates "what it would take to persuade him and his colleagues to come to Yale."

Levin responded with a statement of his own, sent to graduate students and faculty in the African American studies program.

He said African American studies at Yale is a "vital enterprise," one he was dedicated to supporting. Yale "has been engaged in the process of considering the programs' petition for departmental status," Levin said.

"We need to unite in our efforts to make our successes better known around the country, and I look forward to providing support for such activity," he said.

In the Yale Daily News, Levin encouraged Carby to reconsider her resignation.