To the editors:

I am concerned that the current firestorm over University President Lawrence H. Summers’ intemperate remarks might be exploited by certain faculty to resist some much-needed changes in undergraduate life that Summers has championed. These changes include ending the first academic term prior to the Christmas break, deferring selection of a concentration area until the end of the sophomore year, and greatly expanding the junior year abroad program.

I have been involved with interviewing and recruiting students for Harvard for many years. The most consistent concern one hears from talented students accepted to Harvard, but choosing to attend other colleges, is that Harvard is not invested in the quality of life of its undergraduates. This sentiment has been echoed by countless recent graduates. The faculty have had many opportunities to address this issue over the years and have failed so spectacularly that one could question the sincerity of their commitment to this enterprise.

The remedy to the “undergraduate problem” may require the type of cultural shift that Summers has initiated. Perhaps some forceful leadership with support from alumni, and even confrontation, is in order if we wish to bring balance to the faculty’s parochial perspective on undergraduate life. While Summers’ recent remarks and disrespectful style are unfortunate, the real tragedy would be if the faculty’s current discontent with the man were used as a pretext to discount his important ideas on undergraduate reform.

RICHARD MARKHAM ’69

Baltimore, Md.

February 16, 2005

The writer is a professor of molecular biology and immunology at Johns Hopkins

University.

To the editors:

I am stunned by the notion that Harvard would force anyone out of his or her position here—whether student, staff, faculty, or administration—because of the views that person expressed at an academic conference.

BRUCE HAY

Cambridge, Mass.