“There’s quite a lot of difference of opinion among people on the Faculty over what issues they feel are important. Any particular motion would get a smaller vote than the generic motion [the Crimson poll] raised,” Baird Professor of Science Gary J. Feldman said of Matory’s motion.

Feldman also noted that the faculty members who might vote would potentially constitute a different population than those who responded to the Crimson poll.

Ryan said that Matory’s grievances are too particular for the motion to appeal to many professors.

“I’m not totally convinced that as many people will be prepared to sign on to that as might have been willing to sign on if the rationale had been a little less detailed and somewhat differently worded,” Ryan said.

Matory said he consulted with at least 10 faculty members about the language of the motion.

His motion comes as top administration officials try to move discussion of faculty discontent with Summers out of Faculty meetings and into more private settings, both to diffuse discontent and to ensure that other administrative issues—particularly the Curricular Review—are discussed.

At last week’s Faculty meeting, a plan welcomed by Summers and Dean of the Faculty William C. Kirby to have three respected professors mediate between the Faculty and Summers was turned down by faculty members, who overwhelmingly opposed the proposal as undemocratic and prearranged.

On Monday, Kirby announced the creation of at least four informal discussion fora designed to allow small groups of professors to voice their concerns directly to Summers and Kirby, as well as an online forum where professors can post their comments on Summers. The first of the informal discussion groups meets today.

The administration’s goal earlier this year was to complete the Curricular Review by the end of this semester.

However, Kirby and professors downgraded their expectations at a meeting of the Faculty Council yesterday. They now hope to pass legislation concerning general education and concentrations, but delay voting on more minor aspects of the review until next year.

—Staff writer William C. Marra can be reached at wmarra@fas.harvard.edu.

—Staff writer Sara E. Polsky can be reached at polsky@fas.harvard.edu.