LIBRARY TROUBLE

During the question period that begins every Faculty Meeting, faculty raised concerns about transparency in the library restructuring process and the manner in which library employees have been treated.

Citing colleagues in the Loeb Music Library who have been asked to submit employee profiles for potential job shifts, Anne C. Shreffler, acting chair of the music department, questioned what she said she felt was a lack of faculty engagement in such decisions.

“How, when, and in what form will the faculty be consulted about these far-reaching changes which will have such great impact on our research and teaching?” she asked.

University Provost Alan Garber admitted that faculty engagement early in the process was less than ideal.

“We have not, to be quite candid, effectively engaged the Faculty Advisory Board, but we’ve tried to change that,” he said. “Over the past three months, we have had 155 meetings with faculty and staff about the library transition. Some of those meetings have been only staff, and some have been only faculty. Not everybody has participated, but there has been a very extensive effort to engage the community.”

Ali Asani, chair of the department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations, noted Harvard’s treatment of employees.

“How can we be compassionate and humane as we’re dealing with members of our community?” he asked University President Drew G. Faust.

Faust acknowledged the need for compassion.

“Part of that is offering to staff who have worked here for a long time and are eligible for a voluntary early retirement program the ability to choose that,” she said.

EDUCATING EDUCATORS

Faculty present also voted unanimously to approve a new Ph.D program in Education, to be offered jointly by the Graduate School of Education and the Faculty of Arts and Sciences.

Interim Dean of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences Richard J. Tarrant addressed concerns about how the new program would affect the demand for library resources.

According to Tarrant, representatives from both Widener Library and Gutman Library concluded that the new program would not significantly change the demand for library resources by GSE faculty and staff.

“Should there be need for additional library resources, the Graduate School of Education is prepared to support those costs,” Tarrant said.

—Staff writer Radhika Jain can be reached at radhikajain@college.harvard.edu.

—Staff writer Kevin J. Wu can be reached at kwu@college.harvard.edu.