Something For Nothing

For more than a year Faculty members have been proving that they are ready to throw pajamas and toothbrushes into their suitcases and catch the morning train for Washington in the interests of the nation's welfare. Recently they have demonstrated that they are ready to stand the chance of having only a toothbrush to take along, by voting to staff the new intensive Summer School without salary. With Harvard facing a complete metamorphosis in its entire education pattern because of the war's drain on student and teaching bodies and the imminent need of "speed up"--the Faculty is determined that no change will have to be made because of their financial claims on a war-time University budget.

Beginning last year, the University, despite its $170,000,000 of investments, began to feel constricting economic pressure. Estimated income fell $25,000 short of estimated expenditures for the past fiscal year. In September the Departments took a 10 per cent overall cut. The Faculty assumed an increased burden of teaching. Tutorial work fell on fewer men and sections in larger courses increased. English A sections, for example, jumped to 30 students each. Meanwhile taxation's hand slipped more dollars from the professors' wallets. The Faculty falls neatly into the bracket whose income taxes have taken the biggest proportional leap. Nevertheless, in order to keep the expenses of an extended 12 weeks operation from being too high to allow anything but a very superficial offering of courses, they have decided to stretch their present incomes rather than restrict the scope of the new Summer School.

By their unselfish action, the Faculty is saving the University an estimated $60,000. This money will be applied to the technical equipment needed in specialiezd courses. It will also steady greatly the tottering University budget. The men who are going to teach this summer will have to meet still further increases in individual teaching burdens. Survey courses like Gov I and History I, in fact, are facing the immediate future not knowing where their next section man is coming from nor when he will go away. But the Faculty realizes that the University can render an immeasurable service in this emergency, and each member is willing to assume increased academic and financial burdens to see "not only that specialists are trained but that students shall receive at least a partial college education before they are called into the service of the country."