Dean Monro

He has listened--to student activists, students in academic difficulty, students who had a new project in civil rights or drama or social work. He has borne long hours of argument with tireless patience, and greeted new proposals with enthusiasm. In his six years as Dean of the College he has been more accessible than most professors. Students button-holed him in his office without appointments, and they debated with him at Harvard Policy Committee meetings for two hours every week. Editors of this newspaper called him often, sometimes at odd hours of the night. He was available for advice and conversation from the time he arrived in his office to the time he left.

And when he spoke, it was usually on behalf of student ideas and interests. Before the Faculty and within the Administration, he has argued for student positions on parietals, off-campus living, and matters of educational policy such as pass-fail and General Education. Monro was among the first to suggest that the HPC investigate the language requirement. He has ardently supported the efforts of both the HPC and HUC to gain a permanent niche in the decision-making process of the University. And, in general, he has sought means for giving students a more effective voice in policy-making. Recently, he organized a day-long meeting between students and a visiting committee of the Board of Overseers to discuss that problem--including in the undergraduate group, typically, some of his sharpest critics from Students for a Democratic Society.

He was occasionally criticized, of course, on matters of style and policy. Monro's habit of thinking out loud often gave his conversation the appearance of false starts and long windedness. He is not a scholar or logician. His style is to punch ideas around, not cut them apart. He was often his most severe critic, admitting mistakes readily--as, for example, on his decision to release class ranks to draft boards without consulting students. But he was not often wrong, and he won the respect of Faculty as well as students.

Monro has given 18 years of his life to the College, rising from the News Office to the Deanship. As director of financial aid, before moving to University Hall, he instituted a new system of loans, jobs and scholarships that revolutionized the nature of the entire student body.

But his commitment as an educator has not been limited to Harvard College. Monro worked on the college Scholarship Service, spreading the scholarships procedures he introduced here to more than 1000 schools across the nation. During the past few summers, when many Faculty members retreated to the cool breezes of northern New England, Monro went south to Miles College. One of the most active members of the American Council of Education, he has been a strong supporter of civil rights, draft reform, and educational innovation.

Monro is a man of high principle, who holds himself rigorously to his own ideals. His departure for Miles--to an unprestigious but highly significant job--is a mark of that commitment. He believes that one of the most important challenges this country faces today is Negro education, and that he can be of service. Miles may not yet fully-realize what it is getting; but his presence there will be felt immediately, as will his absence here.