University to Probe Harassment Charges

After months of denial and finger-pointing by University officials, President Neil L. Rudenstine said yesterday he will ask the general counsel's office to reopen an investigation of charges of racial harassment within the University security guard unit.

In an interview yesterday, the president said the situation seems to be a "serious enough problem" to warrant "a fresh look," despite a similar probe last spring that found no wrongdoing.

Rudenstine said he would ask newly appointed General Counsel Margaret H. Marshall to examine the complaints by minority security guards after she takes office in November.

"Anytime you have complaints about potential problems of a racial sort...then you really must look at them," he said.

Rudenstine did not dismiss the findings of the University's original inquiry into the matter last spring, which cleared accused parties of all charges of racial harassment. Then-general counsel Daniel Steiner '54 said at the time that he found "perceptions" of racial harassment but not actual harassment.

Last spring, seven former and current minority security guards charged security supervisors Donald P. Behenna and Thomas F. Henaghan with harassment. The alleged harassment consisted mostly of verbal abuse and unusually close monitoring during shifts. Some guards also said Manager of Operations for Security Robert. J. Dowling ignored complaints against the supervisors.

Investigations of similar claims by two guards have been dismissed by a state agency, the Massachusetts Commission Against Discrimination.

"We're talking about a situation that's been looked at hard," Rudenstine said. He said he had no reason to doubt Steiner's findings, saying they "seemed to me to be very reasonable and carefully done, and I accepted them."

"But it seems to me that if the complaints have continued and there is a difference of views there, it's a serious enough problem to warrant another examination of a thorough and careful kind," Rudenstine said.

The president said Marshall, who as general counsel will oversee the police department, would meet first with Police Chief Paul E.Johnson. Johnson has repeatedly denied that thereis any problem in his unit, other than simply a"perception" of a problem.

If Marshall's investigation were to find racialharassment, Rudenstine said the supervisors wouldbe evaluated on a "case by case" basis. He did notrule out any disciplinary options, includingtermination.

In other news from the interview:

.Responding to the concerns of students seekingmore courses on Latino culture, Rudenstine said hewould like to add courses, because, to an extent,minority groups and ethnic identities "are a partof American history and culture."

"I have no doubt that over time we will havemore courses having to do with these aspects ofAmerican, Hispanic-American experience,"Rudenstine said. "It's really a question ofgetting there, as we find people and as we finddollars to do it."

.Harvard should not delay its timetable for adecision on ROTC funding based on the results ofthe November presidential election, Rudenstinesaid.

Regarding Bill Clinton, who has promised tolift a ban on gays in the military, Rudenstinesaid, "I know what he said, and I don't disbelievehim...but you never know what's going to happen inthe dynamics of national politics."

"I think it would be a real mistake to peg thisissue onto a national election," he said. "I thinkit would be ridiculous not to be aware of the factof what he said, but we need to see what peoplesay after they're elected."

.Negotiations between the University and theHarvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workersare progressing "slowly, quite honestly," butthere is "good will on both sides," the presidentsaid.

"Coming to closure is just proving to be avery, very long complicated process," he said.

.Harvard has raised half of the roughly $2million needed to establish a University-widecomputer network. Rudenstine said work is beingdone on the network as the money becomesavailable.

.The planning for an undergraduateconcentration on the environment is moving "muchmore swiftly than most plannings forconcentrations usually go," Rudenstine said.

If work goes according to schedule, first-yearstudents should be able to choose an environmentalstudies concentration this spring, he said.

Ira E. Stoll contributed to the reporting ofthis article.

If Marshall's investigation were to find racialharassment, Rudenstine said the supervisors wouldbe evaluated on a "case by case" basis. He did notrule out any disciplinary options, includingtermination.

In other news from the interview:

.Responding to the concerns of students seekingmore courses on Latino culture, Rudenstine said hewould like to add courses, because, to an extent,minority groups and ethnic identities "are a partof American history and culture."

"I have no doubt that over time we will havemore courses having to do with these aspects ofAmerican, Hispanic-American experience,"Rudenstine said. "It's really a question ofgetting there, as we find people and as we finddollars to do it."

.Harvard should not delay its timetable for adecision on ROTC funding based on the results ofthe November presidential election, Rudenstinesaid.

Regarding Bill Clinton, who has promised tolift a ban on gays in the military, Rudenstinesaid, "I know what he said, and I don't disbelievehim...but you never know what's going to happen inthe dynamics of national politics."

"I think it would be a real mistake to peg thisissue onto a national election," he said. "I thinkit would be ridiculous not to be aware of the factof what he said, but we need to see what peoplesay after they're elected."

.Negotiations between the University and theHarvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workersare progressing "slowly, quite honestly," butthere is "good will on both sides," the presidentsaid.

"Coming to closure is just proving to be avery, very long complicated process," he said.

.Harvard has raised half of the roughly $2million needed to establish a University-widecomputer network. Rudenstine said work is beingdone on the network as the money becomesavailable.

.The planning for an undergraduateconcentration on the environment is moving "muchmore swiftly than most plannings forconcentrations usually go," Rudenstine said.

If work goes according to schedule, first-yearstudents should be able to choose an environmentalstudies concentration this spring, he said.

Ira E. Stoll contributed to the reporting ofthis article.