Set to Depart, Berkowitz Awaits Verdict

Tomorrow, the day after the last final exam of the spring 1999 semester, Associate Professor of Government Peter Berkowitz's teaching career at Harvard will come to an end.

Berkowitz said he has been "assured" on numerous occasions that the Docket Committee of the Faculty, which has been considering his formal tenure complaint for over four months, will reach a conclusion by the end of the term.

In a letter sent via express mail to Mass. Hall yesterday, Berkowitz asked University President Neil L. Rudenstine to ensure the announcement of a decision by tomorrow.

Berkowitz reminded the president that at a May 5 hearing, Richards Professor of Chemistry Cynthia M. Friend, chair of the Docket Committee, guaranteed a judgment by the end of the academic term.

Friend and the two other members of the Docket Committee, Professor of Economics David M. Cutler '87 and Pearson Professor of Modern Mathematics and Mathematical Logic Warren D. Goldfarb '69, have been evaluating Berkowitz's 37-page grievance since January 6.

In the complaint, which is accompanied by over 100 pages of supporting materials, Berkowitz accuses the University of failing to follow its own procedures when considering him for tenure.

The associate professor's bid to become a senior member of the Faculty ended in the spring of 1997, when Rudenstine chose not to promote him.

Berkowitz had been recommended for tenure by the Department of Government, but he did not receive the backing of an ad hoc committee of five scholars from outside Harvard.

Since 1997, with the aid of his informal adviser Weld Professor of Law Charles R. Nesson '60, Berkowitz has been engaged in a lengthy, rather public appeal.

One of his key claims is that the members of his ad hoc committee were poorly qualified to judge his work or professionally biased against him.

Berkowitz also contends that a colleague in his department, Whitehead Professor of Government Dennis F. Thompson, opposed his candidacy and was in a position to exercise undue influence over the appointment because he holds an administrative post at the University.

In addition to his teaching duties,

Thompson serves as the University's associate provost.

Berkowitz's letter to Rudenstine comes in the wake of an editorial, published in Wednesday's Crimson, in which Berkowitz suggests that the University establish an institute to investigate the ethics of its internal proceedings.

In addition to urging Rudenstine "to take action," Berkowitz stressed in the letter that, according to the University's "Guidelines for the Resolution of Faculty Grievances," the Docket Committee has only to determine whether or not his grievance is "clearly without merit."

In a letter dated April 15, the University's General Counsel Anne Taylor told Berkowitz's lawyer, Matt Feinberg, that the Docket Committee was "nearing the end of its work."

But Berkowitz said he has received "nothing in writing" that stipulates a decision date.

He promised "to use every available means and seek out every available opportunity to get [his] grievance heard."

Berkowitz, whose most recent book is Virtue and the Making of Modern Liberalism, leaves Harvard bound for a professorship at George Mason University Law School in Arlington, Va.

In the past, Berkowitz has not ruled out taking outside legal action against the University. He said he is now focused on the progress of his appeal within the school.

Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Jeremy R. Knowles, who would be responsible for convening an ad hoc grievance panel if the Docket Committee finds Berkowitz's complaint not "clearly without merit," could not be reached for comment last night

Thompson serves as the University's associate provost.

Berkowitz's letter to Rudenstine comes in the wake of an editorial, published in Wednesday's Crimson, in which Berkowitz suggests that the University establish an institute to investigate the ethics of its internal proceedings.

In addition to urging Rudenstine "to take action," Berkowitz stressed in the letter that, according to the University's "Guidelines for the Resolution of Faculty Grievances," the Docket Committee has only to determine whether or not his grievance is "clearly without merit."

In a letter dated April 15, the University's General Counsel Anne Taylor told Berkowitz's lawyer, Matt Feinberg, that the Docket Committee was "nearing the end of its work."

But Berkowitz said he has received "nothing in writing" that stipulates a decision date.

He promised "to use every available means and seek out every available opportunity to get [his] grievance heard."

Berkowitz, whose most recent book is Virtue and the Making of Modern Liberalism, leaves Harvard bound for a professorship at George Mason University Law School in Arlington, Va.

In the past, Berkowitz has not ruled out taking outside legal action against the University. He said he is now focused on the progress of his appeal within the school.

Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Jeremy R. Knowles, who would be responsible for convening an ad hoc grievance panel if the Docket Committee finds Berkowitz's complaint not "clearly without merit," could not be reached for comment last night