Summer News Wrap-Up

June 25

Fogg Receives Art Gift Worth $20 Million

Two longtime supporters of the Fogg Museum, George S. Abrams '54 and his wife Maida Abrams donated a $20 million art collection to the University, museum officials announced this week.

The collection is made up of 110 drawings by 17th century Dutch masters and includes two works by Rembrandt and one by Pieter Bruegel the Elder.

"It is the largest and most comprehensive private collection of drawings from the Netherlands of the 17th century in existence," said William W. Robinson, the Fogg's drawings curator.

Robinson said he is planning an exhibition of the new collection, which will be shown at the Fogg and museums in London and Paris during 2001 and 2002.

Greenspan Tells Grads Honesty is Best Policy

Economic times are good and likely to get better, Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan told the Class of 1999, their families and alumni in his Commencement address on June 10.

In a half-hour speech that could have passed for a crash course in introductory economics--replete with terms like "comparative advantage" and "capital assets" as well as stories from economic history--Greenspan outlined the ways in which new technologies have led to growth.

But Greenspan also emphasized that all economic success is built upon the character of the people.

Graduates Protest Greenspan Speech

Students involved in campus activist groups such as the Living Wage Campaign and the Coalition Against Sexual Violence organized a walk-out and rally that took place during Commencement Day exercises.

The event was intended as a protest of Federal Reserve Chair Alan Greenspan's economic policies and his selection as Commencement speaker.

Professor Wins 'Genius Grant'

Juan M. Maldacena, the Cabot associate professor of physics, was awarded a five-year MacArthur Fellowship for $245,000 last Thursday for his work with string theory. Days later, he accepted an offer of tenure and will become one of the youngest professors in the department.

The MacArthur Fellowship, commonly known as the "genius grant," also includes health coverage and comes with no strings attached--the money can be used for any purpose the winner chooses.

Business School Gives Money to New Radcliffe Institute

Radcliffe announced last week that it has received a "six figure" donation from the Business School--the first gift to the new Radcliffe Institute from another division of the University.

The donation, whose exact value was not specified, is unusual because University divisions generally maintain tight control over their own resources.

Radcliffe Merger Deadline Passes

Mary Maples Dunn became interim president of Radcliffe College yesterday as negotiators failed to reach a final merger agreement between the college and Harvard University before the initial July 1 goal.

Yesterday marked a presidential transition that many had hoped would not be necessary, and negotiators said they are pressing on with their attempts to complete the merger as soon as possible.

University Vice President and Legal Counsel Anne H. Taylor said she estimates the process will take "not months like six months, but maybe weeks which could add up to a month."

Number of Waiting List Admits Continue to Drop

The Harvard Admissions committee will take fewer than 10 people off of the waiting list for the class of 2003, Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons '67 said yesterday.

JULY 9

Students Sue College for Diplomas

In a challenge to Harvard's controversial disciplinary procedures, two members of the Class of 1999 have sued the College for denying them their diplomas, claiming they were treated unfairly by the administrative board which suspended them for a year just days before they were scheduled to graduate.

Yesterday, District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns agreed to issue a decision on one of the claims in the suit--which argues that the College did not have the right to discipline the students so close to graduation--in the coming week.

The two students--Valentin Dinu and Abraham Tsoukaldis--were suspended just nine days before Commencement, after the administrative board concluded that the students had stolen money from Harvard Student Agencies (HSA), according to court documents. They are seeking an injunction that would force the College to award the diplomas.

In papers filed with the U.S. District Court of Massachusetts, the College argued that the two students received substantial sums of money from HSA's Distribution Services for work they never performed as part of a scheme to defraud the agency of thousands of dollars.

But Dinu and Tsoukaldis--who will have to wait until next spring to receive their diplomas if their suit fails--claim the checks they received were simply compensation for work they performed.

Rudenstine Defends Staff's Actions

In an unusual public statement released last week, President Rudenstine defended the conduct of Divinity School technicians in the controversial case of former Divinity School Dean Ronald Thiemann, who was forced to resign his post after pornography was found on his office computer.

"At no time did any Harvard personnel violate Professor Thiemann's privacy," Rudenstine said in his statement. "The role of technology staff in this matter has been thoroughly reviewed at the most senior levels of the University, and it is very clear that there was nothing inappropriate or invasive about their actions."

Crimson Tennis Star Turns Pro

James R. Blake '01, the nation's No. 1 ranked college player in the 1998-99 season, left Harvard last month for the men's professional tour.

He beat former Wimbledon finalist MaliVai Washington in his debut at the Hall of Fame Tennis Championships, a grass-court tournament in Newport, R.I.

JULY 16

Student Lawsuit Against College Faces Setback

Two members of the Class of 1999 lost the first round of their legal battle with the College on Tuesday, when a federal court judge ruled that Harvard had the right to suspend the students and deny them diplomas even though the two had completed all their graduation requirements.

The students, Valentin Dinu and Abraham Tsoukaldis, argued in their lawsuit that the University was contractually obligated to confer the diplomas, even though the College's administrative board had found the students guilty of stealing money from Harvard Student Agencies (HSA).

But on Tuesday, U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Sterns sided with the University, which had held that any reasonable student would interpret the student handbook as giving the College the right to suspend students even after they had completed their degree requirements.

Guards Union Approves Contract

The Harvard University Guards Union voted almost unanimously to ratify their contract with the University last Friday, ending a three-year stand-off during which the guards had worked without a contract.

Many guards are not entirely happy with the final product, which was agreed upon on June 23 after two days of intense final discussions with the University.

Even with the new contract, the guards will not be eligible for raises until four years from now.

But the contract provides an alternative to the "buy-out" the guards had been offered in the past, under which, in return for their resignation, they would have received six months pay plus two weeks pay for every year they have worked as a guard if they have been a guard for over 10 years.

University, HUCTW Issue Joint Statement

The University issued a joint statement with the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers (HUCTW) on Wednesday, admitting that the University may have allowed casual workers to work longer than University policy guidelines permit.

Arrow Street Crepe Restaurant Reopens

Three months after it first closed for renovations, One Arrow Street Crepes has reopened, thanks in part to a cash infusion from Harvard investors.

JULY 23 ISSUE

Summer School Student Reports Assault

A 30-year-old Newton resident was charged with attempting to rape a Harvard summer school student, the Suffolk Country District Attorney's office said yesterday.

The defendant, Christopher A. Wodja, pled not guilty on July 16 to charges of kidnapping, attempted rape, assault and battery on a person on a person over 14 and use of a motor vehicle without authority.

The incident occurred around the Boston College MBTA stop.

Prosecutors said the summer school student--a sixteen-year old native of Puerto Rico--missed the last train from the Boston College train stop back to Harvard Square last Thursday. When she walked to the street and tried to hail a cab at around 12:30 am, Wodja offered her a ride back to Harvard.

According to David Felcone, a spokesperson for the district attorney's office in Suffolk County, the victim was able to escape the car, but was pursued on foot by the Woodja until he allegedly allegedly became afraid that the student's screams would attract suspicion and he sped away from the scene.

Court documents identified Wodja as an orthodontics student at Boston University, but Boston University spokesperson Colin Riley said Wodja was no longer a student there.

Students Drop Lawsuit Against Harvard

Two students suing the College for their diplomas have dropped their suit and may have lost their last chance to stay in the country, a lawyer for one of the students said this week.

"The students simply don't have the resources to continue fighting, so the legal challenge to the administrative board proceedings is going to be withdrawn," said David E. Kelston, who represents one of the former members of the Class of 1999, Valentin Dinu.

Kelston said the decision to drop the case leaves the two students' ability to remain in the U.S. in jeopardy.

Since they have been suspended from the College, the two are not eligible for student visas. And without College diplomas, Kelston said, they are not eligible for permanent work visas, either

The plaintiffs decided to drop their suit after U.S. District Court Judge Richard G. Stearns ruled against their claim that the College did not have a right to suspend students who had completed all their graduation requirements.

Mazzoleni Named Hockey Coach

Former University of Miami of Ohio coach Mark Mazzoleni was officially introduced as the new head coach of the Harvard men's hockey team at a press conference on Wednesday, becoming only the fourth head coach to lead the Crimson in 50 years.

Error Causes Recall of Mather Diplomas

Recent Mather House graduates received a letter from the registrar's office last month saying their diplomas were invalid due to a printing error. The titles of House Master Sandra A. Naddaff '75 and Co-Master Leigh G. Hafrey '73 had been switched.

The letter asked that former students return their diplomas in exchange for correct ones.

HUCTW Issues Open Letter

Just one week after the University and the Harvard Union of Clerical and Technical Workers (HUCTW) released a joint statement on casual labor, HUCTW has issued its own open letter on the subject.

The letter--which was sent to HUCTW members this week and will be sent to key Harvard administrators next week--comes at a time when HUCTW is negotiating with the University to develop measures to stop abuse of the casual payroll.

Medical School to Increase Hospital Funding by $20 Million

Harvard's teaching hospital's are getting a much-needed $20 million boost in funding over the next five years, University President Neil L. Rudenstine and Medical School Dean Joseph B. Martin announced last week.

JULY 30

Law Professor Dies in Terrorist Bomb Attack

Incoming Harvard Law School Visiting Professor Neelan Tiruchelvam was murdered yesterday, the victim of a suicide bombing in his native Colombo, Sri Lanka.

Neelan, a member of the Sri Lankan Parliament and Vice President of the Tamil United Liberation Front (TULF), was known as a moderate peacemaker in the country's bloody 16-year-old ethnic war between the dominant Buddhist Sinhalese and the Hindu Tamil minority.

Considered an expert on constitutional law, Neelan was scheduled to teach a law school course on Ethnicity, Constitutionalism and Human Rights and a seminar on Federalism, Diversity and Group Rights this fall

Neelan was killed when a suicide bomber with explosives strapped to his body leapt from a motorcycle onto Neelan's car in a busy intersection, according to the Daily News in Colombo. Police are still looking for the motorcycle driver.

Term Bill Mix-up Overbills Thousands

A glitch in billing office software led Harvard to bill thousands of students for more tuition money than they actually owe this month.

Term bills sent out two weeks ago billed all students for the entire cost of their tuition--$16,802 a person this semester--without deducting the amount of students' expected financial aid packages.

AUGUST 6

City Council Candidates Ready to Run

The impending departure of Mayor Francis H. Duehay '55 and Sheila T. Russell seems to have sparked increased interest in this November's City Council and School Committee elections. Twenty-four candidates signed up to seek the council's nine spots according to an announcement yesterday by the Cambridge Election Commission.

Incumbents seeking re-election are Michael Sullivan, Timothy Toomey, Kathleen L. Born, Katherine Triantafillou, Anthony D. Gallucio, Henrietta Davis and Kenneth L. Reeves '72.

Others seeking the post are Vincent Lawrence Dixon, Charles Q. Christenson, William Jones, David Hokka, James Williamson, Marjorie Decker, Daejanna Malone, Robert Goodwin, David Maher, David Trumbull, Dorothy Giacobbe, Alan Nidle, Jeffrey Chase, Jelder Pexoto and Jim Braude.

The candidates for School Committee are Alfred Fantini, Michael Harshbarger, Denise Simmons, Alice Turkel, Melody Brazo, Jamiseon Patterson, Alvin Thompson, Susana Segat, Nancy Walsen, Joe Grassi, Elizabeth Kinney, Shawn Burke and Don Harding.

Harvard Scholars Find Lost Bach Work

After a hunt that lasted over 20 years and spanned hundreds of miles, Harvard researchers have re-discovered the long-lost manuscripts of Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach, the second son of composer Johann Sebastian Bach.

The manuscripts, which were discovered hidden away in a Ukrainian state archive in Kiev, contain nearly one hundred pieces of music composed by C.P.E. Bach that have never been performed before, in addition to compositions penned by J.S. Bach and other members of the Bach family.

MIT Fraternity Member Has Diploma Revoked

Over a year after a pledge at MIT's Phi Gamma Delta fraternity died from alcohol poisoning, MIT has revoked the diploma of Charles H. Yoo, a 1998 MIT graduate who was the fraternity's pledgemaster at the time of the incident.

AUGUST 20

Hehir Named Divinity School Head

University officials announced Wednesday that J. Bryan Hehir, the Divinity School's interim leader for the past eight months, will become the school's permanent head, making him the first Roman Catholic ever to hold the position at Harvard.

While previous heads of the Divinity School have held the title of Dean, Hehir will instead be called Chair of the Divinity School Executive Committee. Hehir said he and Rudenstine selected the title because Hehir will retain significant pastoral commitments and share administrative responsibilities.

Moriarty Named New Assistant Provost

As Harvard begins to incorporate more and more technology into its curriculum, University officials announced today that they have appointed an assistant provost responsible for integrating advanced technology with traditional academics.

Daniel D. Moriarty will assume the post of assistant provost for information technology and chief information officer for the University on September 1.

Senior Gift Raises Record Amounts

Senior gift-giving rose to record levels this year, as just over 60% of the class of 1999 anted up for their alma mater.

Yard Workers' Strike Resolved

One of Harvard's labor disputes reached a happy ending this week, as picket lines disbanded and the striking members of a local union went to work for a new contractor.

Harvard hired the new contractor, Soep Painting of Malden, Mass., to complete retouching work on Conant Hall after the firm previously employed shut down.

And Soep agreed to employ around half of the workers who had been striking against the old contractor, Everett Decorators, to complete the project.

Former Mass. Supreme Court Justice Gets HLS Chair

Professor of Law Charles Fried traded the bench for the lectern this summer, giving up a seat on the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court to return the Harvard Law School's faculty.

In addition, the school announced this Wednesday that Fried has been appointed to its recently endowed Beneficial Professorship.

Professor Named to Council of Economic Advisers

Nearly a month after a Harvard economics professor was confirmed as Secretary of the Treasury, the Senate confirmed another Harvard economist, Kennedy School Professor Robert Z. Lawrence, to the Council of Economic Advisers on August 5.