from The Harvard Crimson, May 14, 1997, pp. 1, 7


Rudenstine will not Alter Honig Tenure Decision

by Matthew W. Granade and Adam S. Hickey


President Neil L. Rudenstine has not and will not reconsider his decision to deny tenure to Associate Professor of Government Bonnie Honig, he said yesterday in his first pubic remarks on the controversial tenure case.

"I took a long time before I made my decision," Rudenstine said in an interview, adding that it would be his "only decision," on the case.

He also defended the integrity of the process used in deciding the case and said it was his duty to remain silent on the specifics of the case.

"I would just like to make clear that I know absolutely of nothing related to the ad hoc process that was in any way irregular or inappropriate, in this case or in any of the other cases," he said at the beginning of the interview.

But beyond that Rudenstine would not comment on the letter sent to him by 15 female professors two weeks ago or the factors that weighed in the balance of his decision.

"I cannot comment on individual cases," he said. "I treat them all with the same kind of care and come to a conclusion based on all the evidence and all the testimony and my own evaluation of what I see."

In their letter to Rudenstine, the 15 female professors said that Rudenstine's decision on the Honig cases was "incomprehensible given [his] publicly stated commitment to equality for women," but yesterday Rudenstine stated that his decision did not represent a departure from this pledge.

"I would like to see as many women on the Faculty as we can appoint within the procedures established by this institution, but we'll have to carry through on those procedures in a fair way," he said.

Though Rudenstine composed what he called "a private letter" to the 15 female professors, he would not disclose its contents, calling such an action "highly inappropriate."

Rudenstine said he does not try to anticipate the reaction to any of his tenure decision, but did not comment on the public outcry over the decision.

"It is part of my duty as President of this University to do justice," he said. "If it were my duty to do what everyone wants, that would be another matter entirely."

Since Honig was denied tenure, several letters in her favor have been circulated by her friends and colleagues at Harvard and beyond.

Among the 15 female professors were the following luminaries: Professor of Government Seyla Benhabib, Professor of Romance Languages and Literature Alice A. Jardine; Professor of Government and of Sociology Theda Skocpol; and Dillon Professor of the Civilization of France and Professor Women's Studies Susan R. Suleiman.

Government graduate students recently sent a letter echoing the professors' message, and according to several sources, about 12 untenured Faculty in the government department also sent a letter to Rudenstine to express their dismay.

Additional accusations have circulated about procedural improprieties in the tenure deliberations for Honig and Associate Professor of Government Peter Berkowitz, who was also recently denied tenure.