Controversial President Will Quit Harvard

Lawrence H. Summers' tumultuous tenure as president of Harvard University is coming to a close. On Feb. 21, Summers, who was facing the prospect of a second no-confidence vote by the Faculty of Arts & Sciences, offered his resignation effective June 30.

Summers received the faculty???s first no-confidence vote after making a January 2005 speech in which he suggested that lack of commitment and aptitude might explain women???s relative lack of success in science and other fields.

Consideration of a second such vote was prompted by concerns that Summers forced William C. Kirby to offer his resignation as dean of the faculty as of the end of this academic year, according to a Harvard faculty member who requested anonymity. At a Feb. 7 faculty meeting, ???more than a dozen faculty spoke critically of the president, worrying about the institution and primarily concerned about the president???s management style and trustworthiness,??? the faculty member says.

In a letter to the Harvard community about his resignation, Summers writes, ???the rifts between me and segments of the Arts & Sciences faculty make it infeasible for me to advance the agenda of renewal that I see as crucial to Harvard???s future.??? He acknowledges that he could have been ???wiser or more respectful??? as he prodded the institution to overcome a ???complacency that is among the greatest risks facing Harvard.???

The Fellows of Harvard College, who are members of the university???s executive governing board, note in their own letter that they are accepting Summers??? resignation ???with regret.??? They add that Summers ???has served Harvard with extraordinary vision and vitality.??? The fellows will appoint him as ???one of Harvard???s select group of University Professors once he concludes his time as president.???

University of Oklahoma associate chemistry professor Donna J. Nelson, who attended Summers??? 2005 speech, is relieved by his resignation. The continuing focus on Summers??? remarks ???could be detrimental to young women,??? she explains. ???They might start to believe that the intrinsic aptitudes of women are less than that of men, and they might be deterred from selecting science and math.???

Summers, who was appointed five years ago, will be succeeded by interim president Derek Bok. Bok served as president of the university from 1971 to 1991.