Nan Keohane discussed the future of Arts and Sciences at a meeting Thursday.
She and members of the Arts and Sciences Council discussed a progress report prepared by a planning and priorities committee. A final draft of the report will be submitted to the Board of Trustees in May.
The report's objectives are to bring undergraduate and graduate teaching and research to a world-class level. It lists internationalization, computerization, black faculty development and new science facilities among the University's top priorities. "Our goal with this plan is to create an environment that attracts the very best students, and once they're here, to make sure they get their money's worth," said Richard Palmer, chair of the planning committee and physics professor.
Keohane said adhering to the report's goals will prevent hasty decision-making.
"It is far too easy to be buffeted along by the latest interest," she said.
The report's limitations must also be recognized. Not all of the plan's financial predictions will be realized, Keohane said.
Keohane stressed the need to define the University's own character, rather than imitate what other universities do.
"We need to define what distinguishes us as an intellectual community," she said. "Once we find that identity, we need to protect it so it can flourish."
Keohane said the faculty's knowledge of the University's qualities will help to define that identity.
"The members of the faculty know why they've come here, and why they've chosen to stay here," she said.
The University might also have to make moderate sacrifices in some areas to gain overall excellence, she said.
"We should not wipe out entire departments or schools like some of our sister institutions have done," Keohane said. "But we might have to make decisions that some graduate programs will simply not be as strong as others."
In response to the report, some council members expressed particular concern about graduate programs.
"We must remember that our graduate programs have a huge effect on the quality of our undergraduate programs," said Roy Weintraub, acting dean of the faculty of Arts and Sciences.
Lewis Siegel, dean of the graduate school, said the University must make a greater financial commitment to providing stipends to graduate students and doctoral candidates.
"You want your stipends to be competitive," Siegel said, "and ours are remarkably underfunded."
Although graduate student stipends in humanities and social sciences are competitive with 14 other nationally ranked universities, University stipends for those in the natural sciences are the smallest, he said.
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