Future of AAS unresolved despite West appointment

The appointment of Cornel West GS '80 on Saturday closes a chapter in a saga that examined the roles of ethnic studies and prestige in the highest levels of academia. But it leaves open many questions about the future of African-American studies at the University and in higher education.

The University's recruitment of West precedes the appointment of President Tilghman and Provost Amy Gutmann.

The University had extended an offer to West before the two administrators took office in June, Gutmann said in an interview Saturday. Tilghman and Gutmann then set the deadline for West's decision as April 13, Gutmann said.

The tensions between West and Harvard University president Lawrence Summers, however, emerged later in the fall.

West has criticized Summers' commitment to attracting scholars and students from minority backgrounds. Tensions increased when Summers questioned West's production of a rap music album, his role on a presidential exploratory committee for Al Sharpton and his contributions to academia.

After West revealed that he was considering the University's offer, Summers attempted to retain West on the faculty through a series of private meetings and telephone calls, some of which were not returned. Student groups at Harvard also circulated petitions to convince West to stay.

Now that the University has bolstered the African-American studies program with two prominent members of Harvard's 'dream team,' — West and K. Anthony Appiah — and hired Bowdoin associate professor Eddie Glaude GS '95, a lingering question is whether the program will be granted departmental status. The program, which is chaired by Colin Palmer, also includes in its ranks notable professors Nell Painter and Toni Morrison.

Shena Elrington '04, the president of the Black Student Union, said she believed West may "provide the fuel and energy required to transform the program into a full-fledged department."

The University currently has no plans to grant the program full departmental status, Guttman said.

The program's status remains an "open question," Gutmann added. She said she had not discussed creating a department with professors who had received appointment offers.

The University is continuing to pursue other notable African-American studies professors, including Harvard's Henry Louis Gates, Jr., who chairs the Afro-American studies department there.

Gutmann confirmed that the University has offered Gates a faculty position. She said, however, there is no current discussion with William Jules Wilson, another Harvard professor many suspect the University is wooing.

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The Daily Princetonian reported Thursday that the University had discussed with Gates the idea of an African-American studies research institute as part of an effort to attract him.

Robert Durkee '69, vice president of public affairs, said the University is not currently planning such an institute. But it has not ruled out one in the future, either connected with Gates coming to the University or independent of any new appointments, he said.

West's appointment may also affect the political climate on campus. He is a central figure in racial dialogue in the country and is leading an effort to bring reparations suits against organizations that may have profited from slavery.

On Thursday, he was arrested with 19 other people for blocking the road to the State Department in Washington, D.C., to protest the policies of Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Gutmann said West's politics did not play a role in deciding whether to hire him.

"[West] has always been, as a teacher, a very unifying presence, and we don't really judge professors by their politics. A variety of political views are to be expected and they're what make academic freedom wonderful," she said. "[To be] provocative is good intellectually, and we think best when we're provoked."