Henry Louis Gates Jr., the famous Harvard University Afro-American studies chair who in December declined a longstanding offer to join the Princeton faculty, will spend next year at the nearby Institute for Advanced Study.
Princeton Provost Amy Gutmann said she didn't know whether Gates planned to teach at Princeton during his time in the area but noted that "typically a sabbatical and time at the institute are intended to allow a scholar to focus on his or her scholarship."
The announcement by Harvard President Lawrence Summers in December that Gates had decided to remain in Cambridge ended what became a highly public campaign by Princeton to hire away Harvard's "dream team" of African-American professors, including Gates, Cornel West GS '80 and K. Anthony Appiah.
After a bitter disagreement with Summers, West announced his decision to resign from Harvard in April 2002. In January of that year, Appiah also had made his plans to leave known, citing personal reasons. During this time Princeton had a standing offer out to Gates.
Back in December, Harvard brandished as permanent Gates' decision to stay, though West and Appiah in interviews suggested that Gates still wanted to come to Princeton. The three men have had long, close emotional ties, and, until now, Gates and Appiah had always worked for the same schools.
Gates is in Ghana and wasn't available for comment, his secretary Joanne Kendall said. But a Harvard spokesman, Robert Mitchell, said he "absolutely" expects Gates to return to Harvard after the long-planned sabbatical.
Gutmann said no offer is out to Gates any longer, noting, however, "We would be delighted if Professor Gates decided to extend his stay."
IAS has offered Gates a joint appointment in its School of Historical Studies and School of Social Science. The details of whether he received an invitation to spend a year at IAS or whether he applied to be a visiting scholar are confidential, said Georgia Whidden, the senior public affairs officer at IAS.
About 190 visiting scholars study at IAS each year.
Gutmann said she has known about the decision for a while.
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