Harvard president cools dispute

BOSTON, Massachusetts (Reuters) -- Harvard President Lawrence Summers and renowned black scholar Cornel West smoothed a dispute over Summers's commitment to diversity that had raised the specter of defections among Harvard's African-American studies faculty, a university spokesman said on Friday.

West and Summers met on Thursday evening and patched up a disagreement that sparked a brief revolt by senior members of the nationally recognized Afro-American Studies Department, said Joe Wrinn, a spokesman for Harvard.

"President Summers and Professor West had a good conversation that cleared the air and ended with a feeling of mutual respect," Wrinn said.

Along with a statement Summers issued on Wednesday in which he stated his commitment to enrolling more blacks and other minorities, the meeting appeared to have gone far toward ending the dispute, which flared unexpectedly only six months into Summers's presidency at the prestigious university.

West and other members of the African-American program were not immediately available for comment.

The problems began in October after West left a private meeting with Summers reportedly insulted by comments Summers made about West's scholarship and his giving high grades in his classes and recording a rap CD.

Afterward, West and other members of the department raised the prospect of leaving Harvard for Princeton University, where West worked earlier in his career.

The issue escalated further after press reports drew in civil rights leader Jesse Jackson, who publicly questioned Summer's commitment to affirmative action.

Summers, who served as secretary of the Treasury Department in the Clinton administration and was named president last June, apologized for any misunderstanding and assured faculty members he wanted them to stay.

"I take pride in Harvard's long-standing commitment to diversity," Summers said in a statement. "With regard to the Afro-American Studies program at Harvard, we are proud of this program collectively and of each of its individual members."

"We would very much like to see the current faculty stay at Harvard and will compete vigorously to make this an attractive environment," he said.

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