<p>From the COHE:</p>
<p>Harvard Announces New Policies Intended to Attract More Female and Minority Professors</p>
<p>Harvard University issued its first progress report Tuesday on the hiring of female and minority faculty members, announcing that it would spend $7.5-million over the next three years to improve working conditions for professors.
That document, "End-of-Year Report: Faculty Development and Diversity," was issued by a new office of faculty development and diversity, which the university established last fall because of growing concern over the small number of female professors at Harvard. </p>
<p>COHE link: <a href="http://chronicle.com/daily/2006/06/2006061402n.htm%5B/url%5D">http://chronicle.com/daily/2006/06/2006061402n.htm</a>
(subscription required)</p>
<p>Report link: <a href="http://www.faculty.harvard.edu/pdf/fdd_eoy_report_2006.pdf%5B/url%5D">http://www.faculty.harvard.edu/pdf/fdd_eoy_report_2006.pdf</a>
(much comparative data in the report)</p>
<p>Snippet from the reports introduction:</p>
<p>At Harvard and not just at Harvard, but throughout an increasingly competitive and globalized society one of our greatest challenges is to accept the fact that in order for our faculty to continue to be excellent, it must draw upon a much broader talent pool which reflects the diversity of our students and the world. Therefore, diversity and faculty development at Harvard means to widen our vision and broaden our horizon in order to recruit the best and the brightest and to do our best to recognize and assist with the real life issues confronting the development and retention of these faculty.</p>
<p>The University will take a long-term, comprehensive approach to the development of the faculty. This institutional focus will take time to mature, as we work to develop, implement and evaluate new policies, practices, and programs which will ensure that Harvard remains competitive in the future. However, changes in our institutional culture are critical to the development of a diverse, world class faculty community.</p>
<p>Harvards efforts to have a faculty more diverse in every sense, through greater attention to gender, race and ethnicity, class, and intellectual and methodological perspectives, should not be seen simply, or even primarily, as being about justice, fairness, and equity. Such moral issues are undeniably important but, as institutional motivators, they must be coupled with factors like achievement, competitive edge, and productivity. And none of these motivators must compromise our traditional commitment to excellence. </p>
<p>Harvard University pursues the benefits of diversity among its faculty not because they help women or people of color, but because they bring us a more excellent faculty overall and help the institution become more productive, more creative, more competitive, and more successful.</p>