Profs critical of SAS plan to cut depts.

Say move will be harmful Several University faculty members said last night they are disappointed with the School of Arts and Sciences' decision to disband three of its 28 departments. But others are expressing support for the proposal because they say it will benefit the school in the long term. Ann Matter, chairperson of the Religious Studies Department, said she and other faculty members in her department think the decision to cut Religious Studies is wrong and are challenging it. "We think it's a bad idea to cut the department," she said. "We want them to change their mind. We're trying to get them to see how important the study of religion is." Arts and Sciences Dean Rosemary Stevens recently announced her decision to cut Religious Studies, along with the Regional Science and American Civilization departments, in order to "streamline" the school. Stevens said Sunday that she hopes the Religious Studies and American Civilization departments will function much as the interdisciplinary International Relations and Biological Basis of Behavior programs do now. Matter said she has submitted a number of proposals about how a program in religious studies can be organized, but has received no official response. "We hope our colleagues in other departments will be responsive so we can go ahead with [the program]," she said. "My colleagues and I are really interested in creating a new program." She is concerned about how to run a program without the backing of a department, though. "We can continue to offer religious studies courses without a department, but we can't do new courses without one," Matter said. Response from her colleagues, she added, has been "heartwarming," with many of them reiterating the importance of the study of religion and the excellence of its students. David Stern, an associate professor of medieval Hebrew literature, said he is "saddened" and "disturbed" by the decision. "I don't understand the logic of the decision to do away with Religious Studies," he said. "Part of the decision, I imagine, is fiscal entrenchment. But there should be some better way that the faculty and administration can deal with the situation." Stern, who has worked with faculty and graduate students from the department, said he does not understand the claim that the department is not "nationally competitive." "Religious Studies is very important to other faculty in the humanities," he said. "I think for the humanities at the University, it is demoralizing, and intellectually, I think it means the loss of a department which really does have a departmental identity." James O'Donnell, a classical studies professor, said he is also disappointed by the decision. "What happens to the faculty?" he asked. "What happens to the students? What happens to their teaching? All these things are up in the air." But the magnitude of the loss, he said, remains to be seen. "They may be right that the aggregate situation for the program will be better in the long term," O'Donnell said. "There are a lot of costs to people up front. And what you see at this point is that you have to pay the costs and you don't have the medium or long-term results to go by." Stephen Gale, chairperson of the Regional Science Department, said he and his faculty are waiting to hear more about the plan from Stevens. "As with any major reorganization, as you start downsizing, you make a statement," he said. "It's very hard. The question is not only what choices to make, but how do you do it. That's part of the process were going through now." But what he said concerns him most is where his faculty members are going to go if the department is disbanded. Stevens said Sunday that faculty members would be moved to areas where they can "flourish and do their academic work." "It's not clear that scattering people around is all that easy," Gale said. "You don't put a little sign around someone's neck saying 'for sale.' When you talk about moving someone to another department, there has to be a reason for him to be in that department." Richard Beeman, a history professor and associate dean of the School of Arts and Sciences, said Stevens' recommendations are long-term investments which will help the school and its internal structure. "They will lead to the improvement of many of the fields represented by the departments that are slated to be eliminated," he said. Beeman added that the faculty reaction he has heard has been very positive and supportive. "These recommendations are not negative commentary on individual faculty members," he said. "We're dealing with superb faculty members. They are commentaries on the utility of particular departmental structures."