Quick Takes l Higher education round-up: Sept. 14

Harvard University

Faust to go on speaking tour

To promote the release of “Death and the Civil War,” a film adaptation of her book, Harvard University President Drew Gilpin Faust began a speaking tour on Wednesday.

The tour will run through next week, culminating in a Tuesday screening of the film at a Harvard Square theater. Faust, who served as a consultant during filming and production, said she has enjoyed working in recent months with the filmmaker, Ric Burns.

“I’m delighted to be able to have this Civil War passion and engagement interact with my Harvard presidential role in this way,” she told The Harvard Crimson.

Princeton University

Some professors vocal with Obama criticisms

Some faculty in Princeton’s Center for African American Studies have been using Twitter to voice their displeasure with President Barack Obama.

Among others, CAAS Chair Eddie Glaude has been putting forward anti-Obama views on social media, The Daily Princetonian reported. During the Democratic National Convention, for example, he tweeted, “As folks rally to support POTUS in Charlotte, will anyone sound the alarm for what is happening in Black America?”

Princeton’s CAAS has been a lightning rod for controversy in the past, with high-profile professors like Cornel West garnering attention for their controversial stances on national issues.

Yale University

Faculty join search committee

In response to University President Richard Levin’s recent announcement that he will be stepping down from his presidency, Yale is moving to involve faculty in the search process for a replacement.

The University recently announced that four faculty members will serve on the search committee, which is getting started immediately with its work to find a successor.

The move to involve faculty may help to appease Yale community members’ concerns that the search process is not open and democratic enough. These concerns were first reported in The Yale Daily News soon after Levin’s announcement a few weeks ago.

Columbia University

School switches to 8:40 a.m. classes

In an effort to better distribute classroom space on campus, Columbia is beginning its morning classes at 8:40 a.m. for the first time this semester.

Previously, the earliest start time for lectures had been 9:10 a.m. The changes came about as a way to accommodate the school’s growing student body.

Students and professors noted to The Columbia Spectator that they haven’t heard of many — if any at all — complaints about the earlier time slots. There are no noticeable drop-offs in enrollment for the 8:40 a.m. classes, as well.

Stanford University

Jobs’ wife to join Board of Trustees

Stanford MBA graduate Laurene Powell Jobs, wife of the late Steve Jobs, is joining the school’s Board of Trustees.

Laurene, a 1985 College and Wharton graduate, will begin her five-year term on Oct. 1, The Stanford Daily reported.

She was recently ranked as the 13th richest woman in the world by Forbes Magazine, with an estimated net worth of $9 billion. Over the years, Laurene has been active in various nonprofits, as well as in social reform issues.

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