Rodin implicated in Yale donation probe

A recent cover story in a journal written by Yale University students alleges that University President Judith Rodin was partially responsible for subverting a $20 million grant to fund a Western Civilization program at the school. The article, which appears in Light and Truth, alleges that Yale and Rodin, its former provost, failed to adhere to the grant's obligations and misled the donor, Lee Bass. Bass, a Yale alumnus, gave the university a $20-million grant in 1991 to establish a program in Western Civilization. According to the article, the money was intended to establish a one-year course of study for sophomores. The article states that the grant allocated $14 million to seven full professorships, $4 million to assistant professorships and $2 million to related expenses. The article further alleges that a committee asked Rodin to consider a proposal for four new assistant professorships, but she rejected the request. After that, Yale President Richard Levin informed the committee that no new faculty members would be hired. According to Yale junior Pat Collins, the author of The $20 Million Dollar Deception, Rodin played a significant role in the decision not to hire four new assistant professors. "She essentially was the driving force behind the decision," he said. "The provost's office is responsible for deciding to hire faculty." University spokeswoman Barbara Beck disagreed, saying that Rodin played a very minor role in the decision because the major decision was made by Levin. "The University does not have any reaction to it because she hardly played a role in this," Beck said. The story is at Yale. In the end the president makes that final decision." The article claims that the reason the money was diverted from Western Civ is because many faculty members objected to the study of the subject. Collins states in the article that there has been a debate in recent years about the place of Western Civilization in the university's curriculum, and that he wonders why money was given to fund Asian American Studies and Gay and Lesbian Studies programs. Collins' article claims that "a faculty source who has spoken recently with Mr. Bass stated that [he] had not been informed, and indeed, was shocked to learn of what had happened." According to an article in The Boston Globe, Levin said Bass is "not upset and that the new Western Civilization course will be designed and implemented next year." "It was the issue of efficiency and the design of the course, not the content," Levin said. "I am a staunch advocate of the teaching of Western Civilization. It is at the heart of what we do -- there is no ideological warfare over broadening Yale's teaching of Western Civilization. The Globe reported that complaints were emanating from "a couple of disappointed faculty members" who were angered because they could not "implement the specific course they had designed." The Light and Truth article states that the decision to destroy the program was "influenced by the opposition of many faculty to the program, and that a number of faculty have even tried to have the funds redirected to their own projects or departments after succeeding in killing the original proposal." Yale spokeswoman Cynthia Atwood said administrative changes delayed the program's implementation. She added the new program will begin in the fall of 1995. According to a press release from the Intercollegiate Studies Institute, the publisher of Light and Truth, the impetus for the Western Civilization program came after a speech made by then-Yale Dean Donald Kagan in September 1990. Collins said the Yale community is just beginning to react to the article and he was not surprised by the national press coverage his article is now receiving. "The word is just starting to get around," Collins said. There is a mix of shock and disbelief. A lot of people don't want to believe it happened." Intercollegiate Studies Institute President Christopher Long said he agreed to publish Light and Truth for Yale students because they were being intimidated by the administration for "breaking unwritten rules." Collins said he hopes his article will be distributed to as many Yale alumni as possible.

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