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President of Columbia Urges Affirmative Action New
President of Columbia Urges Affirmative Action
By KAREN W. ARENSON
October 4, 2002
Lee C. Bollinger used his inauguration as president of Columbia University yesterday to reassert the value of affirmative action in college admissions, to speak of Columbia's need to expand physically and to press for Columbia's greater engagement with the local community and the world. Mr. Bollinger, who was president of the University of Michigan when it became the target of two lawsuits challenging its affirmative action policies, said that affirmative action by universities was the most important civil rights issue since Brown v. Board of Education nearly 50 years ago.
A Columbia law school graduate who served as a clerk to Chief Justice Warren E. Burger, Mr. Bollinger predicted that the Supreme Court would consider the constitutionality of using race and ethnicity in college admissions this year. He said that American universities have "done their part to fulfill the promise of Brown by seeking the educational, intellectual and emotional benefits of diverse student populations."
"It would be an American tragedy," he said, if the Supreme Court declared such policies unconstitutional. Speaking to about 3,000 people in Columbia's main quadrangle on a hot, steamy morning, Mr. Bollinger also touched on two sensitive Columbia issues: its need for more space and the role of the journalism school. "If college and university rankings were based on creativity per square foot," he said, "Columbia would far surpass everyone.
This state of affairs, however cannot last. To fulfill our responsibilities and aspirations, Columbia must expand significantly over the next decade. Whether we expand on the property we already own on Morningside Heights, Manhattanville, or Washington Heights, or whether we pursue a design of multiple campuses in the city or beyond, is one of the most important questions we will face."
Gov. George E. Pataki attended a dinner for Mr. Bollinger on Wednesday evening, while Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg; Secretary General Kofi Annan of the United Nations; and former Mayor David N. Dinkins (on behalf of Representative Charles B. Rangel) all delivered their best hopes for Mr. Bollinger and Columbia yesterday morning. To the delight of some students and professors and the consternation of others, Columbia canceled most classes yesterday and closed the main library in the morning.
In the afternoon, it sponsored discussions on topics like "Perception, Memory and Art" and "Ethics and Democracy," and in the evening presented student performances. During the morning ceremony, more than a dozen protesters held signs saying "Union Now," supporting efforts by Columbia graduate student teaching and research assistants to unionize. Speaking about Columbia's graduate school of journalism, where he has temporarily halted the search for a new dean so that the school's mission and curriculum can be re-examined, Mr. Bollinger looked back to the school's roots.
He said that Joseph Pulitzer, who founded and endowed the school, asked that it not simply focus on the practical side of journalism but also on the knowledge a great university can offer. Mr. Pulitzer recommended that journalism students study politics, literature, government, constitutional principles and political economy, among other topics. "He was criticized for this `visionary' scheme, by many in the press, no less," Mr. Bollinger added.
Despite his focus on issues facing Columbia, Mr. Bollinger also offered a romantic view of the university, which he called the "quintessential great urban university." He likened it to classical Athens, "where citizens could throw on their tunics in the morning and walk to the forum and consider the world."
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