A Study On School Governance Practice Of Lawrence Summers In Harvard University

Being a first-class university on the world, Harvard is the brightest pearl which constitutes the crown of education of United States. Harvard stimulates the development and revolution of higher education filed, and has been an example of being learnt for a long time. President is essential to Harvard and is the sole of this university. Initially, Harvard University was a conservative religious school. It becomes the most influential university on the world since it has been changed and developed by visionary presidents of every generation and excellent professors. Harvard University temporizes and leads.In 21 century, needs of development and revolution are confronted. All the staff, students and all the alumnus is highly anticipated of the first president of 21 century. In October 2001, Lawrence Henry Summers accepted the assumption of Harvard University President with high profile. After the assumption, he started reforming Harvard. At the same time, he set ambitious goals and planned for Harvard. In the process of the reforming implement, doubts and disputes had never been away from Lawrence’s career. Finally, Lawrence Summers hit the record of the shortest term of being the president of Harvard University after resigned in February 2006. He is the first president who was voted of no confidence in Harvard.Practice of how Lawrence Summers ruled Harvard University is valuable to be studied. It remains president the right way of power enforcement from another perspective, leadership applied in the reforming process. Traditions and rules should be esteemed before the reforming implemented. The relationship between academic and administrative powers should be balanced. During Lawrence Summers’ tenure, it was a challenge for Harvard University’s administrative system, which has been formed for a long time. Hence, professors took vote of no confidence, which was considered as an extreme way to attaint soft constraint for the president. The ways, which professors defend, their academic rights to preserve the right of enforce it independently, and constraint of President’s power, are valued to be studied for our country.This thesis consists of two parts, which are introduction and findings, quadrupled findings.The first part: summary of background of Lawrence’s assumption and Harvard’s development.The second part: detailed listed the administrative system and crisis.The third part: the causes of Summers managing conflict, the exposition of institutional guarantee of conflict resolution.The fourth part: through a number of thinking of the former parts, the study provides some enlightenment to our governance and higher education construction.