Summers promises a 'different tone'

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., Feb. 23 (UPI) -- Harvard University President Lawrence H. Summers pledged to "set a different tone" on campus amid faculty charges of intellectual dishonesty and intimidation.

"I am committed to opening a new chapter in my work with you. To start, I pledge to you that I will seek to listen more -- and more carefully -- and to temper my words and actions in ways that convey respect and help us work together more harmoniously," Summers said Tuesday during a two-hour session of a meeting of The Faculty of Arts and Sciences, the Boston Globe reported.

The session, an extension of the faculty's monthly meeting last week, was called to address Summers' public comments last month that men may have an innate superiority over women in math and sciences.

Some faculty members continued to express sharp criticism of Summers, including one call for his resignation, but the tone of the meeting had moderated considerably since the previous session.

"No doubt I will not always get things right. But I am determined to set a different tone," Summer said.

Other professors expressed admiration and praised Summer's leadership at the university.