Friday afternoon, the President's office sent a campus-wide e-mail to students, faculty and staff, announcing that Provost Melvin Bernstein was to step down from his position, effective yesterday. This announcement came as a surprise to most.Bernstein began his term as provost Aug. 1, 2001. Prior to his position at Brandeis, Bernstein served as Vice President of Arts, Sciences and Engineering at Tufts University. The job description in the Faculty Handbook says "the Provost is the chief academic officer of the University." The deans of the Heller School, the College of Arts and Sciences and the Graduate School of International Economics and Finance all report to the provost.

In President Jehuda Reinharz's e-mail announcement of Bernstein's departure, he wrote that Bernstein will "assume the status of Senior Vice President for Academic and Research Policy and Professor of Chemistry for the remainder of the spring semester. In that capacity, he will provide consulting services to the University."

It is, however, unclear at this time exactly what those consulting services will be, according to administrators. Also, while Bernstein will retain the title Professor of Chemistry, Chemistry Department Chair Prof. Thomas Pochapsky said, "he is not actively doing research in our department." Bernstein never taught a Chemistry course during his term at Brandeis. "He has certainly talked about teaching courses, but this may change that situation ... I presume it does," Pochapsky said.

Many of the faculty and staff said they were surprised by Reinharz's sudden announcement. "I hadn't heard anything beforehand," Prof. Jacob Cohen (AMST) said. "I don't remember that precipitous a taking of leave, but there have been people who left."

"I had no prior knowledge of it," Prof. Steven Burg (POL) added.

Administrators said they were notified of Bernstein's departure only shortly before the e-mail was sent out to the community on the emergency broadcast listserv. "I heard from President Reinharz on Friday," said Jessie Ann Owens, Dean of Arts and Sciences. "I was actually surprised." Dean of Student Life Rick Sawyer said he heard about it moments before the public announcement. "I wasn't aware that it was happening (prior to Friday)," he said.

Professor David Gil (HS), however, said he was aware that Bernstein was not fully comfortable in the Brandeis environment. "I am both surprised and not surprised," he said. "I know that there were differences, but I'm surprised the differences could not be resolved." Cohen said he was not shocked by the sudden manner in which the announcement was made. "My sense is that the president is a very decisive executive, and when he makes up his mind to do something, he does it," Cohen said.

Other professors said they have been left wondering why Bernstein has decided to step down. "We're all gossiping trying to figure out why," said Prof. Emily Dudek (CHEM), a member of the Faculty Senate. "Most of the faculty was surprised." Bernstein has not yet made any public statements as to why he is leaving the University.

Professor Irving Epstein (CHEM), who is currently serving as a visiting scholar in Harvard's Chemistry and Chemical Biology department for the academic year, was provost from 1994 to 2001. Bernstein was his successor. Epstein said that when he left, he sent a letter to the faculty in November 2000, announcing his plans to step down as provost at the end of the academic year. Then, he said, a general public announcement was made.

Executive Assistant to the President John Hose said that when Bernstein was hired, an executive recruitment firm was used to conduct the search. Generally, Hose said, a search lasts between 90 and 120 days. In Reinharz's e-mail statement, however, he wrote, "No decision has been made at this time regarding a search for a successor to Dr. Bernstein."

Other administrators said they are unsure of how their responsibilities will change during the current semester due to the absence of a provost. "I'll be meeting with President Reinharz later today, and that will be something I'm sure he will make decisions about," Owens said yesterday morning.

The faculty is also affected by the lack of a provost. "Not having a provost, I think is a disadvantage for the University," Burg said. "Everything depends on who and what kind of provost we get in the future."

Although Bernstein has stepped down, many of his academic goals will remain in place, according to Jean Eddy, Senior Vice President for Students and Enrollment. Eddy met with the Union Executive Board (E-board) shortly after the announcement was made. "One assurance that was made (at the meeting) was that many of Provost Bernstein's visions for curricula will be kept intact after his departure," said Marci Surkes '03, Union communications director. "In any case, the E-board was not given any 'insider' information, so we do not know more than anyone else."

Administrators said they praise Bernstein's vision for the University, even though his term was short. "I think the areas he wanted to grow in -- Health Studies, Global Studies, Business and Creative Writing -- are just right," Owens said. "For the times I worked with him about student issues, I found him to be responsive and student-focused," Eddy added.

"I think Mel made a big contribution to Brandeis in trying to get us to think more strategically about our strengths," Owens said.