Dear Board of Trustees,

Ten men representing members of rowing crews, from Yale, Harvard, Princeton, Annapolis (Navy), Cornell, University of Pennsylvania, Columbia, Wisconsin, Georgetown, and Syracuse, holding oars. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

Thank you for the communication concerning Willard and its history. As always, I concur with the conclusions of the Board. Yes, Willard must do better to find a history to confront. True, Harvard, Princeton, Yale, Brown, and all the other second-tier schools like the University of Virginia have the whole slavery controversy to play off. Sadly, Willard came into existence after the passage of Amendments 13-15, so we cannot confront our legacy with chattel slavery. We cannot very well hold conferences, or make headlines, about our efforts to “do better” and to “make amends.” With apologies, President Henry Cotton