Sir:

This week I received the mimeographed "Curriculum Evaluation" prepared under the auspices of Student Council. I read through it, frankly, with interest. By the time I was half-way through, however, I was embarrassed at having allowed myself the dubious luxury of such undignified voyeurism.

Let me make myself clear. I have no personal involvement, since I was not evaluated in this survey. Furthermore, I believe it is a passably good idea to gather such information and make it available privately to the individual faculty members concerned; the feedback may conceivably be helpful to teachers. But to publish it, to give it currency amongst faculty, student body, and administration, is a scandalous act of ethical irresponsibility for which Student Council should be unreservedly condemned.

I wonder at the kind of mentality that indulges in such imperious judgment and public sentencing of faculty competence. There is something distinctly sordid, plain dirty, about this whole business. Was there no one in Student Council sufficiently sensitive to the feelings of others to object?

From a purely human point of view, this was an inexcusably crude act. From a Jewish point of view, it represents a violation of everything we stand for; it managed in but a few pages to transgress the prohibitions of lashon ha-ra, malbin pnei chavero be'rabbim, mekapeiach parnassat chavero, and probably motzi shem ra.

As one who has been associated with Yeshiva for most of his life, I am ashamed of what has happened and feel morally impelled to protest publicly. As an alumnus of Yeshiva, I offer my regrets to my fellow faculty members for any injuries and insults they may have sustained and beg them not to judge all of Yeshiva by this tasteless and scurrilous deed.

Rabbi Norman Lamm

Associate Prof. of Jewish Philosophy

Erna Michael College