Radcliffe College is currently undergoing a major reorganization intended to consolidate its programs and to focus its resources toward undergraduate needs.

The reorganization, unveiled by Radcliffe President Linda S. Wilson on November 14, 1995, effectively divided Radcliffe into two umbrella groups.

The first group, the Radcliffe Educational Programs (REP), includes all undergraduate extracurricular programs and all post-baccalaureate and graduate programs currently offered by the school. These programs include the Radcliffe Seminars, the Office of the Arts for Harvard and Radcliffe, the Radcliffe Publishing Course and the Graduate Consortium in Women's Studies at Harvard.

The second new group, the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Studies (RIAS), unites the College's Bunting Institute, Murray Research Center, Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America and the Radcliffe Public Policy Institute.

A new umbrella group, the Radcliffe Graduate Studies Center, will also offer career programming services similar to those now offered by Radcliffe Career Services (RCS).

"What we are going really is managing to get the whole to be much more than the sum of the parts," Wilson said in November. "The reorganization has helped us to clarify our mission and who our critical constituents are."

Although the bulk of the reorganization will take effect July 1, the restructuring will be implemented over the next four years.

The reorganization will also eliminate the post of dean of the College and most of the RCS staff.

The loss of Dean of Radcliffe College Philippa A. Bovet, who has served in that position for 17 years, has drawn strong reaction from students.

Megan L. Peimer '97, co-president of the Radcliffe Union of Students (RUS), expressed "incredible disappointment" at Bovet's impending departure.

"I can't imagine what Radcliffe is going to be like without her," she said.

In the wake of the restructuring, 73 female undergraduates signed a letter to Wilson protesting the elimination of Bovet's position.

The letter, dated December 1, expressed "severe dismay" at the elimination of Bovet's position.

"Though we are pleased by the renewed focus on undergraduate programming such as the research partnerships, we are disturbed that the person who was the driving force behind this and other initiatives is being left out of the process," the letter read.

Even Wilson, a major player in the decision to eliminate Bovet's position, described the outgoing dean as "a wonderful performer for the College" and "very highly valued."