Yesterday's News

1924 The Bulletin's editors report themselves glad "to record that John Harvard has at last come into his own"—the University...

1924 The Bulletin's editors report themselves glad "to record that John Harvard has at last come into his own"—the University authorities have moved his statue from the Delta next to Memorial Hall (a post "of doubtful prominence"), to the west side of University Hall.

 

1929 The Faculty of Arts and Sciences has set French and German on a par with Latin by accepting an advanced entrance examination in either modern language toward College admission.

Illustration by Mark Steele

 

1934 The editors note that the residential Houses do not yet have distinguishing academic or social characteristics, yet all but Kirkland have acquired new names among, and for, their undergraduates: "Gold Coasters" (Adams); "Pioneers" (Dunster); "Elephants" (Eliot); "Rabbits" (Leverett); "Bell Boys" (Lowell); "the Puritans" (Winthrop).

1944 An unofficial victory garden of radishes has sprouted amid the new grass in the area immediately in front of John Harvard's statue.

 

1949 The Faculty of Arts and Sciences agrees to a three-year trial for a junior-year-abroad program for concentrators in Romance and Germanic languages and literatures.

 

1954 Harvard alumnae attending Commencement receive red ribbon badges to distinguish them from women guests. Harvard Alumni Association president John Cowles '21 notes that "More than 1,800 women now hold Harvard degrees...I am happy [to be president] during the year when it finally recognized the fact that women are people, even at Harvard."

 

1959 The Business School—"the last bastion" among graduate schools—agrees to admit qualified women as degree candidates, starting in the fall.

 

1969 A committee of four faculty members and two students recommends unanimously that at the end of a two-year phasing-out period, the ROTC program at Harvard be terminated.

 

1979 The first generation of Core Curriculum courses is announced: the 55 new offerings in six fields have passed unusually strict faculty guidelines on content, and at least 20 proposals have been turned down.

       

Most popular

250 Years Ago, Harvard Was Home to a Revolution

A look at the sights, sounds, and characters that put the University on the frontlines of history

When the Revolution Hit Cambridge, Harvard Moved to Concord

College students broke hearts and windows during their year in exile.

The Harvard-Trained Doctor Who Urged a Revolution

Before his heroic death, General Joseph Warren was dubbed “the greatest incendiary in all of America.”

Explore More From Current Issue

Illustration of two students in Harvard hoodies, one speaking animatedly to a phone, the other reading, looking annoyed.

We’re All Harvard Influencers, Like It or Not

In the digital age, it’s hard to avoid playing into the mythology.

Historical scene in colonial Boston depicting British soldiers confronting civilians, with smoke rising, in a city street.

Houghton Library Displays Revolution-era News and Propaganda

A new exhibit reveals how early Americans learned about the war.

Alene Anello smiling surrounded by four chickens in a natural outdoor setting.

Harvard-trained lawyer fights for the rights of chickens

Alene Anello wants to apply animal cruelty laws to birds raised for meat.