History of Harvard University have rightly left behind" and "abhorrent and an affront to the values of our university". As late as the 1950s, Wilbur Bender, then the dean of admissions for Harvard College, was seeking better ways to "detect homosexual tendencies and serious psychiatric problems" in prospective students. History of Harvard University Harvard College, around which Harvard University eventually grew, was founded in 1636 in Cambridge, Massachusetts, making it the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States. For centuries, its graduates dominated Massachusetts' clerical and civil ranks and beginning in the 19th century its stature became national, then international, as a
Harvard University programs, and over 14,000 students in graduate and professional programs. The undergraduate population is 51% female, while the graduate population is 48% female. The Harvard Undergraduate Council and Harvard Graduate Council are the chief organs of student government. The Harvard Crimson competes in 42 intercollegiate sports in the NCAA Division I Ivy League. Harvard has an intense athletic rivalry with Yale University culminating in "The Game", although the Harvard–Yale Regatta predates the football game. This rivalry is put aside every two years when the Harvard and Yale Track and Field teams come together to compete against a combined Oxford University