A scholarship student from Taunton, Massachusetts, when he entered the College, L. Fred Jewett ’57, M.B.A. ’60, G ’63, would spend much of his Harvard career helping applicants from many different backgrounds follow him into the Yard, and flourish once they arrived. The former dean of admissions and financial aid (1972-1984) and dean of Harvard College (1985-1995), who died on Sunday, November 27, at the age of 75, oversaw two especially sensitive assignments: the consolidation of the Harvard and Radcliffe admissions offices and the randomization of the process of assigning undergraduates to the residential Houses. When Jewett stepped down as dean of the College, then Harvard president Neil Rudenstine said of him, “He knows what the University is, and what the heart of the College is all about.” For her part, President Drew Faust called Jewett “a pillar of the College for more than a generation. He profoundly shaped the undergraduate experience and was dedicated to opening Harvard to the most talented students, regardless of background. I’m deeply saddened by his loss.”
On Commencement afternoon in 2003, the Harvard Alumni Association awarded Jewett the Harvard Medal for extraordinary service to the University. The citation read: From Byerly Hall to Harvard Yard, from admissions to athletics, from Massachusetts to Maine and back again, you continue to shape the journey of Harvard students from all walks of life as a wise counselor, advisor, and friend.
For more on Jewett's career, read “Durable Dean,” from the Harvard Magazine archives.
For a contemporary student perspective on randomization, read “Getting Along,” by then Ledecky Undergraduate Fellow Thinh Nguyen ’96.
Articles about Jewett have also appeared in the Harvard Gazette and Harvard Crimson.
