This spring, Lerner and junior lightweight Noelle Tune set up a symposium addressing Title IX, part of the Education Act of 1972 that addresses equal opportunity in athletics for men and women.

Lerner acknowledges the exceptionally strong backing that Radcliffe crew receives from its alumni and supporters, and is grateful for the talented coaching staff and superlative facilities.

But the fact that her sport has not experienced any financial difficulties only adds to the potency of her dedication to the cause.

Lerner was introduced to the conflicts of Title IX by O'Leary when the team observed the hearing for the Brown case this winter.

She was motivated to help assemble the symposium for "Take Back the Night" after realizing that "for 20 years, women, under the law, have been guaranteed equality in sports, and have not received it."

"Radcliffe crew receives a lot of money from alumni, but a lot of other women's teams don't," Lerner says. "There is definitely the attitude in sports that women are not as important as men.

"I wanted to do something that would let everyone know about the problems women's athletics have had," she says.

In addition to her work with Title IX, Lerner has worked in a chemistry lab and taken part in organizing Eliot's "Evening of Champions event.

After graduation, Lerner plans to attend medical school at the University of Chicago, but not before she travels around Europe with her roommates and goes to cooking school in Paris. There is life after Radcliffe crew, and Lerner is well on her way to finding a fulfilling and successful one.

But she still has time to reflect on the sport, the tradition that will always sculpt her view of Harvard.

"It was a lot of hard work, both physically and mentally, but it taught me how to be competitive," Lerner said.

"Crew shaped a big part of my time here at Harvard--I'm going to miss it."

And Radcliffe crew will surely miss