In the fall of 1940, the first-year classes of Harvard and Radcliffe filed into Cambridge prepared to embark on a voyage to the frontiers of learning.

Before they were done, most of them would be sent instead to the front lines.

Many would not come back. Those who did, though, say being part of the Allied effort, like being students at Harvard, taught them much about the world--and them-selves.

Harvard Treatment

As educational as the war experience may have been, the transition from college yard to military station was not always an easy one.

Aram H. Hatch Jr. '44-'43 will never forget the greeting his sergeant gave him when he reported for duty to a Texas army base, en route to service in Okinawa, Japan.

"I see on my list that we have two men from Hahvuhd," said the officer, with an exaggerated accent. "It's best that you forget you ever went to that place."

And Alan S. Manne '44-'43 found himself abruptly thrust into a position of responsibility aboard the Baltimore, a cruiser in the Pacific fleet.

"I realized I had a wonderful undergraduate education, and that part enabled me to function just as effectively as the naval officers trained at Annapolis," Manne says.

"I was in charge of a gun turret." Manne says. "Most of the men were older than I was. It was a major responsibility."

Manne, who now lives in Stanford, Calif., says his service was big part of his education.

"I've led a pretty sheltered life. That was one of the few experiences where I got to meet people from all social and economic groups in America," Manne says.

'A Major Change'

For most veterans, the war was both a turning point in their lives and an education.

General Robert C. Davenport '44 joined the Enlisted Reserve Corps at Harvard in June 1942. Thirteen months later he went on active duty in the Army. In 1986, he retired with the rank of major general.