After four decades "Mr. Harvard" has at last decided to leave his familiar position at University Hall.

When Dean of the College L. Fred Jewett '57 retires June 30, he will end a career in which he advised hundreds of undergrads, oversaw the admission of thousands and spear-headed the renovation of the College dorms.

But unlike many of his colleagues, Jewett has continued to live on-campus throughout his career, giving him a perspective on College life that is unique among administrators.

"I think [Jewett] is someone who it makes sense to call...`Mr. Harvard,'" says Vice President for Alumni Affairs and Development Fred L. Glimp, who served as Dean of the College in the mid and late sixties. "He has devoted his life to Harvard."

Glimp, then dean of admissions, first hired Lester Fred Jewett in 1964 to work as an assistant director in his office. From that time, Jewett says he has worked hard to ensure a need-blind admissions process and to increase diversity in the College community.

Last month, Jewett, 59, took the final step in his three-decade-long push to increase diversity on campus when he announced the complete randomization of the housing lottery, beginning with the class of 1999.

That decision, which has been highly controversial among undergraduates and prompted a rally of more than 200 last month, was Jewett's final major decision as Dean of the College.

Despite the opposition among students, effects of randomization may not be felt for three or four years, according to Secretary to the Faculty John B. Fox Jr. '59, whom Jewett succeeded as Dean of the College.

Need-Blind Admissions

Jewett's lasting contribution to the College will most likely be that of making a Harvard education more accessible to students who come from families in lower income levels.

In addition, it was Jewett who managed the merger of the admissions processes for Radcliffe and Harvard, according to Fox.

Dean of Admissions and Financial Aid William R. Fitzsimmons '67, for one, credits Jewett with shaping the University's financial aid program.

"Certainly in my professional life, there is no one who has shaped it more profoundly than Fred Jewett," he says. "I think it would be hard to find anyone in the University over the past 30 plus years who has worked harder than Fred over a longer time."

The first national push for need-blind admissions came in the late 60s and early 70s, when states began to pour money into low-interest loans and grants, Jewett says.

It took several years to implement fully the current system. And today, as more and more universities are moving away from fully need-blind admissions processes because of lack of funds, Harvard continues to use a large portion of its funds to ensure that this system can remain intact.