"It just has to bend the priorities of the city government," she says.

Residents also express special concern about long-term development in the area, which places properties like North Hall, 51 Brattle St. and 8 Story St. under the protective mantle of the University's tax exempt status, increasing the burden on area residents.

Vice President for Government, Community and Public Affairs James H. Rowe III '73 says residents need not worry.

"We have no expansion plans of any great magnitude. We are not about to spring a major expansion without viable outreach to the affected community," he says.

But Rowe's words do not convince McMillan, a local resident watchdog of the University's development.

"The University has a status like a China in international affairs," she says. "What is a long time to us is a short time to them. They can sit and let memories fade about what commitments were made and come back another day."

$42,902

That is the amount the Faculty of Arts and Sciences spent on each student last year, according to U.S. News and World Report, which ranks Harvard--the richest University in the country--sixth in expenditures per student.

There is no question that the students, the city and the nation benefit from Harvard's money. Students are well educated, inventions are conceived and new ideas are created. But to some the lengths Harvard goes to raise its funds make the institution seem less like a not-for-profit and more like a corporation.

This is no simple irony. Harvard's governing body is called "the Corporation," and it is composed of some of the leading lawyers and business executives in the nation including Daniel, who is the director of McKinsey & Company, and Richard A. Smith '46 who is chair of Harcourt General. Like any board of directors, the Corporation handles major decisions concerning revenue and investments.

The University's endowment could buy more than 250 million Harvard sweatshirts--after the 10 percent discount for Harvard students--which is enough to emblazon Veritas across the chest of every man, woman and child in America.

But while Harvard spends in great magnitudes, it has been criticized for being frugal with its assets, both externally and internally--just like any good company would be.

Its students and research are its products; its faculty are its engineers and designers; its staff are its laborers. The Development Office is sales and marketing; the Office of Community, Government and Public Affairs are the publicists.

Welcome to Harvard, Incorporated, where it's never enough. Outlay/Student Robert J. Coolbrith Crimson Harvard is ranked sixth in per student spending. School  Spending per student Cal. Tech.  $73,967 Johns Hopkins U.  $61,704 Washington U.  $54,020 Wake Forest U.  $49,051 Yale U.  $45,507 Harvard U.  $42,902 U. of Chicago  $40,686 Allegheny U  $33,270 Columbia U.  $32,738 U. of Pennsylvania  $32,022 Source: 1996 U.S. News and World Report College Rankings

Lucky Seven Robert J. Coolbrith Crimson The only university to make the top ten in private income of not-for-profit organizations in the U.S. is Harvard. Only a handful of other educational institutions made the top 50. Rank  Non-profit organization  FY96 Private Income 1  Salvation Army  644,267,026 2  American Red Cross  465,632,246 3  Catholic Charities USA  419,389,526 4  American Cancer Society  381,674,000 5  Second Harvest  369,123,575 6  United Jewish Appeal  346,649,213 7  Harvard University  323,406,242 8  Boys and Girls Clubs of America  294,892,216 9  YWCA of the USA  283,755,099 10  American Heart Association  256,512,000 12  Stanford University  240,832,287 19  Yale University  199,646,606 20  Cornell University  198,736,229 26  University of Wisconsin Madison  164,349,458 27  Duke University  155,164,009 28  Columbia University  151,800,682 30  University of Michigan  145,757,642 32  University of Southern Cal  138,366,230 34  University of Pennsylvania  135,324,761 36  University of Minnesota  131,638,509 37  University of Washington  127,774,167 41  University of Illinois  116,578,975 43  Indiana University  109,654,739 44  University of Califaornia San Fransisco  108,127,887 45  MIT  107,937,812 49  Princeton University  103,826,392 50  University of California Berkely  103,048,670 51  Brown University  102,513,437 Source: Chronicle of Philanthropy