12 - A major survey on race relations at Harvard reveals a campus divided over racial and ethnic questions. The poll was conducted by the Institute of Politics with support from The Crimson after the Committee on Undergraduate Research Projects, fearful of creating tension at the College, denied the project funding.

JANUARY

5 - Former U.S. Sen. Alan K. Simpson (R-Wyo.) is tapped to head the Institute of Politics at the Kennedy School of Government, The Crimson reports.

15 - Robert M. Coles '50, Agee professor of social ethics at the Graduate School of Education, is awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom by a long-time admirer, President Clinton.

21 - Mary I. Bunting-Smith, the fifth president of Radcliffe College, dies at her home in Hanover, N.H. at the age of 87.

23 - Lani Guinier '71 accepts an offer of tenure at Harvard Law School, becoming the first black woman to hold tenure in the Law School's 181-year history.

24 - The Crimson celebrates its 125th anniversary.

26 - The Hasty Pudding Theatricals select actors Sigourney Weaver and Kevin Kline as its Woman and Man of the Year.

31 - Joshua M. Elster '00 is arrested on charges of rape and battery of an unnamed undergraduate woman. Three days later, a spokesperson for the Harvard University Police Department admits his department inadvertently but illegally omitted the arrest from its public blotter.

FEBRUARY

8 - The Undergraduate Council votes to allocate $20,000 to hire the band Sister Hazel for Springfest. After the band becomes unavailable, the council decides to feature student bands at its April festival of food and entertainment.

9 - Two weeks after Princeton announces major increases in its financial aid program, Yale does the same. In the next month, Stanford and MIT follow suit. President Neil L. Rudenstine promises Harvard will keep its aid within "shouting distance" of other colleges.

17 - In response to the Hasty Pudding Theatricals' choice of Kevin Kline as Man of the Year, the Lampoon honors wrestler Randy "Macho Man" Savage as its Real Man of the Year.

19 - Harvard and Radcliffe are at odds over a lease agreement for Byerly Hall, home to the undergraduate admissions office and the offices for the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. Radcliffe has previously allowed Harvard to use the space rent-free.

26 - Widener Library will undergo a major, $3 million overhaul beginning in 1999, President Rudenstine says. In April, Katherine B. Loker donates $17 million for heating, air-conditioning and ventilation of the 80-year-old facility.