Even Radcliffe administrators say theirinstitution's true nature is ill-understood.
"The outside world often does not know whetheror not Radcliffe is still a traditionalundergraduate institution," says Tamar March, deanof educational programs at Radcliffe, who prefersto frame Radcliffe as "a focal point for theadvancement of women and a beacon of intellectualvitality for undergraduates [and others]."
A new arrangement would allow the UniversityDevelopment Office to coordinate all fundraisingefforts and Harvard College to claim allundergraduate programs, eliminating some of the"significant confusion in the roles of Harvard andRadcliffe in undergraduate education,extracurricular life and fundraising," assuggested in an April 1997 Faculty of Arts andSciences (FAS) report on Harvard women and thecapital campaign.
Radcliffe, under the Harvard umbrella, couldstill provide many of its currentpostbaccalaureate and continuing educationprograms, including its half-century oldpublishing course, which would be tied moretightly to the Institutes' academic focus.
"We're not going to evanesce," says March, whohas been assured that educational programs are notgoing anywhere.
"Radcliffe's mission and work includes making adiscernible difference in society," March says. "Ithink the trustees are really aware of that."
Meanwhile, Radcliffe will need to undergo asignificant shift in focus and resources.
Rita Nakashima Brock, director of the BuntingInstitute, told