Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Massachusetts General Court voted to establish the institution on the 9th of November 1636, and it was initially named New College. The college received its enduring name of Harvard College in 1637 following a significant donation from John Harvard.
Nathaniel Eaton took office as the first headmaster in 1637. The college's purpose was explicitly religious, aiming to ensure the colony would never be left with an illiterate ministry to the churches.
Harvard began to control undergraduate admission, instruction, and housing for Radcliffe's women in 1971. Radcliffe was formally merged into Harvard University on the 1st of July 1999.
Alan Garber was appointed Harvard's 31st president in August 2024 to serve through the end of the 2026, 27 academic year. He previously served as the university's provost and interim president following the resignation of Claudine Gay in January 2024.
Harvard's endowment was valued at about 35 billion dollars as of 2023, making it the wealthiest academic institution in the world. This fund supports extensive research programs and provides generous financial aid to students, with about 5 percent of investment income distributed annually to fund operations.
In 2025, the Trump administration threatened to withhold nearly 9 billion dollars in government funds and ordered comprehensive vetting of international students seeking to visit Harvard. A US District Judge ruled on the 3rd of September 2025 that the administration illegally froze more than 2 billion dollars in research funding, violating Harvard's free-speech rights and the US Civil Rights Act.