Brandeis University
In 1948, a private university opened its doors in Waltham, Massachusetts, on the site of a former medical school called Middlesex University. The institution was established as a non-sectarian, coeducational university named after Louis Brandeis, a former justice of the U.S. Supreme Court. Before this new chapter began, Middlesex University had been the only medical school in Massachusetts that did not impose a quota on Jewish students. Its founder, John Hall Smith, died in 1944 and left his will stipulating that the school should go to any group willing to use it to establish a non-sectarian university. Within two years, Middlesex University faced financial collapse because it could not secure accreditation by the American Medical Association. Smith's son, C. Ruggles Smith, sought help from Israel Goldstein, who headed a New York committee looking for a campus to establish a Jewish-sponsored secular university. Goldstein agreed to accept Smith's offer, hoping to reestablish the School of Medicine on an approved basis. By the 5th of February 1946, Goldstein had recruited Albert Einstein, whose involvement drew national attention to the nascent university. In March 1946, the foundation raised $10 million to open the school by the following year. The foundation purchased Middlesex University's land and buildings for two million dollars. On the 1st of November 1946, the foundation announced that the new university would be named Brandeis University. By the end of 1946, the foundation said it had raised over five hundred thousand dollars, and two months later it said it had doubled that amount. On the 26th of April 1948, Brandeis University announced that Abram L. Sachar had been chosen as its first president. On the 14th of October 1948, Brandeis University received its first freshman class of 107 students. They were taught by thirteen instructors in eight buildings on a campus. Students came from 28 states and six foreign countries. The library was formerly a barn, students slept in the former medical school building and two army barracks, and the cafeteria was where the medical school had stored cadavers.
Brandeis is classified among R1 Doctoral Universities with very high research activity. In fiscal year 2017, Brandeis spent $68.4 million on research and was ranked 174th in the nation by total research and development expenditure. The university's Division of Science encompasses seven departments including Biochemistry, Biology, Chemistry, Computer Science, Mathematics, Physics, and Psychology. Five interdepartmental programs exist such as Biochemistry & Biophysics, Biological Physics, Biotechnology, Genetic Counseling, Molecular & Cell Biology, and Neuroscience. Six science centers operate including the Ashton Graybiel Spatial Orientation Laboratory, National Center for Behavioral Genomics, Rosenstiel Basic Medical Sciences Research Center, Sloan-Swartz Center for Theoretical Neurobiology, Benjamin and Mae Volen National Center for Complex Systems, and W.M. Keck Institute for Cellular Visualization. More than 50 laboratories investigate fundamental life processes ranging from the structure and function of individual macromolecules to the mechanisms that control the behavior of whole organisms. Faculty include 12 members of the National Academy of Science, three Howard Hughes Medical Institute Investigators, two MacArthur Foundation Fellows, and 15 American Association for the Advancement of Sciences Fellows. Nobel Prize laureates Drew Weissman, Michael Rosbash, Jeffrey C. Hall, and Roderick MacKinnon have been faculty or alumni. Fields Medalist Edward Witten and Turing Award winner Leslie Lamport are among distinguished graduates. In 2014, the National Science Foundation renewed funding for Brandeis' Materials Research Science and Engineering Center which was established in 2008. This center supports interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary materials research addressing fundamental problems in science and engineering important to society.
Brandeis has more than 270 student organizations including fraternities and sororities which are not officially recognized as they contradict a central tenet of openness. Fraternities and sorporities are inconsistent with principles of openness to which the University is committed. The university has an active student government called the Brandeis Student Union. Eleven a cappella groups exist alongside six undergraduate-run theater companies and one sketch comedy troupe named Boris Kitchen founded in 1987. Four improv-comedy groups operate along with many cultural and arts clubs. The Brandeis Academic Debate and Speech Society consistently ranks as one of the top 10 debate teams in the United States. During the 2012-2013 school year, this team was the second most successful overall on the American Parliamentary Debate Association Circuit. Cholmondeley's coffeehouse commonly referred to as Chums is located in Brandeis' Usen Castle. Early footage of Chums appears in the short documentary film Coffee House Rendezvous. In 2015, administration announced the immediate closure of Chums Coffeehouse leaving student workers unemployed. After significant pushback from students and alumni, the administration determined to make the closure temporary while space underwent renovations. Emergency medical services are provided by the Brandeis Emergency Medical Corps nicknamed BEMCO which does not charge fees for any emergency services. Security escort services run daily from 4:00 pm to 2:30 am on weekdays and noon to 2:30 am on weekends through Branvan.
On the 8th of January 1969, about 70 Black students entered Ford Hall ejected everyone else and refused to leave. Students demanded hiring more Black faculty members increasing enrollment from four percent to ten percent plus scholarships and an independent department of African American studies. More than 200 white students staged a sit-in in the lobby of the administration building. On the fourth day of protest, the Middlesex Superior Court issued a temporary restraining order requiring students to leave. While President Morris B. Abram did not enforce the order forcibly, 65 students were suspended for their actions. On January 18, black students exited Ford Hall ending the eleven-day occupation with no violence or destruction of property. Ronald Walters became first chair of Afro-American studies later that same year. In late 1970s, Brandeis faced major financial crisis as donations from American Jews decreased turning toward support for Israel and other causes. Samuel O. Thier president from 1991 to 1994 helped restabilize university. In December 2007 former president Bill Clinton spoke on campus launching Eli J. Segal Leadership program. In 2014, Brandeis announced it would offer honorary doctorate to Ayaan Hirsi Ali but withdrew after complaints citing statements inconsistent with core values. Eighty-seven out of 511 faculty members signed letter to university president. In September 2024, President Ronald Liebowitz resigned following faculty no-confidence vote amid budget concerns and controversy over handling pro-Palestinian protests.
Among distinguished graduates are co-creators of television show Friends David Crane and Marta Kauffman plus political activists Abbie Hoffman and Angela Davis. Journalists Thomas Friedman and Paul Solman served alongside Congressman Stephen J. Solarz. Physicist and Fields medalist Edward Witten and mathematician Abel Prize recipient Karen Uhlenbeck stand among notable alumni. Novelist Ha Jin and philosopher Michael Walzer contributed to intellectual life. Actresses Debra Messing and Loretta Devine achieved fame while olympic silver medalist fencer Tim Morehouse represented excellence in athletics. Social theorist Nancy Chodorow and author Mitch Albom shaped cultural discourse. Filmmakers Debra Granik and Jonathan Newman produced significant works alongside music producer Jon Landau. Computer scientist Leslie Lamport won Turing Award for contributions to computing. Among distinguished faculty present and past are mathematician Heisuke Hironaka Fields medalist biologists Nobel laureates Michael Rosbash and Jeffrey C. Hall composers Arthur Berger Leonard Bernstein Martin Boykan Eric Chasalow Irving Fine Donald Martino David Rakowski Harold Shapero Yehudi Wyner social theorist Herbert Marcuse psychologist Abraham Maslow linguist James Pustejovsky human rights activist Eleanor Roosevelt Anita Hill historian David Hackett Fischer economist Thomas Sowell chemist Katharine Hammond diplomat Dennis Ross children's author Margret Rey former Secretary of Labor Robert Reich sociologist Morrie Schwartz poets Olga Broumas Adrienne Rich author Stephen McCauley virologist Bernard N. Fields Pulitzer Prize columnist Eileen McNamara.
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Common questions
When did Brandeis University open its doors in Waltham Massachusetts?
Brandeis University opened its doors on the 14th of October 1948. The institution received its first freshman class of 107 students taught by thirteen instructors in eight buildings.
Who was the founder of Middlesex University that became Brandeis University?
John Hall Smith founded Middlesex University before his death in 1944. His will stipulated that the school should go to any group willing to use it to establish a non-sectarian university.
What is the research classification for Brandeis University as of fiscal year 2017?
Brandeis is classified among R1 Doctoral Universities with very high research activity. In fiscal year 2017, Brandeis spent $68.4 million on research and was ranked 174th in the nation by total research and development expenditure.
Why does Brandeis University not officially recognize fraternities and sororities?
Fraternities and sororities are inconsistent with principles of openness to which the University is committed. They contradict a central tenet of openness regarding student organizations at Brandeis.
When did black students occupy Ford Hall at Brandeis University in 1969?
On the 8th of January 1969 about 70 Black students entered Ford Hall and refused to leave until they exited on January 18. The eleven-day occupation ended with no violence or destruction of property.