According to the Mudd Library at Princeton University, February 1954 is the accepted founding date of the Ivy League as an athletic consortium.[1] However, the first Ivy League institution, Harvard University, was founded in 1636 under the leadership of Nathaniel Eaton. Beyond the sphere of athletic competition among its members, the Ivy League association also represents a tradition of scholarly distinction unique to some of the oldest colleges in the United States.
By certain counts, 34 of the Ivy League presidents presided over their respective institutions during the British colonial period prior to the American Revolution. Graduates of these institutions, who had typically studied very closely with their university president, were heavily involved in leadership roles in business, religion and politics across the original thirteen colonies. A disproportionate number of the colonial period presidents (if not all), as well as several in the post-Independence period governed by the Articles of Confederation and the Constitution of the United States of America were ordained ministers (including a few bishops) in the Anglican, Baptist, Congregationalist, Presbyterian or Puritan religious traditions. That academic tradition of close relationship with religious traditions was maintained at many of these universities well into the 19th century or beyond. Cornell University is unique for being entirely nonsectarian from its inception. Since the 20th century, a greater emphasiss on secular academic inquiry and religious diversity has predominated among all eight of the Ivy League universities.
In this context, an overview of the leadership of the Ivy League universities is helpful to appreciating their role in the cultural history of the United States from the pre-Revolutionary British colonial period through the present.
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The following is a list of presidents of Brown University, formerly known as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations and the College of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations.
| President | Brown Class | Life | Tenure | Events | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | The Reverend James Manning | - | 1738-1791 | 1765-1791 | The College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations is established. American Revolution. The College of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations is established. |
| 2. | The Reverend Jonathan Maxcy[2] | 1787 | 1768-1820 | 1792-1802 | |
| 3. | The Reverend Asa Messer[3] | 1790 | 1769-1836 | 1802-1826 | The College of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations is renamed as Brown University; first Medical School founded. |
| 4. | The Reverend Francis Wayland | - | 1796-1865 | 1827-1855 | Suspension of the Medical School |
| 5. | The Reverend Barnas Sears | 1825 | 1802-1880 | 1855-1867 | |
| 6. | The Reverend Alexis Caswell | 1822 | 1799-1877 | 1868-1872 | |
| 7. | The Reverend Ezekiel Gilman Robinson[4] | 1838 | 1815-1894 | 1872-1889 | Graduate study instituted |
| 8. | The Reverend Elisha Benjamin Andrews | 1870 | 1844-1917 | 1889-1898 | Women's College founded |
| 9. | The Reverend William H. P. Faunce[5] | 1880 | 1859-1930 | 1899-1929 | Women's College renamed to Pembroke College |
| 10. | The Reverend Clarence Augustus Barbour | 1888 | 1867-1937 | 1929-1937 | Last of long line of Baptist minister Presidents |
| 11. | Henry M. Wriston | - | 1889-1978 | 1937-1955 | |
| 12. | Barnaby C. Keeney | - | 1914-1980 | 1955-1966 | |
| 13. | Ray L. Heffner[6] | - | 1925- | 1966-1969 | New Curriculum passed |
| 14. | Donald F. Hornig[7] | - | 1920- | 1970-1976 | Pembroke merged with Brown, Medical School founded |
| 15. | Howard R. Swearer | - | 1932-1991 | 1977-1988 | |
| 16. | Vartan Gregorian | - | 1934- | 1989-1997 | |
| 17. | E. Gordon Gee | - | 1944- | 1998-2000 | |
| 17.1 | Sheila E. Blumstein | - | 1943- | 2000-2001 | Interim President |
| 18. | Ruth J. Simmons | - | 1945- | 2001- |
The following is a list of presidents of Columbia University (formerly known as King's College, Columbia College in the State of New York, Columbia College in the City of New York, and Columbia University in the City of New York).
| President | Birth Year–Death Year | Years as President | Name of Institution; Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Reverend Samuel Johnson | (1696–1772) | (1754–1763) | King's College |
| 2 | The Reverend Myles Cooper | (1735–1785) | (1763–1775) | King's College |
| 2.1 | The Reverend Benjamin Moore | (1748–1816) | (1775–1784) | King's College; acting president; American Revolution. |
| 2.2 | George Clinton | (1739–1812) | (1784–1787) | Columbia College "in the State of New York"; Chancellor (Regents government) |
| 3 | William Samuel Johnson | (1727–1819) | (1787–1800) | Columbia College "in the City of New York" (Trustees government) |
| 4 | The Reverend Charles Henry Wharton | (1748–1833) | (1801–1801) | Columbia College |
| 5 | The Right Reverend Benjamin Moore | (1748–1816) | (1801–1810) | Columbia College; Assistant Bishop for the Episcopal Diocese of New York |
| 6 | The Reverend William Harris | (1765–1829) | (1811–1829) | Columbia College; shares authority with Provost John Mitchell Mason until 1816 |
| 7 | William Alexander Duer | (1780–1858) | (1829–1842) | Columbia College |
| 8 | Nathaniel Fish Moore | (1782–1872) | (1842–1849) | Columbia College |
| 9 | Charles King | (1789–1867) | (1849–1863) | Columbia College; presides over move to Madison Avenue campus |
| 10 | Frederick Augustus Porter Barnard | (1809–1889) | (1864–1889) | Columbia College |
| 11 | Seth Low | (1850–1916) | (1890–1901) | Columbia College; presides over move to Morningside Heights campus; name changes to "Columbia University in the City of New York" |
| 12 | Nicholas Murray Butler | (1862–1947) | (1902–1945) | Columbia University |
| 12.1 | Frank D. Fackenthal | (1883–1968) | (1945–1948) | Columbia University (acting) |
| 13 | Dwight D. Eisenhower | (1890–1969) | (1948–1953) | Columbia University; on leave while Supreme Commander of NATO |
| 14 | Grayson L. Kirk | (1903–1997) | (1953–1968) | Columbia University; resigned after 1968 protests |
| 15 | Andrew W. Cordier | (1901–1975) | (1969–1970) | Columbia University |
| 16 | William J. McGill | (1922–1997) | (1970–1980) | Columbia University |
| 17 | Michael I. Sovern | (1931– ) | (1980–1993) | Columbia University |
| 18 | George Erik Rupp | (1942– ) | (1993–2002) | Columbia University |
| 19 | Lee C. Bollinger | (1947– ) | (2002– ) | Columbia University |
The following is a list of presidents of Cornell University.
| President | Life | Tenure |
|---|---|---|
| Andrew Dickson White | 1832-1918 | 1866-1885 |
| Charles Kendall Adams | 1856-1902 | 1885-1892 |
| Jacob Gould Schurman | 1854-1942 | 1892-1920 |
| Livingston Farrand | 1867-1939 | 1921-1937 |
| Edmund Ezra Day | 1883-1951 | 1937-1949 |
| Deane Waldo Malott | 1898-1996 | 1951-1963 |
| James A. Perkins | 1911-1998 | 1963-1969 |
| Dale R. Corson | b. 1914 | 1969-1977 |
| Frank H. T. Rhodes | b. 1926 | 1977-1995 |
| Hunter R. Rawlings III | b. 1944 | 1995-2003 |
| Jeffrey S. Lehman (B.A. 1977) | b. 1956 | 2003-2005 |
| David J. Skorton | b. 1949 | 2006- |
The following is a list of presidents of Dartmouth College.
The following is a list of presidents of Harvard University (formerly known as New College and Harvard College).
John Winthrop served as acting president in 1769 and again in 1773, but both times he declined the offer of the full presidency on grounds of old age. Other minor acting presidents have included William Brattle, Edward Wigglesworth, Henry Ware (1810, 1828-1829), Andrew Preston Peabody (1862, 1868-1869), and Henry Pickering Walcott.
The following is a list of heads of the University of Pennsylvania (formerly known as the Church and Charity School of Philadelphia, the Academy of Philadelphia, and the College of Philadelphia).
| Provost | birth–death | Years as provost | Name of institution | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Reverend George Whitefield | 1714–1770 | 1740–1746 | Church and Charity School of Philadelphia | |
| 2 | Benjamin Franklin | 1706–1790 | 1749–1754 | Academy of Philadelphia | |
| 3 | The Reverend William Smith | 1727–1803 | 1754–1779 | College of Philadelphia | American Revolution |
| 4 | The Reverend John Ewing | 1732–1802 | 1779–1802 | University of Pennsylvania | American Revolution |
| 5 | The Reverend William Smith | 1751–1820 | 1802–1806 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 6 | The Reverend John McDowell | 1732–1802 | 1807–1810 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 7 | The Reverend John Andrews | 1746–1813 | 1810–1813 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 8 | The Reverend Frederick Beasley | 1777–1845 | 1813–1828 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 9 | The Right Reverend William Heathcote DeLancey | 1797–1865 | 1828–1834 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 10 | The Reverend John Ludlow | 1793–1857 | 1834–1852 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 11 | The Reverend Henry Vethake | 1790–1866 | 1853–1859 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 13 | The Reverend Daniel Goodwin | 1811–1890 | 1860–1868 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 14 | Charles Janeway Stillé | 1819–1899 | 1868–1880 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 15 | William Pepper | 1843–1898 | 1881–1894 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 16 | Charles Custis Harrison | 1844–1929 | 1894–1910 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 17 | Edgar Fahs Smith | 1854–1928 | 1910–1920 | University of Pennsylvania | |
| 18 | Josiah Harmar Penniman | 1868–1940 | 1923–1930 | University of Pennsylvania |
| Presidents of the University of Pennsylvania | Years as president | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Thomas Sovereign Gates | 1930–1944 |
| 2 | George William McClelland | 1944–1948 |
| 3 | Harold Edward Stassen | 1948–1953 |
| 4 | William Hagan DuBarry | 1953–1953, Acting President |
| 5 | Gaylord Probasco Harnwell | 1953–1970 |
| 6 | Martin Meyerson | 1970–1981 |
| 7 | Sheldon Hackney | 1981–1993 |
| 8 | Claire Fagin | 1993–1994, Interim President |
| 9 | Judith Rodin | 1994–2004 |
| 10 | Amy Gutmann | 2004–Present |
The following is a list of presidents of Princeton University (formerly known as the College of New Jersey).
The following is a list of heads of Yale University (formerly known as Collegiate School and Yale College).
| Rectors of Yale College | birth–death | years as rector | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Reverend Abraham Pierson | (1641–1707) | (1701–1707) Collegiate School |
| 2 | The Reverend Samuel Andrew | (1656–1738) | (1707–1719) (pro tempore) |
| 3 | The Reverend Timothy Cutler | (1684–1765) | (1719–1726) 1718/9: renamed Yale College |
| 4 | The Reverend Elisha Williams | (1694–1755) | (1726–1739) |
| 5 | The Reverend Thomas Clap | (1703–1767) | (1740–1745) |
| Presidents of Yale College | birth–death | years as president | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | The Reverend Thomas Clap | (1703–1767) | (1745–1766) |
| 2 | The Reverend Naphtali Daggett | (1727–1780) | (1766–1777) (pro tempore) - presidency during the American Revolution |
| 3 | The Reverend Ezra Stiles | (1727–1795) | (1778–1795) - presidency during the American Revolution |
| 4 | The Reverend Timothy Dwight IV | (1752–1817) | (1795–1817) |
| 5 | The Reverend Jeremiah Day | (1773–1867) | (1817–1846) |
| 6 | Theodore Dwight Woolsey | (1801–1899) | (1846–1871) |
| 7 | The Reverend Noah Porter III | (1811–1892) | (1871–1886) |
| 8 | The Reverend Timothy Dwight V | (1828–1916) | (1886–1899) 1887: renamed Yale University |
| 9 | Arthur Twining Hadley | (1856–1930) | (1899–1921) |
| 10 | James Rowland Angell | (1869–1949) | (1921–1937) |
| 11 | Charles Seymour | (1885–1963) | (1937–1951) |
| 12 | Alfred Whitney Griswold | (1906–1963) | (1951–1963) |
| 13 | Kingman Brewster, Jr. | (1919–1988) | (1963–1977) |
| 14 | Hanna Holborn Gray | (1930– ) | (1977–1977) (acting) |
| 15 | A. Bartlett Giamatti | (1938–1989) | (1977–1986) |
| 16 | Benno C. Schmidt, Jr. | (1942– ) | (1986–1992) |
| 17 | Howard R. Lamar | (1923– ) | (1992–1993) (acting) |
| 18 | Richard C. Levin | (1947– ) | (1993– ) |
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