Lieberman lauds the improved opportunities for students like her, both women and Jewish students.
"For Jewish students, the growth of the Hillel must make the school a lot richer," says Lieberman, "and a lot better for those who want to live the Jewish life."
"The fact that there are more women makes a lot of sense," says Lieberman.
Radcliffe classmate Linda J. Greenhouse wholeheartedly agrees. "The opening up of undergraduate places to women is great. We were barely a critical mass then, and many opportunities were closed off to us," she says.
"We couldn't even enter Lamont during my first two years," Greenhouse says. She describes the state of Radcliffe women at Harvard as "pervasive second-class citizenship."
Greenhouse, a Crimson executive as an undergraduate, is presently the Supreme Court correspondent for The New York Times.
Looking Back, Pros and Cons
During a time as politically charged as the late sixties, a Harvard education seemed to many totally ignore important social and political issues. Many members of the class of 1968 complain of this one-sidedness which failed to teach them about the "real world."
"There was no attempt to explain the social inequality in this country and in the world," Kaku says. "Hopefully, Harvard has become more plugged into reality."
Hagerty says he "resented the Harvard experience because it didn't prepare me for the reality of how people treat each other in the real world."
What most agreed on and praised Harvard for was the quality of the education, however one-sided.
"I have a real appreciation for the education I got," Norr says. "But I still have a lot of criticism and a lot of distaste for [Harvard]."
Kaku prizes the level of instruction he received. "I'll never regret the fact that I had a Nobel Prize winner teaching me physics as a freshman. You can't get that anywhere else," he says.
A Class Grows Up
The members of the class of 1968, whether torn by the war, or left to lead their lives as they wished, were deeply impacted by the events surrounding their year of graduation.
"Our class graduated with a lot of ambivalent feelings," Greenhouse says. "We were more battered than idealistic."
Some recent their Harvard experience because it failed to prepare them for the real world, but all praise their education. Most welcome the changes they have seen at Harvard, especially coeducation and increased diversity.
For most, the last 25 years have served to settle them into their lives, giving them a new perspective on themselves and the world.
"We are rather calmer and more upbeat today than then," Greenhouse says. "By the time someone is 40, they recognize what they are about. There is a certain coming to terms."
In fact most members of the Class of 1968 have not only come to terms with their experiences, but have been able to accomplish outstanding things. "What people [from my class] have done is really admirable," Hagerty says.