Full History Of Barnard College In Timeline From 1900

1900: Formal Affiliation with Columbia University

In 1900, Barnard formalized an affiliation with Columbia University which made available to its students the instruction and facilities of Columbia.

1903: First Barnard Greek Games

In 1903, the Barnard Greek Games were first held. It is one of Barnard's oldest traditions.

1903: Land Received from Anderson

In 1903, the college received the three blocks south of 119th Street from Anderson.

1906: Construction of Brooks Hall Began

In 1906, construction of Brooks Hall began, based on a master plan by Rich.

1908: Construction of Brooks Hall Completed

In 1908, Brooks Hall was completed.

1914: Louise Holland Graduation

In 1914, Louise Holland graduated from Barnard College and became an academic leader.

1916: Construction of Students' Hall

In 1916, Students' Hall, now known as Barnard Hall, was built to a design by Arnold Brunner.

1920: Barnard Top Tier Education

By 1920, Barnard had succeeded in its original goal of providing a top-tier education to women.

1924: Helen Gahagan Graduation

In 1924, Helen Gahagan graduated from Barnard College and became a U.S. Representative.

1926: Construction of Hewitt Hall Began

Construction of Hewitt Hall started in 1926.

1927: Construction of Hewitt Hall Completed

Construction of Hewitt Hall was completed in 1927.

1928: Zora Neale Hurston Graduation

In 1928, Zora Neale Hurston graduated from Barnard College and became a notable author.

1935: Grace Lee Boggs Graduation

In 1935, Grace Lee Boggs graduated from Barnard College and became an author and political activist.

1952: Ronnie Eldridge Graduation

In 1952, Ronnie Eldridge graduated from Barnard College and became a television host.

1955: Cross-Registration with Permission

From 1955, Columbia and Barnard students could register for the other school's classes with the permission of the instructor.

1958: Judith Kaye Graduation

In 1958, Judith Kaye graduated from Barnard College and became Chief Judge of the New York Court of Appeals.

1960: Dress Code Instituted

In the spring of 1960, Columbia University president Grayson Kirk complained about Barnard students' clothing, leading to the institution of a dress code.

March 1968: Article on Cohabitation

In March 1968, The New York Times ran an article on students who cohabited, identifying one of the persons they interviewed as a student at Barnard College from New Hampshire named "Susan".

1968: Susan N. Herman Graduation

In 1968, Susan N. Herman graduated from Barnard College and became president of the American Civil Liberties Union.

1968: Greek Games Halted

The Barnard Greek Games occurred annually until the Columbia University protests in 1968.

1969: Laurie Anderson Graduation

In 1969, Laurie Anderson graduated from Barnard College and became a musician and performance artist.

1970: Prediction of Merger

In 1970, Columbia president William J. McGill predicted that Barnard College and Columbia College would merge within five years.

1970: Helene D. Gayle Graduation

In 1970, Helene D. Gayle graduated from Barnard College and became Spelman College's 11th President.

1971: Wilma B. Liebman Graduation

In 1971, Wilma B. Liebman graduated from Barnard College and became chair of the National Labor Relations Board.

1973: Free Cross-Registration

From 1973, Columbia and Barnard students could register for the other school's classes without permission.

1973: Three-Year Agreement for Increased Cooperation

In 1973, Columbia and Barnard signed a three-year agreement to increase sharing classrooms, facilities, and housing, and cooperation in faculty appointments.

1974: Barnard Top Tier Education

Between 1920 and 1974, only the much larger Hunter College and University of California, Berkeley produced more women graduates who later received doctorates.

1975: Barnard Bears

From 1975 to 1983, before the establishment of the Columbia/Barnard Athletic Consortium, Barnard students competed as the "Barnard Bears".

1975: Rejection of Merger Proposal

In 1975, Barnard rejected Columbia dean Peter Pouncey's proposal to merge Barnard and the three Columbia undergraduate schools.

1976: Relationship Described as "Intricate and Ambiguous"

In 1976, the Barnard Bulletin described the relationship between the college and Columbia University as "intricate and ambiguous".

1976: Marketing Emphasized Columbia Relationship

In 1976, the Bulletin said that Barnard described its relationship with Columbia as identical to the one between Harvard College and Radcliffe College.

1977: Discussions on Future Relationship

In 1977, after Barnard rejected later merger proposals from Columbia and a one-year extension to the 1973 agreement expired, the two schools began discussing their future relationship.

1979: Deterioration of Relationship

By 1979, the relationship between Columbia and Barnard had so deteriorated that Barnard officials stopped attending meetings.

1980: Recommendation to Admit Women to Columbia College

In 1980, a Columbia committee recommended that Columbia College begin admitting women without Barnard's cooperation.

1981: Opposition to Cooperation in Admitting Women

In 1981, Columbia president Michael Sovern agreed for the two schools to cooperate in admitting women to Columbia, but Barnard faculty's opposition caused president Ellen Futter to reject the agreement.

January 1982: Announcement of Columbia College Admitting Women

In January 1982, Columbia and Barnard announced that Columbia College would begin admitting women in 1983.

1983: Columbia College Admits Women

In 1983, Columbia College began admitting women.

1983: Columbia/Barnard Athletic Consortium Established

In 1983, the Columbia/Barnard Athletic Consortium was established.

1988: Cynthia Nixon Graduation

In 1988, Cynthia Nixon graduated from Barnard College and became an actress, activist, and gubernatorial candidate.

1988: First Take Back the Night March

The Take Back the Night march and speak-out grew out of a 1988 Seven Sisters conference. The march grew from less than 200 participants in 1988.

1989: Ann Brashares Graduation

In 1989, Ann Brashares graduated from Barnard College and became the author of The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants.

2000: Amy Hwang Graduation

In 2000, Amy Hwang graduated from Barnard College and became a cartoonist for The New Yorker.

2003: Kelly McCreary Graduation

In 2003, Kelly McCreary graduated from Barnard College and became an actress from Grey's Anatomy.

2003: Listing on the National Register of Historic Places

In 2003, Milbank, Brinckerhoff, and Fiske Halls were listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

2004: Greta Gerwig Graduation

In 2004, Greta Gerwig graduated from Barnard College and became a writer and director.

2004: Fully Cataloged Zine Library

In 2004, the Barnard Zine Library became the first zine library in the United States to be fully cataloged in the OCLC.

2007: Take Back the Night March Participants

The Take Back the Night march grew from less than 200 participants in 1988 to more than 2,500 in 2007.

2008: Barnard Zine Library Opened

In 2008, the Barnard Zine Library opened for circulation.

2010: Barnard's Stance on Sororities

As of 2010, Barnard does not fully recognize the National Panhellenic Conference sororities at Columbia.

2012: Barnard Pays Columbia

As of 2012, Barnard pays Columbia about $5 million a year under the terms of the "interoperate relationship".

2012: President Spar on Barnard-Columbia Relationship

In 2012, Barnard president Debora Spar said that "the relationship is admittedly a complicated one, a unique one and one that may take a few sentences to explain to the outside community".

2013: New York Times on Barnard

In 2013, The New York Times called Barnard "an undergraduate women's college of Columbia University".

2015: Admission of Transgender Women

In 2015, Barnard announced that it would admit transgender women who "consistently live and identify as women, regardless of the gender assigned to them at birth".

2015: Christy Carlson Romano Graduation

In 2015, Christy Carlson Romano graduated from Barnard College and became a Disney Channel actress.

2017: Most Selective Women's College

In 2017, Barnard had the lowest acceptance rate of the five Seven Sisters that remained single-sex in admissions, making it the most selective women's college in the nation.

2018: Roughly 5,000 Processed Zines

As of 2018, the Barnard Zine Library holds roughly 5,000 processed zines.

2021: Most Popular Majors

By 2021, the most popular majors at the college were being pursued by graduates.

2023: Forbes Ranking

In 2023, Forbes ranked Barnard 73rd of 500 colleges.

January 21, 2025: Disruption of "History of Modern Israel" class

On January 21, 2025, two Barnard College students disrupted a "History of Modern Israel" class at Columbia University, distributing materials that condemned the course and featured an antisemitic image.

February 2025: Expulsion of students for disrupting class

In February 2025, Barnard College expelled two students following their disruption of a "History of Modern Israel" class.

February 26, 2025: Pro-Palestinian student sit-in at Milbank Hall

On February 26, 2025, dozens of pro-Palestinian student protesters staged a sit-in at Barnard's Milbank Hall, demanding the reversal of the expulsions, amnesty for students disciplined for pro-Palestinian actions, and a public meeting with college administrators. During the protest, a Barnard employee was physically assaulted and required hospitalization.