Brandeis University, the first Jewish-sponsored non-sectarian institution of higher learning in the United States, was inaugurated last night at impressive ceremonies in Symphony Hall here during which Dr. Abram Leon Sachar was installed as the first president of the University.
More than 3,000 guests and delegates from 166 American and 18 foreign colleges and universities attended the academic ceremonies. Dr. Sachar was inducted by George Alpert, president of the Board of Trustees of the university. The inaugural address was delivered by Dr. Arthur H. Compton, chancellor of Washington University. Eliahu Epstein, Israeli envoy to the United States, expressed the hope that many future graduates of Brandeis University would bring their knowledge to Israel.
In his address, Dr. Sachar said that Brandeis University would never choose its students or faculty on quotas of genetic, ethnic or economic distribution. “The truth is,” he declared, “that America is not a melting pot at all. It is a symphony. The precious groups that have come to these shores must not disappear into an assimilative cauldron, they must retain their uniqueness which has come out of their special heritage.”
The academic year will get under way on Oct. 14 when the 120 members of the pilot freshman class register. Classes will begin Oct. 20. Twenty-five percent of the freshmen are receiving scholarships from the university. The tuition charge is $500 a year. Funds for the university were raised by the Brandeis Foundation Inc., of Boston, of which Morris S. Shapiro is president.
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The Archive of the Jewish Telegraphic Agency includes articles published from 1923 to 2008. Archive stories reflect the journalistic standards and practices of the time they were published.
