First-Year Studies was established in 1945, largely due to the efforts of President Nathan Pusey.

The Original Program

The original version of First-Year Studies was strikingly different from the "great books" courses being adopted on other campuses. In addition to classic works by Plato, Machiavelli, and Thoreau, the reading list included a film, The Ox-Bow Incident, starring Henry Fonda. The original version of the course also featured a laboratory component, requiring active participation in music, art, or creative writing.

The Evolution of First-Year Studies

  • Late 1960s: First-Year Studies course scaled back.
  • 1975: First-Year Studies discontinued.
  • 1978: First-Year Studies re-instated.
  • 1986: First-Year Studies restored to something like its original scope.
  • 1997: First-Year Studies reviewed and extensively revised; faculty reaffirmed commitment and central purposes.
  • Early 2000s: Students exposed to live professional productions of Shakespeare plays like Hamlet, Macbeth, and The Tempest; students performed musical works like Beethoven's Fifth Symphony and Mozart's Marriage of Figaro.
  • 2001: Lawrence received a $500,000 challenge grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities; with donations, a $2.5 million endowment for First-Year Studies was created, named in honor of President Pusey.