Harvard

Bud Fensterwald graduated from Duncan Academy in 1938. College was his next step. But where to go? He could have easily attended Vanderbilt, a stone’s throw from Duncan. He would have been a legacy applicant given that his father was a Phi Beta Kappa graduate in 1911. But, Blanche had other ideas. His sister, Ann, had left for Smith two years earlier. 

Sometime prior to graduation from Duncan, Blanche learned that Harvard College was reaching out for applicants outside of the Northeast. In part, this was due to criticism from “blue blood” Harvard alumni that their alma mater admitted too many Jews. The solution: broaden their student body geographically. So, Bud Fensterwald, Nashvillian Jew, applied to and was accepted to Harvard College in 1938. 

Through the years, Bud often confessed that Duncan ill prepared him for the rigors of Harvard and that after one semester, a Dean suggested that he should consider transferring to an easier college, i.e. Vanderbilt. Nonetheless, Bud persevered and graduated Magma Cum Laude in 1942, with a degree in government. 

According to school records, Bud served on the golf and squash squads and his interest was in government, although his listed vocation was business. 

Notable among the many students who attended Harvard College while Bud studied there included, John F. Kennedy, Class of 1940.

Bud graduated from Harvard College on June 8, 1942.