Get to Know Tufts

A light on the Hill. That is what benefactor Charles Tufts envisioned when he donated the land around Walnut Hill in Medford to Tufts University. But what does that mean today, more than a century and a half after the school's founding in 1852?

But don't just take our word for it. Every year, we ask students to share their favorite Tufts moments—the memories that, for them, define the Tufts experience. Here, in their images and words, are reflections of that light on the hill.

Our Leadership

Our leaders came to Tufts from around the globe and from leadership positions in both the public and private sectors, all because they understand the promise and critical importance of universities in framing our future. Taken as a whole, their experience represents a cross section of those leading our nation and our world.

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Points of Pride

In the early years of Tufts, cherry red was informally used as the school color. In 1876, however, undergraduate students-dissatisfied that red was too similar to Harvard's crimson-decided to establish recognized colors. In the ensuing debates, two camps emerged: one for brown and pearl white, and one for brown and gold. Brown and blue were chosen as a compromise. The colors were not made official until more than 80 years later, when the university trustees voted on the issue in 1960. The college's first yearbook, published in 1878, used the chocolate brown and sky blue that signify Tufts today.

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