This month in Harvard history

January 1767 – In a major curriculum reform, the College abolishes the ancient one-tutor-for-all-subjects system and introduces instructional specialization. A different tutor now teaches in each of the following four areas: (1) Latin; (2) Greek; (3) Natural Philosophy, Mathematics, Geography, and Astronomy; and (4) Logic, Metaphysics, and Ethics. All four tutors handle Rhetoric, Elocution, and English composition. The Hollis Professor of Divinity offers religious instruction, while the Hollis Professor of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy elucidates the natural sciences.

Jan. 18-19, 1946 – Jorge Americano – President of the University of São Paulo, Brazil – visits Harvard during a U.S. university tour, in preparation for the creation of a new University City outside São Paulo. Law School Dean James M. Landis hosts a Jan. 18 dinner. Latin American History and Economics Professor Clarence H. Haring and Portuguese Professor William Berrien hold a luncheon on the second day.

– From the Harvard Historical Calendar, a database compiled by Marvin Hightower