Vassar College

Vassar College (văs'ər), at Poughkeepsie, N.Y.; coeducational; chartered 1861 by Matthew Vassar, opened 1865 as Vassar Female College, renamed 1867. A leading institution of higher education for women, it pioneered in music and physical education and had the first department of euthenics, devoted to applying scientific principles to living conditions. The school became coeducational in 1969. Vassar owns an extensive art collection; its Frances Lehman Loeb Art Center opened in 1993. There is also a fine library with collections relating to printing and literature.