The Berlin Senate decided to abolish tuition fees for all Berlin universities and technical colleges. Until then, students had to pay a semester fee of 150 German marks.

The University Archives was founded. It was originally called “Central Institution for Information and Documentation.” The archive moved from Habelschwerdter Allee 37 to Boltzmann Strasse 20 in 1984 and to the Lankwitz campus in 2012. The microphone (pictured) was a gift from the Americans for the opening of the Henry Ford Building in the summer of 1954.

The Academic Senate decided to set up a central facility for university sports. “Its purpose is to serve all the members of the university for sporting activities by promoting and carrying out competitive and popular sports.” The University Sports Center now offers 2,000 courses in 260 types of sports. Since 2014 it has organized an annual Campus Run through Dahlem (photo from 2016).

The Central Computing Services (ZEDAT), the central facility for data processing at Freie Universität was founded. In 1981, ZEDAT moved to Fabeck Strasse 32. The picture shows the control panel of the Control Data 3300 computer, which was in operation from 1970 and was replaced by the Cyber 72 in 1972.

Edwin Redslob died at the age of 88. The art historian and publisher of the Tagesspiegel daily newspaper was one of the founding fathers of Freie Universität and its second rector in 1949/50. He also designed the seal of the university.

The Rostlaube building complex at Habelschwerdter Allee 45 was opened on February 13, 1973. Designed by Paris architects Georges Candilis, Alexis Josic, and Shadrach Woods, the building was made of Corten steel and designed to expand as the university grew. Three main corridors, called J, K, and L streets formed the center of the complex. The construction was intended to facilitate interdisciplinary communication in the humanities subjects. In 1977 work on the next major section began, and in 1984 the Silberlaube complex was opened.

The newly opened language lab (in 2004 it became the Language Center) was one of the facilities to move into the Rostlaube. English and French were the first languages to be taught. The Language Center is now responsible for teaching various language courses, including training in the lab, as part of numerous bachelor’s and master’s degree programs and the general professional skills program. Currently, instruction is given for thirteen languages.

The Institute of Mathematics moved into the new building on Arnim Allee 4-6. The building was designed by the Engineering and Utilities Division of Freie Universität, as was the extension at Arnim Allee 6, which the institute moved into in 1980.

Amendment of the University Act of 1969: The board of trustees, of which some members are politicians, was strengthened at the expense of university self-government. During the deliberations in the Berlin House of Representatives, 6,500 students demonstrated against the amendment, but it was passed due in large part to pressure from Research Senator Werner Stein. The picture shows him on June 16, 1975, at a reception in the official Clubhouse of Freie Universität on the occasion of his departure from office.

Eberhart Lämmert, a professor of comparative literature, became the new president of Freie Universität (photo: election celebration). He held office until 1983 and reformed the curriculum and organization of classes. Lämmert was open to demands made by members of the 1968-generation in favor of educational and sociopolitical reform. He also opposed the so-called Radical Decree, which in 1972 was passed to review public service employees with regard to their loyalty to the constitution.

In 1977 a children’s day care center was opened at Königin Luise Strasse 86. To be accepted, a child needs to have at least one parent who is a member of Freie Universität. Today, 180 children from the age of eight weeks until they start school attend the day care. The Studierendenwerk Berlin has been running the facility since 2005.

The Center for Academic Advising and Psychological Counseling was opened at Ihne Strasse 35. It succeeded the Academic Information Office, which had been in operation since March 1949. The photo shows students waiting in front of the new counseling center. Since October 2014, the facility has been housed in the newly built Student Service Center at Iltis Strasse 4. There students and prospective students can get support with questions about choosing a subject, orientation difficulties when getting started, exam or public speaking anxiety, and how to structure tasks and organize their work.

Freie Universität concluded a partnership agreement with Peking University. It was the first German-Chinese university agreement in West Berlin and the German Federal Republic as a whole. The photo shows the signing of the agreement to extend the partnership on April 22, 1986: University President Dieter Heckelmann (at left, in office since May 1983) and Rector of Peking University Ding Shisun (seated, at right) at the signing. In 2007, Freie Universität opened a liaison office in Beijing, and in 2011, the two universities intensified their cooperation and began a strategic partnership.