New Kennedy Fund May Aid Student Research in Politics

The John F. Kennedy Library has gathered $1.5 million through a fund drive begun this week to form an educational foundation affiliated with the library.

The foundation's main purpose will be to encourage student interest in politics, Daniel H. Fenn '44, executive director of the library, said yesterday.

Though the new foundation's board of directors will make the final determination about how the funds will be spent. Fenn predicted that a large part of the foundation's funding will be devoted to grants for student research in politics.

Fenn speculated that the foundation would try to direct the grants towards finding solutions for current political problems.

The library is seeking $8 million in contributions to set up an endowment for the foundation. Fenn indicated he was optimistic that the library would reach the goal but added he was uncertain how long the fund drive would take.

The money raised this week came from two donations--one from the family of Senator Edward M. Kennedy '54 and the other from the Permanent Charity Fund of Boston.

National Outreach

The endowment will give the library the kind of national outreach Edward Kennedy and his family would like to see the memorial have, Fenn said.

Kennedy was not available for comment yesterday.

The Kennedy Library opened in 1979 after 13 years of controversy over its location delayed construction.

President Kennedy '40 had hoped the library--which contains his personal papers as well as a museum honoring him--would stand in the Square, at the corner of Memorial Drive and Kennedy Street--then known as Boylston Street.

Square residents protested the site, however, because they felt the increased traffic the library was expected to generate would be detrimental to the already-congested Square. As a result, the memorial was moved to its current location at Columbia Point.