Harvard will change the final lyric to its almost two-century old alma mater because it's no longer 'inclusive', according to university officials.

The 'Fair Harvard' anthem has been used at university commencements and other major events since it was written in 1836, but now the university is changing its tune.

Plans were announced on Wednesday by the Presidential Task Force on Inclusion and Belonging, an initiative launched in September by Harvard President Drew Faust, for a competition to change the anthem's last line 'till the stock of the Puritans die' in order to reflect inclusiveness.

Harvard (pictured) will remove the word 'Puritan' from its almost two-century old alma mater because it's no longer 'inclusive', according to university officials

Danielle S Allen, Harvard government professor (left), co-chairs the Presidential Task Force on Inclusion and Belonging, an initiative launched in September by president Drew Faust (right), that's sponsoring the competition to change the final lyric to its alma mater 'Fair Harvard'

'Puritan' is a reference to the English Protestants who founded Harvard, Fox News Insider reports.

'Fair Harvard' Lyrics Fair Harvard! we join in thy Jubilee throng, And with blessings surrender thee o’er By these Festival-rites, from the Age that is past, To the Age that is waiting before. O Relic and Type of our ancestors’ worth, That hast long kept their memory warm, First flow’r of their wilderness! Star of their night! Calm rising thro’ change and throv storm. Farewell! be thy destinies onward and bright! To thy children the lesson still give, With freedom to think, and with patience to bear, And for Right ever bravely to live. Let not moss-covered Error moor thee at its side, As the world on Truth’s current glides by, Be the herald of Light, and the bearer of Love, Till the stock of the Puritans die. Advertisement

'We are looking for the best poetic expression that the Harvard community can offer,' Danielle S Allen, Harvard government professor and co-chairwoman of the task force, told The Boston Globe.

The anthem's theme is the commitment to the pursuit of truth, said Allen, and the final line makes the claim that that goal is only achievable to a specific ethnic group.

'The last few lines of the final verse do a wonderful job of connecting the student journey to the school’s mission,' said Allen. 'But in fact, the pursuit of truth is for everybody.'

Allen's group is also asking the university community to come up with a new way to sing or perform the anthem, whether it be through rap, spoken word or a choral tune.

Such a variant wouldn't displace the original, but would serve as an 'endorsed alternative', according to the task force's website.

'Let’s see what the community puts out there,' said Allen. 'Let’s take old things that we admire, and have some fun with them.'

This isn't the first time the anthem's text has changed. A similar contest took place in 1998 to make the lyric 'thy sons to thy jubilee throng' gender-inclusive.

Allen hopes changing the alma mater's final line will similarly make students feel like they are part of the university community.