[6]: p.35  Though the "cluster" vision was never achieved, two factors led to a more innovative and experimental nature at Kirkland: first, the introduction of progressive views of undergraduate education on the part of Millicent Carey McIntosh, former President of Barnard College, who came on as a member of the first Board of Trustees, and second, the mandate to "make a fresh attack on introducing major fields of learning" without being constrained by the more traditional patterns at Hamilton – a mandate embraced by Kirkland's first and only president, Samuel F.

[10] In contrast with Hamilton, most Kirkland professors taught their classes in a highly interactive mode, engaging students in a dialogue, without lectures.

[9]: 294  Although the new college got off to an exciting start, the many differences in educational and community functioning inevitably led to small and large conflicts between the two institutions.

As a result, the debt service accruing to build Kirkland's entirely new campus exerted a tremendous burden on its finances.

Planning a large endowment fundraising effort ("The Campaign for the Second Decade") Kirkland turned to Hamilton for an operating funds guarantee.

[14] The process has been described as a "hostile takeover";[15] at the end the relationship between the two colleges was "adversarial",[6]: 331  the mood on the two campuses at times "near riot".

In addition to personal records and recollection, Babbitt was able to employ archival materials housed in the Hamilton College and Columbia University libraries.

Despite such friction, many of the educational principles of Kirkland (such as student-designed majors and independent study) found their way into the Hamilton curriculum.

[17] The college's art and music departments are located on the Kirkland side of the campus, which has more modern architecture than the original Hamilton.

In 2007 a display case, containing a rotating exhibit of items from the Archives, was installed in the lobby of McEwen Hall, near an iconic sculpture, the "rock swing" that dates from Kirkland's early years.

During commencement exercises at Hamilton many students and faculty choose to wear a green apple pin on their academic robes to honor Kirkland's legacy.