Blithewood is the home of The Levy Economics Institute of Bard College. The Blithewood mansion, built in 1900, and its site, originally designed by the renowned landscape architect A. J. Downing, were renovated with a gift from the family of Leon Levy. Undergraduates have access to the Institute's library in person by appointment and through the campus electronic network, and some undergraduate courses are taught there. Blithewood is also the home of the Bard Program in Economics and Finance.