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Commencement
Class Day speakers cover comedy, politics
Campus & Community
By: Paul Massari/
May 3, 2012
Nobel Laureate and onetime Harvard professor Seamus Heaney will reprise a 1986 poem at Commencement this year, celebrating Harvard in its 375th year – and inspiring a new a cappela work by Richard Beaudoin.
Raphael Bostic named chief marshal
The Harvard Alumni Association (HAA) announced that Raphael W. Bostic ’87 has been chosen by his classmates to serve as chief marshal for Commencement 2012 as the University concludes its yearlong 375th anniversary celebration.
Zakaria to speak at Commencement
Harvard names Fareed Zakaria, an alumnus who is a thought leader on international affairs, as principal speaker for the 361st Commencement in May.
Donald Freeman Brown ’30, who is 102 and a retired archaeologist, digs back into the days of “ancient” Harvard.
Commencement Articles
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Important information for Harvard's 361st Commencement, to be held on May 24.
An informational note regarding Harvard's 361st Commencement, to be held May 24, 2012.
When traditions gave way to war
The Class of 1941 returned to Harvard for its 70th reunion, with its defining war and its youth long past. Graduate John Ambrose recalls the times.
A difficult journey, a brighter future
In her Commencement address, Liberian President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf says her Harvard graduate studies put her on the path to the success. She urged degree recipients to be fearless and to embrace their failures as they forge their paths in life.
Moments that make Commencement
After weeks of rain and cold, Harvard ended the 2010-11 year on a postcard-perfect day of azure skies and warming breezes. Most of the focus was on the speeches and rituals of Tercentenary Theatre, of course. But all across Harvard Yard, where graduating students, faculty, families, and friends gathered, there were thousands of magical moments as well.
Text of Ellen Johnson Sirleaf’s speech
H.E. Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, president of the Republic of Liberia, delivered her address at the Afternoon Exercises at Harvard’s 360th Commencement on May 26, 2011.
Today the University awarded a total of 7,147 degrees and 70 certificates. Harvard College granted a total of 1,556 degrees.
When Ethel Stafford halted her education to raise her children, she didn’t shed tears. She knew she would return to her studies. At age 60, she graduates from the Extension School with a bachelor’s and plans for a new career.
The Radcliffe Institute on May 27 will honor Ela Bhatt, founder of the Self Employed Women’s Association of India, with the Radcliffe Institute Medal. Bhatt’s organization has improved the self-sufficiency of more than a million women.
Speaking for their class, to the world
Two Harvard College seniors and a Harvard Kennedy School student carry on the tradition of Commencement orations, given in English and in Latin.
Harvard and Radcliffe were very different places 50 years ago, but the bonds that tie members of the Class of ’61 to Cambridge remain strong.
Harvard awards degree to Native American who completed studies in 1665 but died before Commencement.
With its 360th Commencement, another chapter in Harvard's history draws to a close, as marked by highlights from this year. Reinstallation of ROTC, ongoing innovation in science and humanities, and Wynton Marsalis at Harvard top off some of the year's historical benchmarks.
Harvard awards 9 honorary degrees
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf, who was selected to speak during the Afternoon Exercises, is among the nine to receive honorary degrees, which includes Ruth Bader Ginsburg (pictured), during Harvard's 360th Commencement on May 26.
For 23 years, they have rung out across Cambridge in Harvard's honor, marking the conclusion of Morning Exercises.
Divinity School student Shauntae Smith will draw from her Harvard studies to lead the youth ministry at her home church in Brooklyn, N.Y.
A young Harvard architect, with an eye to other cultures, challenges his profession to use design to end poverty and spur social justice.
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