Campus & Community

Harvard University President’s Challenge for social entrepreneurship has selected Vaxess Technologies, a company founded by Harvard students, to receive its grand prize. Vaxess Technologies will share the $100,000 to advance social ventures with SPOUTS of Water, Revolving Fund Pharmacy, and School Yourself.

The John Harvard Book Celebration program included the donation of more than 400 books to libraries, 17 lectures by Harvard faculty and members of Harvard’s Board of Overseers at local libraries, and 18 programs for children and youth. The programming reached more than 200 children and youth in the Greater Boston area this spring, concluding with this event in late April.

Esko Aho, former prime minister of Finland, has been appointed a senior fellow at the Mossavar-Rahmani Center for Business and Government.

Harvard Law School Dean Martha Minow has been elected to serve on the MacArthur Foundation board of directors.

The Committee on Regional Studies — East Asia (RSEA) announced the recipients of the 2012 Joseph Fletcher Memorial Awards.

In a talk at the Boston Public Library’s Honan-Allston Branch, the final event in the John Harvard Book Celebration, Linda Greenhouse ’68 said President Obama’s health care law is constitutional and should stand.

In a luncheon address, retired jurist Margaret Marshall, the 2012 Radcliffe Medalist, cautioned that money-mad judicial races may be tipping the scales of justice.

Fresh off his own failed venture, Andrew Rosenthal still wanted to build things. At Harvard Business School, he helped to build a bridge between startup-minded students and the broader community.

Pedrag Stojicic, who is graduating from the Harvard School of Public Health, plans to apply his passion for organizing to problems in his Serbian homeland, including HIV/AIDS and physician corruption.

In four years at Harvard College, hard work and determination have propelled Patrick Staropoli to a 3.94 grade point average and earned him a place in Phi Beta Kappa. But when folks in Staropoli’s home state of Florida talk about his drive, they’re usually referring to the fact that he races super late-model series stock cars.

Graduating Harvard Medical School student Katherine Johnson hopes to bridge barriers between doctors and patients by using her skills in the community as she begins her residency.

Scenes from the 2012 Commencement exercises.

Sonya Soni always felt called to serve the Indian orphanage that her family has run for four generations. Two years at Harvard Divinity School challenged her to rethink what the struggling community needs most.

Clara Long, who has worked many jobs in many lands, plans to use her new Harvard Law Degree to help ensure the rights of others.

Now 59, Gregg Moore is set to receive a master’s from the Graduate School of Education, which he plans to use to foster community arts programs, with an emphasis on music education, as a way to bring disparate groups together. It’s an idea inspired by his career as a professional tubist in Europe, where he learned the community-building power of music.

All over campus, graduates toasted their hard work and great accomplishment on this perfect New England day as they also looked toward the hope of what tomorrow will bring.

Delivering Harvard’s Commencement address, journalist Fareed Zakaria told members of the Class of 2012 to trust themselves as they journey into a world that is more peaceful and contains more opportunities than ever before.

The president of the Harvard Alumni Association (HAA) announced the results of the annual election of new members of the Harvard Board of Overseers. The elected directors of the HAA were also announced on May 24.

Harvard’s 361st Commencement continued well into the later afternoon, with graduates, alums, family, friends, and faculty joining in the festivities.

The Harvard Alumni Association (HAA) has named Charles W. Collier, Ellen R. and Melvin J. Gordon, Harry L. Parker, and Susan S. Wallach the recipients of the 2012 Harvard Medal.

Catherine Musinsky, an Extension School graduate, used a serious illness to inspire her artistry, creating a documentary and moving on to study movement.

Commencement address by Fareed Zakaria on May 24, 2012.

Harvard alum and Massachusetts senator Rep. Barney Frank ’61 delivers his class day speech to seniors in Tercentenary Theatre on May 23, 2012.

Harvard Gazette staff writers covered the campus to capture snapshots of Harvard’s 361st Commencement, on a picture-perfect day.

The Harvard Polo Club, which dates to early in the 20th century, is enjoying a strong revival after a hiatus.

Comedian Andy Samberg addresses graduating seniors at Class Day 2012 in Tercentenary Theatre

On Radcliffe Day, May 25, hundreds of alumnae, fellows, and friends, including many University leaders, faculty, and staff, celebrate excellence and innovation — hallmarks of both Radcliffe College and the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study. This year, the Radcliffe Institute medal recipient and luncheon speaker is Margaret H. Marshall, Ed.M.’69.

The chance to make a difference — in Cambridge and beyond — by giving to Harvard appeals widely to alumni across class years.

The Student Organization Center at Hilles should feel more like home when Harvard undergraduates return to campus in the fall — that is, if home has a performance-quality audio system, a high-definition flat-screen TV, top-of-the-line gaming, Starbucks-level coffee drinks, and space in which to party or to meet with several hundred friends.