November 1791 — A writer in the Boston press accuses Harvard of poisoning students’ minds with Edward Gibbon’s monumental “History of the Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire” (1776-88). President Joseph Willard replies that far from even considering Gibbon, the College uses a text by French historian Abbé Millot. Nathaniel Ames, who left Harvard around 1812, recalls Millot’s as “the most utterly worthless and contemptible work of that kind or any other extant.”
Following are some of the incidents reported to the Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) for the week ending Nov. 12. The official log is located at 1033 Massachusetts Ave., sixth floor, and is available online athttp://www.hupd.harvard.edu/.
Bloom receives honorary doctorate from Erasmus University Rotterdam Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) Dean Barry R. Bloom received an honorary doctorate from Erasmus University Rotterdam in the Netherlands at a Nov. 8 ceremony. The university annually awards one or more honorary doctorates to mark its founding, a celebration called “Dies Natalis.” Bloom delivered a talk at the ceremony titled “Agendas and Architecture of Global Health.”
Hermes C. Grillo, M.D., world renowned Thoracic Surgeon at the Massachusetts General Hospital, died Saturday, October 14, 2006 near Ravenna, Italy in an automobile accident. He and his wife, Sue, were traveling in their beloved Italy visiting family and planned to attend the Italian Association for Thoracic Surgery, at which he was to be an honored speaker. Sue recovered from her injuries.
At a Meeting of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences on October 16, 2007, the Minute honoring the life and service of the late Charles Frederick Mosteller, Professor of Mathematical Statistics, Emeritus, was placed upon the records. Mosteller made indelible contributions to statistics, to education and educational policy, and to health research.
A memorial service for Elizabeth Dexter Hay, embryologist and educator at Harvard Medical School (HMS), will be held Sunday (Nov. 18) at 2 p.m. in the rotunda of HMS’s New Research Building at 77 Ave. Louis Pasteur. Hay died in August at the age of 80.
Noma Anderson, president of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA), will be honored today (Nov. 15) by the Harvard Foundation for her outstanding leadership and contributions to American education and health services. At a reception in her honor, Anderson will be presented with the Harvard Foundation Medallion.
Harvard University Graduate School of Design (GSD) Alumni Council Chair Michaele Pride announced at the council’s meeting in October that an endowment has been established in the name of GSD Dean Alan Altshuler. The Alumni Council–Alan Altshuler Fund for Financial Aid recognizes Altshuler’s strong commitment to increasing student financial aid during his tenure at the School.
Claes H. Dohlman, Harvard Medical School (HMS) professor of ophthalmology emeritus and cornea surgeon at the Massachusetts Eye and Ear Infirmary (MEEI), received the American Academy of Ophthalmology’s most prestigious award, the Laureate Recognition Award, at the academy’s annual meeting Nov. 10-13 in New Orleans. In addition, a new HMS professorship named in his honor was announced at a special reception at the meeting.
Harvard football coach Tim Murphy managed to find a silver lining in all those yellow flags his team earned on Saturday afternoon (Nov. 10). Of course, in dispensing the visiting Penn Quakers, 23-7, to keep the Crimson unbeaten at home and in league play, 6-0 (7-2 overall), those 10 penalties for 95 lost yards tend to lose a bit of their bite.
This is the second in a series of Gazette articles highlighting some of the many initiatives and charities that Harvard affiliates can support through this month’s Community Gifts Through Harvard campaign. The Community Gifts campaign allows you to donate to a charity of your choice through cash, a check, or a payroll deduction.
Over a thousand people crowded into the Memorial Church Sunday (Nov. 11) for a special birthday. Seventy-five years earlier, almost to the minute, the Colonial-style structure was dedicated on Armistice Day 1932.
Three astronomers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics (CfA) were recently recognized for their innovative work by three leading national magazines. The trio was selected from hundreds of scientists across the country for their leadership and achievements in their respective research fields.
Mary Beth Pearlberg has been named senior associate dean for external affairs at the Kennedy School of Government (KSG). She will lead the School’s development initiatives, oversee its alumni programs, and serve on the dean’s leadership team.
The American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) has awarded the distinction of fellow to 15 Harvard faculty members. In all, 471 new members were named for their efforts toward advancing science applications that are deemed scientifically or socially distinguished.
Harvard University and the Arab Republic of Egypt announced today the creation of a new fellowship program to provide financial support to students from Egypt accepted to the Harvard Graduate School of Education, Harvard School of Public Health, or Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government. This program has been established by an endowment of $10 million from the Arab Republic of Egypt to finance prestigious “Egypt Fellowships” designed to enable highly qualified members of the Egyptian public sector to study at Harvard.
Barry R. Bloom, dean of the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and Joan L. and Julius H. Jacobson Professor of Public Health, announced today that he will step down from his position as the School’s leader at the end of the current academic year.
Senior safety Doug Hewlett recorded a game-high seven tackles against the host Columbia Lions on Nov. 3 to pace a defensive effort that gave up just 68 yards in the second half. The clampdown helped set up a pair of touchdowns for Harvard to expand its 13-6 advantage at the break to a 27-12 final score.
Women tennis players from across the country descended upon the Murr Center courts this past weekend for the Harvard Invitational (Nov. 2-4). The final fall meet-up paired athletes from North Carolina State, Texas A&M, the University of Illinois — and, of course, Harvard — in head-to-head doubles and singles matches. Because team scores weren’t tallied, the invite gave players a chance to take on top-ranked talent outside their usual field of competition.
The Harvard men’s water polo team topped Iona College, 7-5, on Sunday (Nov. 4) to finish 2-1 this past weekend at the Northern Division Championships at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The physical win over the Gaels (the game was marked by a handful of ejections) assured the Crimson the No. 6 seed in the upcoming Eastern Division Championships Nov. 15-17 at Blodgett Pool.
This is the first in a series of Gazette articles highlighting some of the many initiatives and charities that Harvard affiliates can support through this month’s Community Gifts Through Harvard campaign. The Community Gifts campaign allows you to donate to a charity of your choice through cash, a check, or a payroll deduction. For more information or to pledge online, visit http://www.community.harvard.edu/communitygifts.
Harvard Medical School Dean Jeffrey Flier said Friday (Nov. 2) that new approaches are needed to advance the fight against disease and embraced cross-institutional collaborations at Harvard as a way to bring new thinking to old problems.
Acclaimed author and religious historian Karen Armstrong will present “The Case for God” during the three-day William Belden Noble Lectures at the Memorial Church Nov. 13-15 at 8 p.m. Armstrong, the author of some 20 books, including the best-selling “A History of God” and “The Battle for God,” is renowned for her ideas about the similarities between Islam, Judaism, and Christianity, and what unites the three monotheist faiths.
Nov. 23, 1876 — Princeton convenes a meeting in Springfield, Mass., that results in the formation of the Intercollegiate Football Association (Princeton, Harvard, and Columbia). Yale decides not to join but does contribute to the development of the IFA’s modified rugby rules.
Following are some of the incidents reported to the Harvard University Police Department (HUPD) for the week ending Nov. 5. The official log is located at 1033 Massachusetts Ave., sixth floor, and is available online at http://www.hupd.harvard.edu/.
At its fourth meeting of the year on Nov. 7, the Faculty Council received an update on General Education, considered the role of the Faculty Council as raised by a Nov. 3 Boston Globe article concerning the Harvard University Art Museums, and was joined by Professor J. Lorand Matory for a discussion of the concerns raised in his Sept. 14 opinion piece in the Harvard Crimson.
President Bush has appointed Harvard Law School (HLS) Professor Mary Ann Glendon as the new U.S. ambassador to the Holy See. The president announced his intention to nominate Glendon on Nov. 5.
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