The Events of the Week

The many rituals of graduation peak on Commencement day, which this year include a Harvard College Class Day speech by chairman of the Federal...

The many rituals of graduation peak on Commencement day, which this year include a Harvard College Class Day speech by chairman of the Federal Reserve Board Ben S. Bernanke ’75 and Commencement day addresses by President Drew Faust and by Harry Potter’s creator, J.K. Rowling.

For details and updates, see Harvard Magazine’s own Commencement coverage, or www.commencementoffice.harvard.edu.

Monday, June 2

50th Reunion Symposiums. At 1:30, “Undergraduate Life”; at 3:15, “University Governance.” Sanders Theatre.

50th Reunion Dinner, at 6, with remarks by President Drew Faust and dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences Michael D. Smith. Murr Center.

Harvard Kennedy School Class of 2008 Picnic, 4-7. HKS courtyard.

Tuesday, June 3

50th Reunion Symposiums. At 10, “Allston Initiative and Harvard Architecture”; at 1:30, “Societal Change and Climate Change”; at 3:15, “The Longest Revolution: The Girls We Left Behind and the Women We Became—Lessons for Our Granddaughters.” Science Center B.

Phi Beta Kappa Literary Exercises, at 11, with physicist and Nobel laureate Steven Weinberg as orator, and poet Carl Phillips. Sanders Theatre.

50th Reunion Lunch, at noon. Science Center tent.

Baccalaureate Service for the Class of 2008 and their families, at 2. Tercentenary Theatre, followed by senior class picture, at 4, Widener steps.

Kennedy School Class Day Awards Ceremony, 1-4. Kennedy Forum.

Divinity School Alumni/ae Day Dinner , 5:30 PM, Harvard Club of Boston, 374 Commonwealth Avenue. Featuring presentation of the 2008 HDS Alumni/ae Association Awards.

Senior Class Family Dinner and Party, at 6. Reservations and tickets required. Next to the Palmer Dixon Courts.

Harvard Extension School Alumni Banquet, cocktail reception at 6; dinner and program at 7. Reservations required. Quincy House.

Wednesday, June 4

Divinity School Alumni/ae Day Celebration, "The Spiritual Nature of Physical Space," beginning at 9 AM, HDS campus, 45 Francis Avenue, Cambridge. With keynote address by Dav

Most popular

The Harvard Professor Who Quantified Democracy

Erica Chenoweth’s data shows how—and when—authoritarians fall.

Andrea Louise Campbell reviews The Unheavenly Chorus, on skewed political power

Andrea Louise Campbell reviews The Unheavenly Chorus, by Kay Lehman Schlozman, Sidney Verba, and Henry E. Brady.

Mark Carney on the Limits of Soft Power

At the 2026 Davos summit, the Canadian prime minister echoes Harvard’s Joseph Nye.

Explore More From Current Issue

An image depicting high carb ultra processed foods, those which are often associated with health risks

Is Ultraprocessed Food Really That Bad?

A Harvard professor challenges conventional wisdom. 

A girl sits at a desk, flanked by colorful, stylized figures, evoking a whimsical, surreal atmosphere.

The Trouble with Sidechat

No one feels responsible for what happens on Harvard’s anonymous social media app.

A bald man in a black shirt with two book covers beside him, one titled "The Magicians" and the other "The Bright Sword."

Novelist Lev Grossman on Why Fantasy Isn’t About Escapism

The Magicians author discusses his influences, from Harvard to King Arthur to Tolkien.