Class Day speaker Joshua Preven '91 tells how God created Harvard

From a cappella music to tenure, the real story as told by Joshua Preven ’91

Before he earned a master of philosophy degree from Cambridge University on a Fulbright scholarship, before he sampled an acting career with roles on Judging Amy, Six Feet Under, and other television shows, Joshua Preven ’91 delivered the Harvard Oration during the Class Day exercises for his fellow seniors. His revelations brought down the house.

Read the full text of his speech in this PDF from the July-August 1991 issue.

Most popular

What Trump Means for John Roberts’s Legacy

Executive power is on the docket at the Supreme Court.

Five Questions with Andrew Knoll

A paleontologist who helped us understand earth’s biggest extinction event.

The Harvard Professor Who Quantified Democracy

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

Explore More From Current Issue

A lively concert in a modern auditorium with an audience seated on multiple levels.

Concerts and Carols at the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum

Tuning into one of Boston's best chamber music halls 

A person walks across a street lined with historic buildings and a clock tower in the background.

Harvard In the News

A legal victory against Trump, hazing in the Harvard-Radcliffe Orchestra, and kicking off a Crimson football season with style