Yesterday’s News

From the pages of the Harvard Alumni Bulletin and Harvard Magazine

Illustration depicting a summer-school student sunbathing on the steps of Widener Library

Illustration by Mark Steele

1913

The Alumni Bulletin reports the laying of the cornerstone of the Harvard Club of Boston. A spokesman says the club will be “characterized by academic simplicity. We desire to be famous, not for our canvas-backs, but for our glorified corn-beef hash.”

1938

“A new function is developing” for the Harvard Summer School, state the Bulletin’s editors. “Thoughtful adults are discovering that the rapidly changing life of this dynamic world makes education a continuous process which can never be completed at any specified age or date. Many are turning to the summer school for opportunities to continue their intellectual growth, to increase their athletic enjoyment, and to gain new vitality for the obligations of modern life.”

1943

The Fogg Museum rearranges its storage areas to protect works of art in the event of an enemy bombardment of Cambridge.

1963

On the Peace Corps’ second anniversary, the 43 College alumni serving abroad place Harvard second only to Berkeley as a source of A.B.s in the Corps.

1978

The Faculty of Arts and Sciences discusses the proposed “Core Program,” described by its chief proponent, Dean Henry Rosovsky, as “not [going] back to basics—I detest that phrase—but forward to modern liberal education.”

2003 

President Lawrence H. Summers unveils a “down payment” on financial aid, focusing on the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences and the public-service-related professional schools, including a package of grants and no-fee, below-market-rate loans.

Click here for the March-April 2023 issue table of contents

You might also like

Yesterday’s News

Including profundity and pretzels

Tips of the Hat(s)

On regalia, a Jack-of-all-trades retirement, and a Bok’s office bon mot.

An Original Magna Carta, Hidden in Plain Sight

A rare original surfaces at Harvard at an “almost providential” moment. 

Most popular

See Their Faces

Confronting “some of the most challenging images in the history of photography”

The Standoff: Harvard’s Future in the Balance

Introducing a guide to the issues, players, and stakes 

Christiane Amanpour Points HKS Graduates to Opportunities Abroad

“America needs ambassadors like you,” CNN anchor says.

Explore More From Current Issue

Harvard Economist Nicole Maestas on Aging and Health Policy

The Harvard health economist not afraid to get in the weeds

New Harvard Overseers and HAA Directors

Alumni showed increased interest in this year’s elections.