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Whither the Harvard Endowment?
The University’s endowment—its largest revenue source by far— was valued at $37.6 billion as of June 30, 2015 (the end of that fiscal year, and the most recent reporting date). In nominal terms, not adjusted for inflation, that was an important milestone: …
Arts and Sciences: Better Budget, Burgeoning Ambitions
Dean Michael D. Smith’s annual report for fiscal year 2012 —previewed with Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) colleagues at their October 2 meeting and published two days later—declares victory and outlines a future campaign. Stabilizing Finances The …
Bringing Art to Life
In October 2021 , Cecilia Zhou ’23 sat in her bedroom and painted her face black and white. She meticulously striped the colors across her chin, cheeks, and forehead, checking the angles in her camera. Zhou was not mimicking a zebra or a penguin: she was …
A Report on the Meeting of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences
The Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) convened in University Hall on Tuesday, February 7, its first meeting of the spring term, with discussion of the undergraduate curriculum as the chief item on its agenda. Instead, discussion focused principally on …
News Briefs
Putting the A(RT) in Allston On February 25 , the University announced that the $12.5-million ArtLab, an interdisciplinary art-making and performance space, was preparing to open, and that curator and arts professional Bree Edwards, formerly director of …
Issue: May-June 2019
Penny Pritzker Gives $100 Million for New Economics Facility
Penny Pritzker ’81, a member of the Harvard Corporation since 2018, has made a $100-million commitment to build a new home for the economics department, the University announced today. Beyond satisfying a long-term need for the economics faculty, the gift …
Cambridge 02138
Harvard, Hamas, and Israel My reaction to President Gay’s video message to alumni, clarifying Harvard’s position on the terrorist attacks in Israel: Is it really so difficult to utter the words: “We support Israel in its attempt to defend itself from …
Issue: January-February 2024
“Today You Join Something That Is Larger than Yourself”
Lieutenant General Maria B. Barrett, commanding general of the U.S. Army Cyber Command and among the highest-ranking women in the U.S. Army, today delivered the oath of office to 16 ROTC graduates commissioned into the United States armed forces—by far …
Creative Vulnerability and Childish Joy
Every Thursday evening of my first semester of medical school last fall, I commuted from Longwood to Cambridge for one of my favorite classes at Harvard. “ Skills for Singing ”—a non-credit, non-graded course for introductory singers—brings together …
A “Romper Room” Diploma
Speaking at Memorial Church’s semester-opening Morning Prayers today for the first time as Harvard’s president , Claudine Gay continued to tell members of the University community about their new leader. In so doing, she added to the personal details in …
What the Public—and Teachers—Think About School Choice
Annually since 2007, Education Next, a journal of opinion and research about education policy, has asked a representative sample of U.S. adults for their opinions on a range of education policies. The design provides for a sampling of teachers and African …
Issue: September-October 2016
Harvard Postpones Commencement
President Lawrence S. Bacow informed the community this afternoon of his decision to postpone the University’s Commencement, scheduled for May 28, in light of the coronavirus pandemic . Importantly: A virtual exercise will be conducted on that date, so …
Election Slates and Divestment Developments
The Harvard Alumni Association-nominated 2020 slate of candidates for the Board of Overseers and HAA’s own elected directors was announced today. The separate effort to nominate a slate of candidates by petition to the Office of the Governing Boards—in …
Heresy
The fall’s fiscal news— weak investment performance and leadership changes at Harvard Management Company ; the cautions in the University’s annual report —prompts a look at a heretical thought about Harvard’s business model. For some years, the treasurer …
Issue: January-February 2017
Health Benefits.2016
Last fall , when the University announced the introduction of long-rumored annual deductibles and coinsurance for certain health-insurance costs effective in 2015 , some of the affected employees (faculty and nonunionized staff members, plus postdoctoral …