University News
Harvard’s Endowment Soars to $53.2 Billion, Reports 33.6% Returns
Harvard Management Company returned 33.6 percent on its investments for the fiscal year ending in June 2021, skyrocketing the value of the University’s endowment to $53.2 billion, the largest sum in its history.
Harvard Ended Fiscal Year 2021 with $283 Million Surplus, Despite Losing $124 Million in Revenue
Harvard finished the fiscal year ending in June 2021 with a budget surplus of $283 million, despite a $124 million drop in revenue, according to the University’s annual financial report released Thursday.
With Campus Open, Schlesinger Library Pushes Forward with Digitization, Collection Diversification
The Schlesinger Library plans to continue its digitization efforts and diversify its collection as staff members return to in-person work.
Three Economists With Harvard Ties Awarded Nobel Prize
Three U.S.-based professors with Harvard ties received the Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences on Monday for their work on minimum wage and natural experiments.
HKS Fellow, Journalist Maria Ressa Wins Nobel Peace Prize for ‘Fight for Freedom of Expression’
Harvard Kennedy School fellow and journalist Maria A. Ressa received the 2021 Nobel Peace Prize Friday for her work advancing freedom of the press and combating misinformation in the Philippines.
In Massive Security Oversight, Thousands of Private University Documents Left Vulnerable
A widespread security oversight left at least tens of thousands of Harvard’s administrative files — including sensitive and confidential information on University governance — available for anyone with Harvard credentials to view, edit, download, and share.
FAS Review Largely Upholds Tenure System Despite Acknowledging ‘Mistrust and Low Morale’
A review of tenure processes within the Faculty of the Arts and Sciences found that the tenure-track system is “structurally sound” but recommended adjustments in certain aspects of the system to address “mistrust and low morale” in the process.
FAS Dean Gay Hopes to Update Affiliates on Ethnic Studies Search by Semester’s End
Faculty of the Arts and Sciences Dean Claudine Gay said the FAS is continuing its cluster hire of ethnic studies scholars and will “probably” update affiliates on its progress by the semester’s end.
HMS Dean Outlines Financial, Institutional Goals in State of the School Address
Harvard Medical School Dean George Q. Daley ’82 lauded HMS faculty, affiliates, students, and staff for their work during the Covid-19 pandemic and reiterated institutional values in his State of the School address over Zoom Tuesday.
Faculty Discuss Campus Covid Situation, Potential Graduate Student Strike
An early September Covid-19 surge led to “nail-biting” moments for administrators, but Harvard has dodged “severe” cases of Covid-19 among vaccinated students this semester, University officials said during a faculty meeting Tuesday.
‘Just Not Fair’: As Allston’s Housing Costs Rise, Residents Turn to Harvard for Answers
Dominated by stockyards and rail lines before 1900, the 20th century transformed Allston: waves of immigration made it one of Boston’s most diverse neighborhoods, filled with single- and multi-family homes.
Ed Portal Panelists Discuss Monuments’ Past and Future
Boston and Cambridge-area arts professionals discussed the ability of new kinds of monuments to “contribute to the formation of a positive collective identity” at a Harvard Ed Portal panel on Tuesday.
HGSE Student Council Members Say Amplifying Underrepresented Voices Among Top Priorities
In interviews, four members of HGSE’s Student Council, who sit on the Student Advocacy and Issues Committee and the Programming and Events Committee, shared their goals for the 2021-22 academic year.
Harvard Saw Decrease in Total Crimes and Sexual Assaults, Increase in Burglaries During 2020
The total number of reported crimes in 2020 was 178, down from the 220 total crimes reported in 2019. On-campus crimes also saw a 14 percent decrease in 2020 — when college students were sent home in March, and only freshmen were invited to live back on campus in the fall.
SEAS Appoints Committee on Plans to Consolidate Cambridge Buildings
The School of Engineering and Applied Sciences appointed a task force to reexamine the plans it announced in June to vacate the historic Pierce Hall and consolidate its Cambridge footprint, with some faculty pushing back on the proposed move.
Harvard Davis Center Announces New Georgian Studies Program
Harvard’s Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies is launching a new program for Georgian Studies with the support of the Georgian government, the center announced Wednesday.
Hutchins Center Explores the Legacy of Eugenics in New England, at Harvard
Prominent historians and scholars convened virtually on Wednesday to discuss the legacy of eugenics in New England and at Harvard in a conference hosted by Harvard’s Hutchins Center for African and African American Research.
Bacow Insists Harvard’s Move to End Fossil Fuel Investments is ‘Consistent’ with Past Positions
When University President Lawrence S. Bacow said earlier this month that Harvard would move to end its investments in the fossil fuel industry, the activists who had been pushing him to do so for years celebrated the news as a seismic shift.
University, Dining Workers Reach Tentative Contract Agreement After Four Months of Negotiations
After negotiating for four months and engaging a federal mediator, Harvard University and its dining workers union, UNITE HERE Local 26, reached a tentative agreement for a new five-year contract Friday.
Five Unions, Five Contracts: Unions Rally for Contracts and Benefits
More than 120 members and supporters of five Harvard unions at various stages of contract negotiations with the University jointly rallied for contracts and benefits in front of the John Harvard statue in Harvard Yard Tuesday, chanting, “What do we want? Contracts! When do we want them? Now!”
Harvard School of Public Health Launches New Structural Racism and Health Initiative
Harvard’s François-Xavier Bagnoud Center for Health and Human Rights launched an initiative to study and address structural racism in public health with a virtual symposium Tuesday.
Penny Pritzker ’81 Donates $100 Million for New Economics Department Building
Former U.S. Secretary of Commerce and business leader Penny S. Pritzker ’81 donated $100 million to the Economics Department to support the construction of a new department building, Harvard announced Tuesday morning.
TPS Activists Celebrate 15-Month Extension, Continue Fight for Permanent Residency
Labor activists at Harvard have renewed their calls for permanent residency for individuals with Temporary Protected Status after the Department of Homeland Security announced extensions for recipients from El Salvador, Haiti, Honduras, Nepal, Nicaragua, and Sudan on Thursday.
Harvard Affiliates with Military Backgrounds Honor 20th Anniversary of 9/11
Harvard affiliates with military backgrounds came together Saturday to honor the twentieth anniversary of 9/11 at a barbeque hosted on the lawn of Harvard Business School that included remarks from University President Lawrence S. Bacow.
Harvard Will Move to Divest its Endowment from Fossil Fuels
Following years of public pressure, Harvard said Thursday that it would allow its remaining investments in the fossil fuel industry to expire, meaning that it will eventually divest from the sector.