Great post!
 

Richard,

I was there at her inauguration. Te tone of the entire event was inspiring, pure Harvard. It was not just Drew's speech, the african drummers, the sanjeet from India, the whole ritual was very well planned. Down to the speech of the undergraduate claiming for more power to the students or the the speech by the Governor inviting the President to lean forward and lean. It was simply very uplifting, very Harvard, very inspiring. I wish you could have been there, you would have enjoyed it and appreciated the ritual.

I was there also when Larry was inaugurated. It felt very different this time, and not just because of the helicopters and the security and the fear that marked Larry's inaguration --so close to 9/11-- but because in general yesterday it felt like an academic had been restored to the position of President and that she understood academic values and what Universities are about. There was not that same sense with Larry's inaguration.

Give Drew and break for a little while. It sounds as if you're pissed that she has not returned your calls. She probably will in time, just let her show what she is about. Why don't you pick on Bollinger a little for a change?
 

Richard,

I was there at her inauguration. Te tone of the entire event was inspiring, pure Harvard. It was not just Drew's speech, the african drummers, the sanjeet from India, the whole ritual was very well planned. Down to the speech of the undergraduate claiming for more power to the students or the the speech by the Governor inviting the President to lean forward and lean. It was simply very uplifting, very Harvard, very inspiring. I wish you could have been there, you would have enjoyed it and appreciated the ritual.

I was there also when Larry was inaugurated. It felt very different this time, and not just because of the helicopters and the security and the fear that marked Larry's inaguration --so close to 9/11-- but because in general yesterday it felt like an academic had been restored to the position of President and that she understood academic values and what Universities are about. There was not that same sense with Larry's inaguration.

Give Drew and break for a little while. It sounds as if you're pissed that she has not returned your calls. She probably will in time, just let her show what she is about. Why don't you pick on Bollinger a little for a change?
 

Yes, great post, Richard, and well done for revising thus. Being there put blood into the speech that you could only read in print (where I maintain it was also excellent). 8:20 is right, and the fact is that DF is energizing all sorts of forces that will take the place in all sorts of good directions, some of them already in the works, some new. That will make your job duller, maybe, ours much more appealing.

Uh oh, Indians 1-0 in first. GO SOX!
 

You know who was terrific? Amy Gutmann. What a speaker. She shared quite a bold vision for the challenges of universities. She was the right choice to introduce Drew --and perhaps it did not escape the members of the Corporation listening in that she could be a wonderful successor for Drew one day, say in a decade.
 

Interesting post, 8:20. Thanks for writing.
 

And as has been previously mentioned on this blog, by RB and others, Amy Gutmann is hot!
 

SE, You're a goofball.
 

Richard's hot. Loving this post. Says lots about him. It's why I read this blog.
 

Amy Guttman will be 67 in a decade, so probably not a great candidate to succeed Drew Faust, who will be 69.
 

Thanks, 9:52. With feedback like that, you can pretty much tell me what to write.....
 

I watched the webcast of Drew's speech in my office (I had had enough of the rain to remain standing out in the Yard) and I was deeply impressed by her overall approach. She was pretty smart to keep her inaugural speech on a higher plane. Her honeymoon may end soon, but Friday it just felt good to have her at Harvard.

I enjoyed Amy Gutmann's opening gag [to paraphrase: "Harvard, for the first time in 371 years, has chosen as its leader, a .... Southerner. "] but I thought her insights on higher ed were pretty banal (global competitiveness, blah, blah, blah), especially compared with Drew's thoughtful and more philosophical comments.
 

i agree, Amy's hot and so it Richard
 

Faust's speech was inspiring but the quality of undergraduate education still presents a question. It will take more than lip service to improve it and i hope this president takes a serious look and makes some changes.
 

This President will probably do as much as any President can do: trust the faculty, respect them, return governance of the University to them, and hold them accountable for their actions.

Contrast this with the paradigm in place until recently: Do not trust the faculty, disrespect them, take away university governance from faculty and make them unaccountable for their actions.

Do you want to guess which paradigm works best to improve undergraduate education?