Remarks at Awarding of the Radcliffe Medal to Neil Rudenstine September 26, 2024 As Delivered Drew Gilpin Faust It is a wonderful privilege to have this opportunity to pay tribute a person who changed the shape of Harvard University – – not to mention my own life. In the last years of his presidency,…
“Free and Brave:” Defending Universities and the Rule of Truth
Phi Beta Kappa Oration, Harvard University, May 21, 2024 , Drew Gilpin Faust I am honored to be here today celebrating your achievements and grateful for this opportunity to speak after 11 years of silence at these Literary Exercises—sitting where President Garber is right now. And I am honored to join a long line of…
Remarks at the Inauguration of Jonathan L. Walton
Princeton Theological Seminary As delivered. I am honored to stand before you on this signal day and to play a part in marking the installation of Jonathan Lee Walton as the 8th president of Princeton Theological Seminary. It was my great privilege to work closely with Jonathan at Harvard for seven years, so I know…
Slavery and the Past and Future of Southern Intellectual History
Keynote Address for the meeting of the Southern Intellectual History Colloquium University of Miami, March 3, 2023, Drew Gilpin Faust It is a great pleasure to be here with you, and I want to thank my former colleague, President Julio Frenk for his generous hospitality, and my former student, Michael Bernath for inviting me…
Remembering Not to Forget: Reflections on the Last Half Century of Women at Penn
Phoebe S. LeBoy Lecture, University of Pennsylvania, October 25, 2022, Drew Gilpin Faust It is a real pleasure to be back at Penn and to be speaking in honor and memory of Phoebe LeBoy. Phoebe was a force, a figure in Penn’s history whose service and commitment profoundly changed the landscape for women at the…
Humility, Hope, and the Work of Becoming Educated
A Talk Prepared for the Series “What Does it Mean to be Educated?” Brigham Young University, March 2021, Drew Gilpin Faust During our first week of college in 1964, my freshman class gathered in a cavernous auditorium designed to look like a medieval hall to hear an address from the college president. The ceremony was…
Making History: The Huntington Library and the Civil War
February 26 and 27, 2020, Drew Gilpin Faust I am honored to be here and to join the long and distinguished line of Founder’s Day speakers celebrating the birthday and the genius of Henry Edwards Huntington. My predecessors in this role have included an array of scholars, political leaders, museum and library directors, as well…
Remarks at Inauguration of Robert W. Iuliano
Gettysburg College As delivered. Thank you, Provost Zappe. Chair Brennan, President Iuliano, Faculty, Students, Staff, Friends of Gettysburg College and of higher education – I am delighted to be part of this important occasion. I am myself a graduate of a Pennsylvania liberal arts college – one founded a half century later than yours –…
Remarks at University of Miami Commencement
May, 9, 2019, Drew Gilpin Faust It is a great pleasure for me to be here today to celebrate your achievements and to send you on your way into the world that awaits you. But even as we honor you, let us begin by recognizing that no one does this alone. Let us thank the…
Remarks at Inauguration of President James Ryan, University of Virginia
October 19, 2018, Drew Gilpin Faust Governor Northam, Rector Connor, Faculty, staff, students, distinguished guests I am deeply honored to be here and to be included in this signal occasion at this great university. I am also glad to be back in Virginia. I grew up here, on a farm on the Shenandoah River up…