J.K. Rowling will be the principal speaker at the Harvard Commencement ceremony June 5, 2008. The Harry Potter author will be featured at the prestigious university’s 357th graduation ceremony this summer in Cambridge, Massachusetts and will also receive an honorary degree. The president of Harvard said:
“Perhaps no one in our time has done more than J.K. Rowling to inspire young people to experience the excitement and the sheer joy of reading,” said President Drew Faust. “Her tales of Harry, Ron, and Hermione and their Hogwarts adventures have cast a spell on millions of readers around the world. Harvard isn’t exactly Hogwarts, but I’m sure that her visit with us next June will be a moment of magic for J.K. Rowling’s many admirers across the University.”
“It will be an honor and a thrill to welcome J.K. Rowling to Harvard,” said Jonathan Byrnes, president of the Harvard Alumni Association. “There are countless Harry Potter devotees throughout the Harvard family, and we look forward to warmly welcoming one of the world’s best-read authors to our Commencement festivities.”
Harvard University is renown for having some of the leading figures of our time speak at their graduation ceremony each year; a full list of past speakers can be found here.
I’m not sure how Harvard does it, but my university (Central Florida) gave each graduate 5 tickets to give to family/friends (it’s got a ton of students though). If that’s Harvard does it similarly, I’m sure we’ll see tickets for sale on Ebay, hehehe.
You know what sucks? My sister is graduating from Harvard this year but they only allow 2 tickets per student, which means I don’t get to go because my parents get the two tickets. They don’t even read Harry Potter! This is not fair.
Mandie, I think they give 2 tickets per student to the morning diploma ceremony but 4 tickets per student to the speaker in the afternoon. (Law students, of which I am one, get four students at any rate and I think the website said it’s the same across the board.) So doublecheck and you may get to go anyway!
Finn BV, unfortunately, Harvard has very tight security all around H. Yard on graduation day. And there will probably be extra measures because of Jo’s popularity. You either have to show a ticket or your student ID to get into the Yard – unless you’re in a graduation procession, of course.
Probably the best thing for fans to do is hang out in the pit near the T stop or maybe somewhere near the Science Center and hope to catch a glimpse of Jo…personally I want a picture of Jo in Annenberg Hall – it looks just like the Great Hall at Hogwarts!
Maybe she’ll do a reading at the Boston Public Library the weekend after…how great would that be?!!!
Why Harvard? Why didn’t Oxford or Cambridge ask for JK to speak? Have other schools been rejected by her or deferred to her sometime reticence to speak in public? No doubt she’ll give a fantastic address calling people – especially the often overindulged of Harvard – to use their lives in service and not just money making, or at least donate more. A good platform to speak from for that.
Nami, it was just announced, there’s no way you could have known!
Lou raises an interesting point…have any of the UK Universities …in particular the two big ones, Oxford and Cambridge…offered her similar honors? how about St Andrews or Edinburgh? For her to receive the honors from a US university first would speak volumes about the conservativism of the UK universities. Does anyone know if she has been so honored in the UK?
budb, I’m sure they must have offered. Even Emma Watson has spoken at Oxford, surely you’d ask Jo Rowling before you’d ask Emma Watson (lovely a girl as Emma is)?
I do know however that Jo has recieved honorary degrees from a couple of UK universities, can’t remember the names off the top of my head though.
MY GRADUATION!!!! I am so excited!!! They had this one under wraps for awhile, not saying anything. It’s going to be a mob in the square!!!! Well 4 years of higher learning payed off I guess. HAHAHAHAHA!!! Should be interesting can’t wait to see what she has to say.
cool! jo must have a lot of respect for Harvard or college students or both to come all the way to the states to speak for a commencement ceremony, but I guess it is a pretty big honor just to be asked! well those lucky students, not only do they get to go to Harvard they get to have the coolest person in the world speak at their commencement!!
just an fyi, it’s impossible to get into commencement if your not a harvard senior, professor, or one of a harvard senior’s 4 closest friends and relatives. they seriously lock down tercentenary theater (the yard where they hold graduation) for days before… but it will be broadcast live on the web, and posted afterwards (probably a few weeks after) on harvard’s website. as an added note, the house e-mail lists are buzzing about this right now, and i couldn’t believe it, but some students are actually angry at the choice of speakers. last year the two major speakers were bill gates and bill clinton, and people seem to expect politicians, world leaders, etc. i know it’s hard for us to believe, but people are genuinely mad . . . or else they could just be taking their finals anger out on Jo . . .
Joanne K. Rowling, OBE, was the commencement speaker at her Alma Mater, the University of Exeter, in 2000. At that time she received the Doctor of Letters (DLitt) degree.
"...of course, your examination results will reflect upon the headmistress's new regime at the school..."[br]Professor McGonagall gave a tiny sigh. Harry saw her sharp nose flare.[br]"However, that is no reason not to do your very best."
Interesting and slightly unexpected choice. Okay….