Harvard’s midyear graduates share lessons learned
When first-year students enter the gates of the Yard, most expect to walk out four years later as graduates. But, of course, life doesn’t always go as expected. Plans change as unforeseen challenges and opportunities arise. For many of the 117 students honored at Friday’s Midyear Graduates Recognition Ceremony, unexpected circumstances meant taking off a semester or more from Harvard before returning to finish their studies, while others were graduating early due to advanced standing. All were joined by faculty, friends, and family for a ceremony and reception at the Student Organization Center at Hilles, which included remarks by Danoff Dean of Harvard College Rakesh Khurana and lecturer on organismic and evolutionary biology Andrew Berry. Three of the graduates spoke with the Gazette about their Harvard journeys and what they learned from their time away from campus. Hanaa Masalmeh As a child in Portland, Ore., Hanaa Masalmeh would often search in her family’s pantry...