At Harvard, an intimate commencement

Surrounded by family and dorm mates, 135 graduates living in Dunster House received their diplomas and listened to parting words of wisdom from their house master, Roger Porter, a business and government professor who - along with his wife, Ann, known for her homemade cookies - live with the students and serve as de facto parents for many.

It was a resplendent scene, unfolding beneath a white tent in the leafy courtyard of the red-brick dorm. Through the wrought-iron gates behind the seated graduates, spectators could see boats cruise by on the Charles. A historic bell tower rises from the center of the house, built in 1930.

After Porter urged graduates to focus on others, rather than on their own comforts, in their lives and careers, Carlos Diaz-Rosillo, a doctoral student in government who was also graduating yesterday, implored the graduates to remember to give back in exchange for what they have been given.

He also injected some sobering words to the joyous occasion: "A diploma, even a Harvard diploma, is not necessarily the passport to a job."

Not surprisingly, given the sour economy, fewer graduates are leaving Harvard this year with a job offer. The number of students intending to work who already have jobs fell from 66 percent last year to 59 percent, according to a recent survey of the senior class by The Harvard Crimson.

The economic crisis has forced many graduates to find a silver lining, an opportunity to explore their passions and not just fall into what seemed comfortable or expected, like clamoring for the large paychecks of Wall Street. Only about a fifth of the class sought jobs in finance and consulting, compared to nearly half of graduates two years ago, the survey said. Instead, more students are turning to graduate school and work in education and healthcare.

Harvard President Drew G. Faust, who traded in the 17th century Unitarian gown she wore in the morning processional for a bright yellow blazer and black slacks to deliver her afternoon speech, urged graduates to become the architects of change.

Last fall, "financial markets were in turmoil, venerable firms began to fall, and we watched trillions of dollars of wealth disappear around the globe," Faust said. "Nine months later, we inhabit a new world, one of changing structures, assumptions, and values, as well as changed resources.

"Change can happen to us - or through us," she said. "We must ask ourselves what it is we want to be on the other side of recession and crisis."

Similarly, Harvard, as a nearly 400-year-old institution, must do the same, she said.

Faust reaffirmed the university's commitment to making Harvard accessible to students of all income levels and the importance of finding new ways to support and afford scientific research. And she injected a moral conscience into the mission of the university.

"The privilege of academic freedom carries the obligation to speak the truth, even when it is difficult or unpopular," she said. "So in the end, it comes back to veritas, the commitment to use knowledge and research to penetrate delusion, cant, prejudice, self-interest."

In his speech, US Energy Secretary Steven Chu warned that "if the world continues on a business-as-usual path," the resulting climate change "will be so rapid that many species, including humans, will have a hard time adapting."

"The climate problem is the unintended consequence of our success," said the physicist and Nobel laureate. "Energy is a fundamental reason for the prosperity we enjoy, and we will not surrender this prosperity. . . . Can we, as a world society, meet our responsibility to future generations?"

The service for the nation's oldest university was filled with historical touchstones, but also with a rousing flourish of jazz: Honorary degree recipient Wynton Marsalis, a trumpet master, opened the morning ceremony with a stirring rendition of "America the Beautiful" and capped the event with a toe-tapping version of "When the Saints Go Marching In."

Chris Clayton, who earned a bachelor's degree in sociology yesterday, said Faust's comments were "right on point." The financial crisis "definitely shook everybody up," said the 23-year-old, recounting a nervous semester that classmates just spent hunting for jobs that were not there.

"Everybody was stressed out. Nothing was guaranteed. It's making all of us look closely at our decisions and what our motivations are," said Clayton, who will found a Web startup in Harvard Square.

Diaz-Rosillo called each student to the small platform beneath the noontime sun. Porter awarded their diploma, shook hands, and sent graduates across the stage to his wife for a hug and a small envelope.

Inside was a signed card, printed on Dunster House stationery, from the house masters expressing their love and admiration of the graduates. Attached was a gold pin with the Dunster House shield of three elk antlers.

Then, the new graduates tucked into basil grilled chicken and herb-marinated asparagus, what would be their last meal at Dunster.

Tracy Jan can be reached at tjan@globe.com.