Faust keeps focus on Radcliffe in farewell address
Outgoing dean mum on Harvard
CAMBRIDGE -- In three weeks, she will become the 28th president of Harvard University. But yesterday, as she bid adieu to Radcliffe in front of hundreds of alumnae at the annual Radcliffe Day luncheon, Drew G. Faust did not so much as mention her new job.
In her brief "state of the Institute" remarks, she focused entirely on Radcliffe, the former women's college she built into a small but elite fellowship program, the Radcliffe Institute for Advanced Study, in her six years as dean.
She thanked the alumnae for helping her pull off that task.
Ever the historian, Faust quoted Radcliffe's second president, Le Baron Russell Briggs, who called the women's college "an experiment in faith."
And Faust promised not to forget her allegiance to the institution that has so often been overshadowed by the larger university.
"My commitment to this experiment in faith will remain unfaltering," she said. "I have loved being Radcliffe's dean."
Faust looked close to tears when the audience, gathered under a breezy tent in Radcliffe Yard, gave her a standing ovation.
Faust presented the Radcliffe Institute Medal to author Toni Morrison.
Morrison spoke about the importance of the humanities to society and about how crucial reading and writing have been in her own life.
Mary R. Maguire, a 1943 alumna who lives in Cambridge, said she appreciated that Faust spoke only about Radcliffe and not the Harvard presidency, which she assumes July 1.
"It shows a certain decorum," Maguire said. "She wasn't impressing us with, 'Look, I'm now the president.' "
Bombardieri can be reached at bombardieri@globe.com. 