By Globe Staff

Brandeis University has appointed a noted medical researcher to be its next provost, the second-ranking member of the administration. In his new role, Steve Goldstein will not be starting from scratch on the Waltham campus: He received his bachelor's and master's degrees from the college.

Goldstein, a professor of pediatrics at the University of Chicago Pritzker School of Medicine and director of the Institute of Molecular Pediatric Sciences, succeeds Marty Krauss, who announced last summer that he would step down this month after eight years in the post.

“Steve’s distinguished academic and professional record, his deep affection for Brandeis, and his powerful intellect will help to shape the future of the university for years to come,” Brandeis President Fred Lawrence said in a statement.

Brandeis isn't Goldstein's only previous link to the Boston area. The New York City native earned a medical degree and a doctorate in immunology from Harvard, and he did his pediatric internship, residency and a clinical fellowship in pediatric cardiology at Children’s Hospital Boston.

He is a leading authority on the molecular mechanisms underlying normal cardiac function and sudden life-threatening diseases of the heart, Brandeis said.

Saal Lab/Brown University

In samples of lunar soil from Apollo 17, scientists found crystals that surround molten rock, allowing them to analyze the water content of the moon's interior.

By Carolyn Y. Johnson, Globe Staff

It's long been accepted that the moon is dry. No oceans wash its Swiss cheese surface, and lunar rocks and soil samples collected by Apollo astronauts 40 years ago bolstered the case the moon was an arid place.

But a paper published today challenges that notion -- and the findings emerged from a summer research project that Westwood native Thomas Weinreich worked on after his freshman year at Brown University, when he painstakingly sorted through thousands of grains of moon dust.

Weinreich wasn't strictly following orders. He had been asked to pick out orange glass beads from lunar soil samples taken from the moon during Apollo 17, almost two decades before he was born. As he became more familiar with looking at the fine grains under the microscope, he also began to use his tweezers to sift out something else that caught his attention -- a handful of tiny crystals flecked with black spots.

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John Tlumacki/Globe Staff/

A student's mortarboard carried a message of determination at Northeastern University's graduation last spring.

By Globe Staff

It's spring, so that means plenty of pomp and circumstance is just around the corner. Here is a rundown of commencement plans so far of private colleges around the state. For additions, updates, or corrections to this list, please e-mail Katherine Landergan.

Amherst College
Sunday, May 22, on the college's main quadrangle
Speaker: President Anthony W. Marx
Expected number of graduates: 483
Degrees awarded: Bachelor of Arts
Honorary degree recipients: John Abele ’59, founder of the Boston Scientific Corp.; Adam Falk, president of Williams College; Andrew Kendall ’83, president of the nonprofit Trustees of Reservations; Christine Lagarde, Minister of Economy, Finance and Industry for France; Gail Kern Paster, outgoing director of the Folger Shakespeare Library; Paul Volcker, former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank; Alice Waters, chef and restaurateur; and Kimmie Weeks ’05, founder and director of Youth Action International

Anna Maria College
Saturday, May 14, 10 a.m., Hanover Theatre in Worcester
Speaker: Sr. Rita Larivée, General Superior of the Sisters of Saint Anne, in Lachine, Calif.
Expected graduates: 388
Degrees: Associate of Science in Nursing; Associate of Science in Business; Bachelor of Arts; Bachelor of Music; Bachelor of Science in Business Administration; Bachelor of Science in Computer Information; Bachelor of Science in Criminal Justice; Bachelor of Science in Fire Science; Bachelor of Science in Nursing; Bachelor of Science in Sport Management; Master of Arts in Counseling Psychology; Master of Arts in Pastoral Ministry; Master of Business Administration; Master of Education; Master of Public Administration; Master of Science in Criminal Justice; Master of Science in Emergency Management; Master of Science in Justice Administration

Babson College
Saturday, May 14, at 10 a.m. at the Upper Athletic Fields at Babson College
Speaker: Biz Stone, Twitter co-founder
Honorary degrees: Stone; William Drayton, founder and CEO of Ashoka

Bay Path College
Sunday, May 15, at 3 p.m., MassMutual Center in Springfield
Speaker: Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn of Thailand
Expected graduates: 650
Degrees: Associate in Arts, Associate in Science, Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Master of Business Administration, Master of Science, Master of Occupational Therapy
Honorary degrees: Dr. William L. Sipple, former Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs for Bay Path College; Paige Turco '87, alumna and television and screen actress; and David and Peggy Starr, Springfield, Mass. community leaders

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(Wendy Maeda/Globe Staff)

UMass Boston Chancellor J. Keith Motley bestowed an honorary degree on Victoria Reggie Kennedy during the college's commencement last spring.

By Globe Staff

The tassel’s worth the hassle – Anonymous.

Massachusetts shines during college graduation season: Happy (and relieved) parents flock to the state from all corners to mark the milestone; students reflect as speakers from the worlds of business, politics, and the arts impart nuggets of wisdom.

Here is a list of commencement plans by the state's public colleges and universities. For updates or additions to this list, e-mail Jenna Duncan.

Berkshire Community College
Friday, June 3, at 4:30 p.m., Tanglewood Music Center, Lenox
Speaker: Mark Orlowski, BCC graduate, founder and executive director of Sustainable Endowments Institute
Expected graduates: 300
Degrees: Associate of Arts, Associate of Science

Bridgewater State University
Saturday, May 14, at 10:30 a.m. at the Boyden Quadrangle
Speaker: Joan Wallace-Benjamin, president and CEO of The Home for Little Wanderers
Expected graduates: 1,000
Degrees: Bachelor of Arts, Bachelor of Science, Bachelor of Science in Education
Honorary degrees: Wallace-Benjamin

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By Jenna Duncan, Globe Correspondent

Katie Couric, who only recently announced that she will step down as the anchor of the CBS Evening News, will be this year's commencement speaker at Boston University.

Couric will deliver the address May 22 and receive an honorary Doctor of Humane Letters, university officials announced today at the annual Senior Breakfast.

Couric, 54,has been the anchor of the show since September 2006. She was the first female solo anchor of a weekday network evening news broadcast, earning $15 million annually. Before she joined the CBS team, she served as co-anchor of NBC News’s Today Show for 15 years.

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By Neal Riley, Globe Correspondent

Worcester Polytechnic Institute has invited a “counter-speaker” to Graduation Day after some students vowed to walk out on a commencement speech by the chief executive of ExxonMobil Corp., a college spokeswoman said.

Richard Heinberg, a senior fellow of the Post Carbon Institute, will speak after the May 14 graduation ceremony, during which seniors will hear a speech from Exxon CEO Rex Tillerson and then receive their diplomas, WPI spokeswoman Eileen Mell said.

Students who leave during Tillerson’s speech will be allowed to return to get their diplomas after previously being told in an e-mail that they would not be allowed to reenter the ceremony because of logistical problems, Mell said.

By Matt Rocheleau, Town Correspondent

A statewide college association says that Massachusetts legislation that aims to make the financial handlings of private colleges and universities more transparent is “needless” and would harm private education.

The bill is driven by a report released last spring that examined six area schools, including five in and around Boston.

The report, issued by the Center for Social Philanthropy at Boston-based Tellus Institute and partially funded by the Service Employees International Union, says some non-profit, tax-exempt higher education institutions were involved in high-finance-style practices that contributed to the global financial crisis.

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By Jenna Duncan, Globe Correspondent

Alan M. Garber, a Harvard College alumnus who is a professor at Stanford University, will become Harvard University’s next provost, officials announced today.

Garber will succeed Steven E. Hyman, who has held the post since December 2001 and will leave the post at the end of the academic year and remain on the faculty.

Over the summer, President Drew Faust said she would oversee all academic functions until Garber starts Sept. 1.

By Jenna Duncan, Globe Correspondent

US Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood will deliver the commencement address at Boston College's graduation ceremony next month, the college announced today.

In addition, LaHood will receive an honorary doctor of public administration degree from BC. The commencement exercises are scheduled for May 23 in Alumni Stadium at 10 a.m.

LaHood was named the 16th secretary of transportation in January 2009. He previously served as a seven-term Republican congressman from Illinois.

Harvard University announced last month that President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf of Liberia would be the principal speaker at its 360th commencement May 2.

By John R. Ellement, Globe Staff

A UMass-Boston student was terrorized in her Dorchester apartment Wednesday night by three men who forced their way in and demanded marijuana they believed was stashed in her roommate’s bedroom, Boston police said.

The 19-year-old woman told police that a man knocked on her door on South Point Drive and told her that “Josh asked me to get his basketball shorts for him.’’

Seconds later, police said, the man pushed his way inside and grabbed her, putting his hand across her mouth. He forced her back into the apartment and at least two other men followed the first attacker inside, police said.

"'Where's Josh’s room? Where’s the weed?'" the man demanded of the woman, according to police. "'Where’s the weed?'"

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