![Swartz Hall window ](/sites/g/files/omnuum5526/files/styles/hwp_21_9__1920x825/public/2025-05/SpringCampus-Baner.jpg?itok=VibrI-Al) # Dean Frederick’s Message on Commencement May 27, 2025 Dear members of the HDS community, As the academic year draws to a close and Commencement approaches, I want to take a moment to express my heartfelt appreciation for each of you. These past couple of years have been unlike any other at Harvard and at HDS. I am deeply grateful for your resilience, care, and commitment to our shared journey. In my full first year as Dean of HDS, my goal was to listen and learn from you. I have heard powerful stories of how our community comes together and thoughtful suggestions for how we might better live our values. Thank you for your honesty, compassion, and willingness to engage. Commencement is a time of celebration to honor all that we have achieved collectively and individually, with friends and family present. I share my gratitude to every member of our community working incredibly hard to make this a meaningful and memorable day. As you may be aware, concerns have been raised about one of this year’s class marshals. Marshals are chosen through a democratic, student-led process; members of the graduating class nominate and vote for their peers, and the three individuals receiving the most votes are selected. At Commencement, their roles are primarily ceremonial. They escort the graduating class to and from Harvard Yard. At HDS, we have a long tradition of honoring student voices in the preparation of our Commencement exercises—and this selection process is one example of student participation, with no influence from faculty and leadership. Some members of the community have expressed discomfort with the outcome of this process. I acknowledge these feelings and appreciate the raising of these concerns. Democratic processes can be complex; they can result in representation that does not reflect every individual’s perspective. Yet, part of our shared commitment is to respect these processes and their outcomes. As a multireligious community with a rich diversity of lived perspectives and beliefs, we share a common goal to hold our community together even in difficult moments of uncertainty and division. As I expressed [in my message](https://www.hds.harvard.edu/news/2025/04/29/dean-frederick-release-university-task-force-reports) following the release of the University’s task force reports on antisemitism and anti-Israeli bias and anti-Muslim, anti-Arab, and anti-Palestinian bias, combatting all forms of bias is integral to realizing our shared vision at HDS. We have taken steps towards this future together, including searches nearing completion for new faculty in modern Jewish thought and in Islamic studies, along with the building of a Jewish Leadership Initiative and a Muslim Ministry Initiative. Additionally, we will continue to increase our capacity for dialogue across difference. I acknowledge there is more work to be done, and we are resolved to continue these essential efforts. As part of our culture of belonging, Commencement is meant to be a welcoming, unifying occasion. It is an opportunity to come together in celebration across religious, cultural, and political boundaries. I look forward to celebrating your achievements with you, your families, and your loved ones in the days to come. Thank you for being a cherished member of the HDS community. Sincerely, ![signature](/sites/g/files/omnuum5526/files/2025-04/Frederick-Signature-w312_0.jpg) Marla F. Frederick, PhD Dean of Harvard Divinity School John Lord O’Brian Professor of Divinity Professor of Religion and Culture Professor of African and African American Studies (FAS)