From the war in Vietnam to the war between Bird and Johnson in the 1987 National Basketball Association finals, this year's commencement speaker has covered it all.
Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author and personal friend of College President James Freedman, David Halberstam will address the Class of 1996 at today's commencement ceremony. Halberstam will be given an honorary doctor of letters degree.
"It's a great honor," Halberstam said in an interview with the Dartmouth. "Isn't it a nice thing to get an honorary degree from a man you esteem like Jim Freedman?"
Halberstam said he is eager to get in the school spirit.
"I can't wait to go out and buy a green blazer," he said.
Halberstam will bring a wealth of knowledge to the graduates.
Halberstam demonstrated his capabilities early in his career when he won the Pulitzer Prize for international reporting in 1964 for his coverage of the Vietnam war, according to a College press release.
He later worked as a staff member for The New York Times covering news in Vietnam, Warsaw, the Congo and New York City. Halberstam became a contributing editor of Harper's magazine in 1967.
Today Halberstam is best known as the author of more than a dozen books, including The Summer of '49 (1989), The Next Century, The Fifties (1993) and October 1964 (1994). His older works include The Best and The Brightest (1972), The Powers That Be (1979) and The Reckoning (1986), according to the press release.
Stephen Bosworth '61, who will replace John Rosenwald '52 as the Chair of The Board of Trustees after Commencement, said he thinks Halberstam was an excellent choice.
The Board of Trustees helps Freedman's office choose the Commencement speaker.
"He's a well known figure ... a well respected commentator," Bosworth said. "He's a well known commentator on issues that would be relevant to the personal affairs of graduating seniors."
Bosworth said he is a fan of Halberstam's books.
"The Best and The Brightest was the best work on Vietnam I've ever read," he said.
Freedman said Halberstam was an obvious choice for this year's commencement speaker.
"He's a person of outstanding achievement that the College can hold up to the students as an example," Freedman said. "He's been especially devoted to the public interest."
Rosenwald said Halberstam will be a fine speaker, who will have as powerful a message as President Bill Clinton even if he lacks Clinton's visibility.
"It's tough to top the President of the United States," Rosenwald said. But "I can't think of a better choice. It's a homerun for Dartmouth."
Halberstam said he will pose one question in an address he said he plans to keep brief.
The Commencement speech should be short because it is impossible to convince anyone to change their ways in a single speech, he said.
"You can not save those who are already getting close to a life of crime," he added.
Halberstam declined to reveal what topic he will address.
But Freedman said he knows what Halberstam plans to talk about. He said Halberstam may discuss the question, "What do we mean by the pursuit of happiness?"
"I know that's on his mind," Freedman said.
Halberstam said he sees his address as only part of a day-long celebration.
"This day's not about [the commencement speaker]," he said. "It's about X number of graduates."
College graduates are always close to Halberstam's heart, since he has written about education in some of his books.
In his book, The Next Century, Halberstam pinpointed the failures in our nation's educational systems, according to New York Times reviewer Bill Bradley.
Bradley wrote, Halberstam "sees we are practicing 'the politics of anxiety and uncertainty rather than the politics of confidence' and urges us to judge ourselves by our own norms of what 'a harmonious and decent society should be.'"
Halberstam told The Dartmouth, "We're going into an economy where muscle has been replaced by intelligence."
"If we do not make strides, 30 to 40 percent [of the population] would be excluded," he said.
Halberstam said Freedman's presidency has brought the College meaningful intellectual leadership.
"[Freedman is] a man who symbolizes the best of a spirit of a liberal education," he said. "He's trying to use education to make more complete citizens."
"You're not just supposed to get a degree and go out and maximize your wealth," Halberstam said. "This is not just education that will guarantee you a slot on Wall Street or acceptance into a law school."
He said that he and Freedman have discussed the purpose of education in today's social and political climate. He said the two share a common outlook.
"We have similar hopes," Halberstam said. "We have a similar reading list." Halberstam noted that Freedman is fond of his book, The Summer of '64, about the professional baseball teams, the Yankees and the Redsocks.
"I especially liked the Summer of '64," Freedman said.
Halberstam said he and Freedman both seek answers to questions like, "What is education and citizenship, education and the obligation to the individual."
"These are not easily answered questions," he said.
Halberstam said he appreciates the opportunity to address Dartmouth's graduates this year.
"It's a very nice vindication of a life," he said. "It's very moving for me."
"You're talking to someone that did not go to graduate school, who was not a good student at school," Halberstam said.
Halberstam finished his undergraduate education at Harvard in 1955.
Halberstam said he sees his Commencement address as a unique opportunity for reflection and introspection.
"When you are asked to do something like this, you see yourself very early at 17 going off to College and at 21 leaving school, and you see a clear portrait of your immigrant grandparents and your parents," he said.
"It has vindicated the life of those that supported you," he said.
Halberstam has a special insight into the Dartmouth experience.
In preparation for his book on competitive rowing, The Amateurs (1985), Halberstam studied the Ivy League sport and spent time on our own Connecticut river.
"I was up at Dartmouth a lot that year," he said. "It's a wonderful place. It has the luxury of being small and a great university."
Halberstam said his visit to the College was one of the nicest times of his life.
Dartmouth keeps getting better, he said.
"Every year the pole vault yard goes up," he said.
"The level of accomplishment goes up every year for Dartmouth," he explained.
Halberstam said he has spoken at two other college commencement ceremonies this spring and holds a number of honorary degrees from various schools.