Letters & Writings

A Lesson from BU’s 150th Commencement

On May 21 I officiated at my 18th and final Commencement ceremony as president of Boston University. It was an unruly affair. David Zaslav, president and CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery and our alumnus, More

My Reflections after 18 Years as BU President

After 18 years as president of Boston University, Robert A. Brown will step down on July 31. In 1936 the novelist F. Scott Fitzgerald wrote for Esquire magazine in his essay “The Crack-Up,” “the test... More

State of the University, Spring 2023

March 23, 2023 Dear Colleagues, As has been my custom each spring, I am writing to update you on the state of the University. As this letter will be my last as your president, I want... More

Humanitarian Crisis in Turkey and Syria

February 13, 2023 Dear Friends, It has been heart-wrenching to read about and see the scenes of destruction resulting from the devastating earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on February 6. The scale of loss of... More

State of the University, Fall 2022

October 14, 2022 Dear Colleagues, We are approaching the halfway point of the fall semester, and to date we have had a very encouraging start. Even with COVID-19 still present, our highly vaccinated (and boosted) community... More