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Dirks' inauguration: How to join the festivities, in person or online

By Public Affairs

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UC Berkeley will mark the official beginning of a new chapter in its history as Nicholas Dirks is inaugurated as the campus’s 10th chancellor this Friday, Nov. 8.

Registration for the inaugural processions is now closed, but general seating is still available for the ceremony, which starts at 3 p.m. in Zellerbach Auditorium and is open to the public. To obtain tickets, go to the Cal Performances box office, whose weekday hours are noon to 5:30 p.m. Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis, while supplies last.

Chancellor Dirks

Chancellor Nicholas Dirks

Symposia speakers

The daylong celebration begins with inaugural symposia focusing on three issues central to Dirks’ agenda as chancellor: undergraduate education, the role of the global university, and innovation and its relationship to basic and applied research. These discussions, featuring prominent scholars from Berkeley and other institutions, run from 9 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., in International House, Chevron Auditorium.

The symposia are open to members of the UC Berkeley community with campus ID, as well as invited guests registered in advance. Entry is first-come, first-served.

The 9 a.m. session on undergraduate education will feature Hanna Gray, president emerita of the University of Chicago; Michael Roth, president of Wesleyan University; and three UC Berkeley faculty members — professor of poetry and former U.S. poet laureate Robert Hass, associate professor of African American studies Na’ilah Suad Nasir, and physics professor and Nobel laureate Saul Perlmutter.

Next, at 10 a.m., four scholars will look at the role of the global university: Columbia University president Lee Bollinger, along with UC Berkeley’s Nezar AlSayyad, professor of architecture, planning, urban design and urban history; George Breslauer, executive vice chancellor and provost; and Raka Ray, professor of sociology and South and Southeast Asia studies.

At 11 a.m., taking up the role of basic and applied research in innovation, will be Columbia University’s Peter Bearman, professor of social sciences, and Carol Becker, dean of faculty, School of Arts, along with four UC Berkeley scholars: Paul Alivisatos, director of Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; Dan Kammen, professor of energy and public policy; Professor Tsu-Jae King Liu of electrical engineering and computer sciences; and Shankar Sastry, dean of the College of Engineering.

Spirit and ceremony

The festivities will move downhill at midday, as the UC Rally Committee sponsors a high-octane spirit event on the Sproul Hall steps at 12:15 p.m. Inaugural processions into Zellerbach start at 3 p.m., followed by presentations and the tradition-laden investiture ceremony.

The proceedings in Zellerbach will be webcast on inauguration day. The feed will be available at the following web locations:

The final inaugural event, taking place Saturday, will be a tailgate party prior to the Cal-USC football game. The party will be held in Hearst North Field, adjacent to Hearst Gym, beginning 2.5 hours before kickoff, which is scheduled for noon.

For complete details, see the Inauguration website .