The scene at Annenberg Hall last night seemed pretty ordinary. Domna was at her usual station at the checker's desk, and the tables were filled with chatting diners.

But the diners were a little bit shorter than usual.

A crowd of prospective prefrosh, perhaps; but they probably won't be moving into Hollis and Holworthy for quite a few years.

The tables were lined with the children of alumni returning to Harvard for their 25th reunion. And most of them seem to be having as much fun visiting Harvard as their parents.

Last night, the Loker Commons coffeehouse, normally reserved for marathon coffee drinkers studying for upcoming chemistry exams, was transformed into a colorful dance party for six and seven yearolds.

"It's been a lot of fun, and the kids are having a really great time. This is a really great program they have set up," said Eli Ceryak '99, one of the students working in child care during reunions.

Most of the children, skeptical of stuffy "grown-up" events, are now also converts.

"I didn't want to come at first because I thought it was all going to be boring parent stuff," said Emily Gische, 11. "But it's really fun now."

In addition, the kids visiting the campus seem to appreciate the little things about Harvard life students overlook. These kids like sleeping in. SANSKRITing him an academic who could not relate well with others.

Speaking with Witzel in his cluttered office, one is surrounded by a pile of books. He sits in the office with the lights turned off.

A graduate student, who requested anonymity, called the native of Poland a "tyrant."

"Witzel brought old European school attitudes," the student said. "The chair as tyrant. He could never adjust to the wider, more democratic, American approach."

When asked if he ran his department with a heavy hand, Witzel responded with a discussion of leadership styles.

One's outlook on a chair, Witzel said, "depends upon your individual perspective." Witzel, who was educated in West Germany, saw his chairs as "father figures."

Witzel, by all accounts, takes his academic pursuits seriously.

"[Witzel] is flexible if you work with him one-on-one," said a student who requested anonymity. "You have to come up with your own game plan, but he's very creative."