In a striking break with tradition, heavy rain soaks graduates and their families during Commencement exercises on June 6.

Geisinger Professor of History William C. Kirby assumed the post of dean of the Faculty on July 1, pledging comprehensive curricular reform with special attention to study abroad, international studies and science.

In his first major decision as dean, Kirby placed the Study Abroad Office under the jurisdiction of the dean of undergraduate education in August.

This move is intended to ease students’ efforts to make sure going abroad fits in with their academic plans.

Moving the Study Abroad Office was one of several recommendations for study abroad reform made in a March report co-authored by Kirby and William L. Fash, who is the chair of the Faculty Standing Committee on Study Out of Residence.

Only about 10 percent of Harvard undergraduates go abroad, a figure Kirby and others in the University hope to see increase.

“Our hope, simply put, was to reduce the perceived hindrances for students who wished to study abroad, and, in time, to make international study an important part of a Harvard education for a larger number of students,” Kirby wrote in an e-mail.

Crimson Key Loses Tour Privileges

The Office of Admissions and Financial Aid decided in August to assume full control over prospective student tours, displacing the Crimson Key Society as the exclusive admissions tour provider.

Byerly Hall will also begin to pay students who guide tours or greet guests at information sessions.

Director of Admissions Marlyn McGrath Lewis ’70-’73 said the changes, which were “on [her] mind for a number of years,” are being implemented in order to diversify the tour guide staff, to create greater accountability and coordination and to provide more job opportunities to students looking for work.

“We want to make sure we broaden the eligibility of becoming a tour guide for those who don’t make it a major extracurricular commitment,” she said. “We want to make sure a range of people get to conduct tours.”

In addition to diversifying the roster of tour guides, McGrath Lewis said that taking over guide selection will strengthen the admissions office’s coordination of tours. Feedback from visitors to Byerly Hall had indicated that tours were sometimes seen as redundant following information session presentations.

The planned adjustments to admissions tours have not sat well with Crimson Key leadership, who said they would have liked to play a larger role in formulating the changes.

“We haven’t really had a lot of chances to discuss them,” said Glen R. Curry ’03, president of the Crimson Key Society.

Curry and Crimson Key Vice President Brian J. Hayes ’03 were informed of the new planned changes at a meeting on Aug. 12 with Megan P. Basil ’98, an admissions officer and Byerly Hall’s liaison to the organization.