Jim Y. Kim, former president of Dartmouth and the current president of the World Bank, speaks at the Harvard Asian American Alumni Summit on Friday evening.

Hundreds of alumni returned to campusthis weekend to engage in a series of planned conversationsand build connections with fellow alumni and affiliates during the second Harvard Asian Alumni Summit, the first such meeting since 2010.

The summit, which featured prominent speakers and panelists of Asian descent affiliated with the University, was organized by the Harvard Asian American Alumni Alliance.

Jim Y. Kim, president of the World Bank and an alumnus of the Medical School and the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, opened the summit with an address that received a standing ovation. He recounted the experience of growing up as a Korean-American, being elected the president of Dartmouth College, and subsequently heading the World Bank.

There is no question that my friendships here, the classes I took here, and the people I met here had an absolutely unequivocal impact on my thinking that theres nothing that I or a team of us couldnt do, Kim said, referring to his years at Harvard.

Kim also urged the U.S. government to devote more resources to improving the quality of the educational system and learn from Asian countries such as South Korea.

Of all the countries Ive visited, we are not at the top ranks in terms of being serious and reflective about what our education system is producing, he said. The countries that get health care and education right will have a huge advantage in the future.

During a separate address on Saturday, Senior Fellow of the Harvard Corporation William F. Lee 72 remarked on how diversity at Harvard has increased dramatically since the Universitys founding.

Im quite sure that the Puritans who organized the Harvard Corporation back then didnt [foresee] the little Chinese Senior Fellow who is shorter that the woman President, Lee said. But thats what we have today. Its sign of great progress.

Lee also highlighted the significance of the $350 million gift from alumnus Gerald L. Chan to the School of Public Health that was announced in September. He added that, during the ceremony celebrating the donation, his mother and Chans connected for the first time and found out that they, grew up on the same street in Shanghai.

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Asian Alumni Reflect and Reconnect at Summit