Building Community

Every fall, students and faculty from around the world reconvene in Cambridge to form what is termed “the Harvard community.”

But community is something with which Harvard has struggled, especially at the undergraduate level. Students and administrators alike have decried the lack of community, the latter group encouraging us to “slow down” and form bonds with each other. Yet simple remonstrations have failed, so it is time to look again at how Harvard can support a strong undergraduate community, what has worked and what needs work. We will be using this space this week to explore ways that we can improve the undergraduate community at Harvard, the way that collaboration between students and administrators can help secure a stronger union.

It is a truism to state that Harvard students face a unique challenge in creating community. Our individual strengths often translate into a collective weakness; students pursuing individual excellence don’t think of community outside of their extracurriculars or academic interests. But this tendency does not preclude our social success; we all long for a community to live and work within, and given the opportunity, we can achieve a strong and supportive student collective.

Where the Harvard administration has failed in the past in its efforts to build community has been in its methods, not in its goals. Administrators prone to unilaterally legislating change will fail at tending to an organic network. Community is organic, it is a fluid collection of sentiments and actions bringing individuals together, providing support and inspiration. Community cannot be mandated; it must be encouraged. Students must be involved in the process of community-building, especially as they bear much of the responsibility for making it vibrant. A community effort will fail if it does not consult and involve its members.

With this in mind, it is space that students most often cite when asked what the Harvard community lacks. They don’t have space to hang out, space to meet in groups, space to engage in social activities. Confined spaces, restrictive inter-House regulations and painfully early party hours all contribute to a sense of alienation and fragmentation. Without the opportunity to form community, students necessarily fail to do so.

Since it is space that community needs if it is to flourish, the most pressing need is for a student center. We have urged such a community space before, but in the context of community-building the need is most strongly evident. A student center would give students a place to congregate, relax and play, as well as hold extracurricular meetings and events. Currently the only common space for all undergraduates is the dark and dismal warren known as Loker. Tomorrow we will be addressing not only how the administration and students can work together to bring a student center to life, but also how we can immediately make Loker a more welcoming and useful space for student activity.

A student center is the first and most important step towards a stronger community. However, it is in the Houses that we are often told we will find the support and resources a community should provide. On Thursday we will address ways to improve House community and residential living in general.

Moreover, because it is in the first few months of school that communities are established, the first-year experience is vital to community building. To that end, we will propose a new system of first-year advising—a system that has already reached most colleges around the country.

Finally, we will dedicate Friday to exploring immediate solutions; ways in which we can quickly and effectively build community this year, while laying the foundations for the dramatic changes ahead.

Humans, even Harvard students, have a fundamental need for social relations. College is a stressful and challenging place. Often students feel alone, unsupported and disconnected. Counseling services and mental health resources are helpful, but a supportive community can do much to prevent depression and loneliness. This series is dedicated to the idea that Harvard students, when brought together, form a strong, thoughtful and creative collective.

Indeed, we have already seen how resilient our community can be in the immediate aftermath of the Sept. 11 attacks. Our community buoys up us all in times of stress. In the days, weeks and years ahead, we must prove that our community is strong not only in times of crisis, but also periods of calm; supportive to individuals facing desperate situations as well as common ailments. We are, after all, all in this community together.