As House Renewals Continue, Kirkland Residents Want Traditions But Fewer Rats

As the ongoing renovation of Harvard’s upperclassmen Houses shifts to River West, some Kirkland House residents said they want to preserve house traditions but lose the rats.

Harvard spokesperson Johnathan Palumbo wrote that though initial planning has not yet started for the House’s renewal, Kirkland is anticipated to begin renewal along with Eliot House.

When asked about the changes they would like to see in the renewal, many students said they wanted to get rid of pests and see improved facilities.

“I hope that there is a reduction in cockroach and rat infestations,” said Kirkland resident Tanav Choudhary ’26.

“There were mice in our dorm at some point,” Awa M. Jasseh ’25 said. “The windows are sometimes broken.”

“There was mold in our bathroom,” added her suitemate, Mallory E. Rogers ’25.

In a February interview with The Crimson, Kirkland Faculty Dean David J. Deming, a professor at the Harvard Kennedy School and Harvard Graduate School of Education, said collecting student feedback is a priority as Kirkland plans for renewal.

“We definitely hear from students about issues with the state of the house and we see those issues ourselves living in the house as we do,” Deming said. “We want our students to live in good conditions.

Deming attributed part of the drawn-out timeline with the House renewal project to an emphasis on historical preservation, adding that “we’re trying to preserve hundreds of years of history” with the renovation.

“It would be pretty easy to knock down all the houses at Harvard and build standard issue dorm rooms or build things without any character, and I wouldn’t support that,” he said.

While Deming said that the Kirkland renewal project is unlikely to begin until after the completion of Adams House in 2025, he added that there have been recent renovations to the House to improve student spaces.

Deming said he and fellow Faculty Dean Janine M. Santimauro successfully asked College administrators “to allocate extra funds to climate control our basement, because we didn’t have a lot of common spaces in Kirkland House, and that was really a place for students to be.”

Rogers praised the deans’ efforts to improve the basement, saying that they “have done a really good job of trying to make the basement a space everyone hangs out.”

Several residents said that the renovations would not detract from their love for Kirkland’s community.

“I am really happy with Kirkland right now and the renovation would not change my love for Kirkland,” said Seema Kumari ’25.

“The community’s the best part,” Jasseh said.

Deming agreed that he hoped the renovations would preserve the House’s character.

“I wouldn’t want to lose that — that distinct character of the Kirkland House,” Deming said.

—Staff Writer Danielle J. Im can be reached at danielle.im@thecrimson.com.

—Staff writer Jackson C. Sennott can be reached at jackson.sennott@thecrimson.com.