Mather House
Mather House Home
Mather is home to what Matherites would refer to as the best in-House community on campus. How do they do it, you may be wondering? With the help of none other than the wonderful Mather Faculty Deans Lakshminarayanan Mahadevan and Amala Mahadevan, of course. The Faculty Deans make it a point to be involved with the Mather community and events, developing tight-knit relationships with students and making humorous appearances in Mather’s Gorilla Gazette newspaper. “I would say that our Faculty Deans’ open houses are the best around. Maha and Amala have great taste in food. Cannot recommend [enough], like, showing up right at 8 so that you can get those mochi donuts,” said Matherite Nina Howe-Goldstein ’25. In fact, House Committee (HoCo) chair Olga Kerameos ’27 even claimed that “the Mather Faculty Deans are the reason that there’s now no cap on how many years a House can have a faculty dean for — they’re just that good!” Free food and wonderful vibes tells you all that you need to know about this lovely pair and House!
Matherites also know how to have fun. For real. I swear. They definitely aren’t forcing me to say this… The House is great at bringing people together through an exciting array of social events, throughout the year. The most revered of these events include the infamous famous Mather Lather (because nothing says “college experience” like a foam party with strangers in a dhall), and Mather Prom (yes, you get another wear out of that prom dress). On top of these events, Mather boasts many popular party spots on campus, including some renowned party suites and a Junior Common Room that is much loved by Matherites and is a coveted party spot for people outside of Mather, too. While most encounter the JCR after hours, in the daylight the room is equipped with its own ping-pong tables (yay), a kitchen, a piano, and a signed picture of
notable Mather alum, Conan O’Brian ’85.
At Home at the Jungle Top
One of the largest Houses at Harvard, Mather is home to around 400 students, all of whom live in singles. Yes, you heard that right — all of them! Sophomores typically live in the low-rise and have two-story suites of four to five singles off of a common room. Seniors and juniors can expect to live in the main, 19-story Mather tower and have their own huge singles. This means no more doubles, ever. Let that sink in. This almost makes up for the fact that the tower elevator only stops on floors that are multiples of three, for no logical reason. It’s essentially leg day every day; why go to the gym when you can live on the wrong healthiest floor of the tower? Within the buildings themselves, there have been consistent reports of great hot water, with phenomenal water pressure specifically in the low-rise suites, which is another huge win. That sounds like the perfect reward for climbing a long flight of stairs — I’d be lying if I said I wasn’t jealous.
As a true investigative reporter, I stopped by one of the low-rise suites to properly envision your future in Mather. There, I found a spacious common room with floor-to-ceiling windows overlooking Dunster House. By “overlooking,” I mean that you could literally reach out and touch it — that’s how close it is. (Does that mean it’s time for some parkour?) Heading further into the suite, I went down a set of stairs to find a set of two singles with a shared hallway, each equipped with vanity space and very generously sized closets. Now, your closet can finally accommodate some actual clothes and not just your collection of coats.
The room I visited was decked out in maximalist decor; this might make it seem like you’re trying too hard in other House’s, but Mather’s simple interiors allow you to go wild with decorating. Howe-Goldstein, one of the room’s residents, has loved accumulating art and posters throughout her time at Mather. Howe-Goldstein noted, “It’s easy to learn to love Mather…If you go into it thinking, ‘yes, I’m gonna love Mather, I’m gonna have a single, I’m gonna really embrace the brutalism and the, like, scrappy vibe’ — you’re actually gonna have a great time.”
Concrete Amenities
In addition to its multitude of singles, Mather boasts a horde of other amenities. Mather excels at the basics, with one of the largest gyms on campus and a triple-decker library. Moreover, what it lacks in red brick and moldings it makes up for with an abundance of spaces unique to the House. For starters, there is an intricate tunnel system — I may or may not have gotten lost trying to find my way out of the House — that lets Matherites traverse the House without ever stepping foot outside. In the winter, this is an enviable feature of life in the “concrete jungle,” allowing Matherites to stay indoors until they decide it’s warm enough to venture out; who wouldn’t want to be Harvard’s very own groundhog (Punxsutawney Lion, Punxsutawney Gorilla, perhaps)? In terms of themed rooms, fan favorites are the multimedia art room and a tranquility/yoga room for when you need to have a mid-midterms zen moment (or pre-midterms, or post-midterms — we don’t judge)
Most uniquely, Mather also has a series of arts rooms including, but not limited to, a pottery-making studio and wood-turning tables (both of which offer classes throughout the week), as well as numerous soundproof music practice rooms. Any hobby that sparks your interest, Mather has an outlet for! “Because we have so much concrete space, we decorate it with a lot of art,” said Kerameos. These colorful pieces of art, and an accompanying army
of plants, aid in making Mather feel slightly less desolate like an architecturally sophisticated but lived-in home. Couple that with copious skylights, floor-to-ceiling windows, and more plants than you can load into a pickup truck, and the space feels very bright and welcoming.
Of course, we can’t forget everyone’s favorite common space: the dhall. The Mather dhall serves as the hub for much of the activity within the House. Weekly pset nights, Happy Hours (known as steins in some Houses), and Faculty Dean open houses bring great food and a strong sense of community together in the House. The “hominess” of the Mather dhall makes it a central hangout space for most of the residents, and occasionally the resident House dogs — shoutout Donkey, Moose, and Marshmallow!
Getting Some Concrete Answers
Still not fully convinced? Hear more from HoCo chair Olga Karemeros ’27 (and Nina H. Goldstein ’25)!
If you had to describe Mather in 3 words what would they be?
OK: We’re artsy…green…and proud.
What are the Mather Faculty Deans like?
NHG: We love them. My concentration is nowhere near the sort of scientific stuff they’re doing, but that does not matter. They are the sweetest people; they really care about students.
Does Mather’s confusing layout get easier to navigate as you go?
NHG: It can be kind of hard to navigate, but once you sort of understand the pattern, because Mather is very pattern based, part of brutalist architecture… I would say that in many ways it’s actually easier to learn than some of the older neo-Georgian Houses.
If you had to liken your House to a fruit, what would it be and why?
OK: Something that’s ugly on the outside but good on the inside. What is that?
CFH: Like an avocado?
OK: That’s good. Maybe an avocado.
What is one thing that you want freshmen to know about your House?
OK: Mather is the kind of House where you’re glad that you have a single, but you also never want to stay in it because you want to be here in the dhall, meeting new people and interacting with all the other wonderful faces that we have here!
What is your favorite memory regarding the House?
OK: The trajectory of hating Mather the first time you get it… and then a couple of months later, you find yourself either in charge of the House or just eager to come back after a long way in this ugly yet very warm place, feeling like home only after a couple of months.
As you can see, once you get past its unique concrete exterior, Mather is a place you will never want to leave. Half of the battle is getting to the edge of River East to begin with, but let’s look on the bright side: You will never have to try to get your daily steps in! All jokes aside, Mather has amazing amenities, an ideal housing situation, and a great community, all of which make it a standout on campus. So yeah, is it cute on the outside? No… but it’s great on the inside, and maturing is realizing that’s what really Mathers, right?
