Ode to Clover

The long dreaded news is finally here—Al’s, Clover and other business have been asked to leave the Smith Campus Center. Expressions of grief and sorrow followed in social media. We would like to bid a forlorn farewell to Clover and expectantly look forward to a rosy future of the Smith Center.

We have applauded the plans to transform the Smith Center into a student hub, and we have praised the administration for soliciting input from students in its creation, while also urging more and broader consultations. Overall, the planned renovations point to a hopeful future for the Smith Center. Still, it is difficult to say goodbye to Clover, which has become a beloved piece of student life where many us have shared fond memories.

Clover—home for Harvard’s vegetarians, tofu embracers, and fake bacon connoisseurs alike—has long been a student favorite. Together with other Harvard square eateries, it provided the sort of social buzz that can be hard to find consistently on campus. It will be dearly missed.

But however tragic Clover’s departure may be, the need for more social space on campus is a real one. We have voiced our desire for more social spaces several times in the recent past, and we have also praised the administration’s revived interest in creating more inclusive spaces. Despite these ongoing efforts to reform the social atmosphere, however, the need for a central campus hub is clear, and the transformation of the cement monstrosity into a vibrant student space is a change we welcome.

In a sense, the loss of Clover can be seen as a sacrifice. As those of us who have learned from Greg Mankiw that everything is a tradeoff might know, in order to achieve a better future, certain comforts and delights of the present have to be let go.

With Clover and other Harvard Square institutions on the way out of the Smith Center, the administration must bring renewed focus to what will replace them. Administrators have been commendable in soliciting student feedback in the planning of the new center, and that effort must not expand as construction begins. It will be an utter misfortune if the prospective campus center doesn’t reflect student’s voices and fails to fulfill their desire for an inclusive and central social hub.

Another key element of this inclusive vision is the provision of more space for student organizations that currently lack it. Ensuring that a wide array of student organizations, including some currently relegated to basement spaces, are on a more equal footing with their peers is a concrete way to make inclusion a reality in the new Smith Center.

The loss of Clover will be deeply felt. Yet we hope that this loss proves a small price to pay for a more vibrant student life.