Sean Spicer to Visit Harvard for Off-Record Study Group

UPDATED: April 20, 2018 at 12:45 a.m.

President Donald Trump’s former press secretary Sean Spicer will visit the Institute of Politics Thursday to participate in an off-the-record study group with fellow Scott Jennings.

Spicer will be discussing the 2018 midterm elections in the Kirkland Senior Common Room, according to an email sent Thursday over an Institute of Politics email list. Jennings, a current IOP fellow and a former special assistant to President George W. Bush, did not immediately respond to request for comment.

This is not the first time Spicer has visited the IOP. Last October, he spent three low-profile days at Harvard as part of his visiting fellowship with the Institute.

The IOP's decision to grant Spicer the fellowship generated controversy among students and alumni at the time. More than 600 Harvard alumni signed an open letter calling for the rescinding of Spicer's fellowship, as well as a visiting fellowship granted to Corey Lewandowski, Trump’s former campaign adviser. While on campus, Spicer attended 11 events, all of them off-the-record and closed to the general public.

The announcement of Spicer's visit did not appear in the IOP Weekly Newsletter. The email was sent over an IOP mailing list at 8:00 p.m. the night before the event is slated to take place.

While in Boston, Spicer will also headline a fundraiser for Geoff Diehl, a co-chair for Trump’s campaign and Elizabeth Warren’s challenger for Senate on Thursday, according to The Boston Globe. Spicer is expected to draw a crowd of 50 to 60 people at the fundraiser, according to campaign spokeswoman Holly Robichaud.

The IOP email did not specify how long Spicer will stay at Harvard.

This article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

CORRECTION: April 20, 2018

A previous version of this article incorrectly indicated Sean Spicer participated in an off-the-record study group held in the Kirkland Junior Common Room. In fact, the study group was held in the Kirkland Senior Common Room.

--Staff writer Alexandra A. Chaidez can be reached at alexandra.chaidez@thecrimson.com. Fellow her on Twitter at @a_achaidez.