FAS Leadership in Talks to Expand Center for Public Service and Engaged Scholarship

Faculty of Arts and Sciences administrators are considering a proposal to transform the Center for Public Service and Engaged Scholarship into a new “Center for Public Engagement” with expanded academic offerings, according to a draft document obtained by The Crimson.

The document was created in fall 2022 by CPSES Faculty Director Julie A. Reuben, but has sat on the desk of FAS Dean Hopi E. Hoesktra since she took office in 2023. While several people affiliated with CPSES said the proposal remains under consideration by Harvard leadership, it was largely stalled as administrators struggled to contain the fallout on campus over Oct. 7.

According to the document, the new center would support increased public service-focused research opportunities and faculty grants, establish a University-wide faculty network, and expand coursework and career opportunities involving public service.

Phillips Brooks House Association President Cody Vasquez ’25 confirmed that CPSES — the umbrella organization for the PBHA — remains interested in “expanding across FAS.”

“We support measures that hope to advance public service for College students in particular, because that’s where our mission lies,” Vasquez added.

Assistant Dean of Civic Engagement and Service Travis Lovett said in an interview that Harvard College Dean Rakesh Khurana, Reuben, and Hoekstra had met about the proposal in recent months, but did not have any other update about its status.

“They talked about elements of the white paper and how to keep civic work at the forefront,” Lovett said, referring to the 2022 document. “I know that they’re actively considering this white paper as a strategy.”

Lovett said he believed the delay stemmed in part from the leadership upheaval Harvard has experienced over the past year.

Claudine Gay had supported raising funds for the new Center for Public Engagement while she was transitioning from her role as FAS dean to University president, according to Lovett. When Alan M. Garber ’76 succeeded Gay after her sudden resignation in January, discussions about the center took a backseat as senior administrators struggled to grapple with a leadership crisis.

And Khurana, who was described by Lovett as “a real advocate for the Center for Public Service and Engaged Scholarship being an academically interfacing unit,” will depart office at the end of the 2024-25 academic year.

“Conversations that were well underway are now conversations that — we have new leadership in place that’s considering these measures,” Lovett said.

Harvard College spokesperson Jonathan Palumbo declined to comment on the draft document or the current status of talks between CPSES and the FAS, but wrote that “work to support public service at the College has continued to expand thanks to ongoing and developing partnerships.”

Palumbo highlighted a new CPSES fellowship for student internships with elected officials, rising applications to the SPARK public service program for incoming freshmen, and the launch of a new Certificate for Civic Engagement, among other public service initiatives.

“There remains a strong commitment to supporting students interested in pursuing public service at the College and as a career,” Palumbo wrote.

Though the new center would likely replace CPSES, it would not seem to have a major impact on student groups already affiliated with the organization, such as the PBHA and certain service-oriented Institute of Politics programs.

Vasquez said that under the new center, PBHA would “continue what we’ve been doing for the past 120 years in ensuring that College students are engaging in meaningful service in Cambridge and Boston.”

Mindich Program in Engaged Scholarship Director Flavia C. Peréa said the new center would fill a gap Harvard has in public service-related academic programming, compared to schools of similar caliber.

“We have a very well-developed portfolio of students-facing extracurricular programming,” Peréa said. However, according to Peréa, the Mindich Program is among few programs that connect public service to academic study in the FAS.

The 2022 proposal suggested collaborations with the Harvard Kennedy School and the Harvard Graduate School of Design to offer secondary fields for undergraduates in public policy and urban studies, respectively.

It also called to scale up the SPARK program, a summer volunteer program for incoming first-years to engage in civic work in their hometowns before moving to campus. Palumbo said 10 percent of the Class of 2027 applied to participate in SPARK — a record high for the program.

The new center, according to the proposal, would also “support programs that help students explore careers in public service,” and “expand post-graduation support for students who enter public service careers or have viable social entrepreneurship plans.”

Peréa described the center as a necessary step toward advancing public engagement on campus.

“What the center would do is elevate public service and civic engagement as a cornerstone of what happens in the FAS,” Peréa said.