Students, Faculty Call for Urban Studies Secondary Field at Harvard

A group of undergraduates and faculty are calling on Harvard to establish a secondary field in urban studies, citing widespread interest in the field among students.

While neighboring schools such as MIT have established formal urban studies programs, Harvard College lacks a dedicated program for undergraduate students interested in studying cities and urban issues.

“People at Harvard, for a long time, have been very interested in urban studies and urban issues,” said Kayla P.S. Springer ’26, a co-president of the Harvard Undergraduate Urban Sustainability Lab.

Currently, students interested in the study of cities have to choose from courses scattered across different departments or cross-register for classes at the Graduate School of Design or MIT. HUUSL has been working with Bruno Carvalho, the co-director for the Harvard Mellon Urban Initiative, to advocate for centralizing courses with urban themes within one secondary program.

“Students realize we live in a largely urban planet, and that the challenges and potentials of urbanization require our attention,” Carvalho, a professor of Romance Languages and Literatures, wrote in an email. “We have many researchers at Harvard working on cities and the built environment, and a secondary field can help bring to the same table students and faculty with a shared set of interests, but different sensibilities and expertise.”

“I believe that we currently have enough courses and faculty to sustain a vibrant secondary field,” Carvalho said, adding that a formalized urban studies program “can thrive at Harvard.”

The push for an urban studies secondary comes as administrators consider a broader reshuffling of Harvard’s Arts and Humanities division, which concluded a three-year strategic planning process in June.

During that process, according to a report by the strategic planning committee, a study group recommended that the division create a range of new concentrations and secondary fields, including a secondary field in urban studies.

Though the final report did not specifically recommend establishing an urban studies field, it called for the creation of several interdisciplinary committees which could launch their own programs or propose new concentrations and secondary fields.

In an emailed statement, Faculty of Arts and Sciences spokesperson Jonathan Palumbo wrote that the Social Science division offers a broad range of courses touching on urban issues.

“Several departments in the Division have courses with substantial urban-focused content,” Palumbo wrote. “Students are encouraged to consult the course catalog and discuss options with the many advisors who are available to them throughout their college experience.”

But Clyve Lawrence ’25, who serves as HUUSL co-president with Springer, said that Harvard’s urban studies offerings are scattered across schools, research centers, and other programs.

“Harvard is starting to realize the importance of urban studies, but uses either philanthropic or separate programs as ends to achieving that, rather than incorporating it into the curriculum directly for students,” Lawrence, a Crimson Editorial editor, added.

Both Lawrence and Springer said they remain hopeful for a more structured program that mirrors the offerings at other schools, providing a clearer pathway for those who wish to specialize in urban studies.

“My vision is having an urban studies department,” Springer said of Harvard, adding that increasing awareness surrounding urban issues in Cambridge and beyond “would be really exciting.”

—Staff writer Leslie P. Nevarez can be reached at leslie.nevarez@thecrimson.com.