HARVARD COLLEGE

OFFICE OF STUDENT LIFE

UNIVERSITY HALL, GROUND FLOOR CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS 02138

TASK FORCE ON STUDENT VOICE

October 30, 2012 TASK FORCE REPORT
I Background and Task Force Charge

In 2008, the Dowling Committee considered the range and quality of interactions between the Undergraduate Council (UC), the College, and other parts of the FAS and the way in which these interactions had changed since the founding of the UC twenty-five years earlier. After careful review, the committee made the following suggestions to the Dean of Harvard College: 1. Organize student-faculty committees in a hierarchical fashion (e.g. College and Residential life is chaired by the Dean of the College; Undergraduate Education is chaired by Dean of the Faculty; Student Services is chaired by Dean of Administration) with the committee structure of the UC mirroring this organization with each member belonging to one committee; 2. Increase the number of UC reps to three per House or Yard, encourage UC reps to work more closely with HoCos including appointing one liaison per House, and encourage HoCos to help with elections; 3. Organize the UC into five committees: Officers; Committee Chairs; College and Residential Life; Undergraduate Education; and Student Services. 4. Appoint an adviser in the Office of Student Life to mentor the UC. To date, all these initiatives have been implemented. On May 1, 2011, the Undergraduate Council passed a resolution to adopt the Forum for Change as a means to enhance student input regarding matters important to undergraduates. As a result of conversations sparked by this resolution, in the fall of 2011, UC leaders approached Dean Hammonds requesting ways to enhance studentto-faculty/staff communication on campus. The Forum for Change was not adopted by the administration; however, in Dean Hammonds letter to UC 2011 President, Senan Ebrahim, she made a commitment to continue to provide opportunities for students to have meaningful input into decisions made at Harvard. Her commitment called for the development of a UC representative Leadership Intensive and created the Task Force on Student Voice. Dean Hammonds asked Professor Roger Porter, Dunster House Master, and Daniel Bicknell, 2012 President of the Undergraduate Council, to chair a Task Force on Student Voice composed of students, faculty, and staff. The committee discussed that Harvards complexity and size is a challenge to effective communication. The faculty, through the work of many committees, governs the University. Further, the thoughtful deliberations that occur in these committees are critically important because they help faculty and staff to make informed decisions that will stand the test of time. The Dean of Harvard College believes it is important for student leaders to understand the governance structures of Harvard College, FAS, and Harvard University, in order to facilitate students ability to become engaged with campus issues. Dean Hammonds asked the Task Force to consider strategies for enhancing effective communication between students, faculty, and staff; creating opportunities for faculty and staff to interact more readily; and identifying ways for students to have input on matters that are important to them. Specifically, the Task Force considered the following questions:
Report of the Task Force on Student Voice 1

1. In what ways does the College administration engage with students on a variety of issues? 2. In what ways does the UC currently engage with students? 3. In what ways can communication be improved among College administrators, faculty, student leaders, and students at large? 4. How might the College and the UC develop effective ways to get student input on various projects/topics/issues? 5. Are there ways to improve student participation on FAS and College committees? II Committee Membership

The committee had broad representation including students, faculty, and staff: Co-Chair: Roger Porter, Dunster House Master Co-Chair: Danny Bicknell, UC President Staff: Alison Ewing, Executive Assistant, OSL Delara Alameddine, Dunster 14 Carolyn Chou, Pforzheimer 13 Salena Cui, Holworthy 15 Jeffrey Miron, Director of Undergraduate Studies Sandra Naddaff, Director of Freshmen Seminars, Honorary Associate and Former Master of Mather House Emelyn dela Pea, Assistant Dean of Student Life Gabby Malatesta, Mather 13 Suzy Nelson, Dean of Student Life Chris Smiles, Weld 15 Winston Waters, Winthrop 13 Pratyusha Yalamanchi, Dunster 13

The committee met three times during the spring 2012 and once during fall 2012 to discuss current opportunities for students to share their voice, practices and structures that are working well, and to consider additional opportunities for communication and student input. All undergraduate students were given the opportunity to provide input during two spring focus groups and via an online comment box. A summary of key findings are noted below followed by specific recommendations for improving communication and ensuring students have a voice in the College. III Current Ways for Students to Share their Voice

There are currently a number of ways in which students have the opportunity to share critical feedback with the College. One of the key ways in which this happens is through the various committees of the College. FAS and College committees with student representation include: Committee on Undergraduate Education; Committee on Student Life; FAS Committee on Public Service FAS Standing Committee on Advising and Counseling; FAS Standing Committee on Athletics; FAS Standing Committee on the Library; FAS Standing Committee on Writing and Speaking; Advisory Committee on Shareholder Responsibility; FAS Standing Committee on Pedagogical Improvement; Commission of Inquiry; Academic Integrity Committee University Committee on Rights and Responsibilities; Student Advisory Board for Arts and Humanities; Student Advisory Board for Social Science; Student Advisory Board for Science; FAS Education Policy Committee; Advisory Committee to the Office of Sexual Assault Prevention and Response; Campus Safety Committee; Harvard College Library Student Interest Group; University Health Services Peer Patient Advocate Workgroup College-University Health Services Committee

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Harvard University Dining Services Student Advisory Committee; and

College Wintersession Committee

Students on the Task Force commented that the general student body is unaware of undergraduate representation on these committees. In addition to FAS and College appointed committees, students are active on a range of OSL working groups (e.g. Student Organization Task Force, Student Organization Recognition Committee, House Renewal Subcommittees, Alcohol Policy Review Committee). Further, House Committees (HoCos) are comprised of students from their respective Houses whose leaders are elected by House members. HoCos collect information and input on House Life and student events from the community at large and Co-chairs of each HoCo meet with staff at OSL and House Masters on a regular basis. Additionally, HoCo Co-chairs meet together monthly at HoCoCo Meetings. Finally, the UC serves as the primary advocate for student concerns at Harvard College. The UC is comprised of 51 representatives: a popularly elected president and vice president and 49 locally elected House and Yard representatives. The current structure of the UC includes an Executive Board, comprised of a president, vice president, treasurer, secretary, and five committee chairs. The Executive Board meets weekly. Each member of the UC concurrently serves on at least one UC Committee, which meet weekly. The entire UC holds weekly meetings open to the public, although members outside the UC rarely attend. Much of the work of the UC is accomplished in committee and then reported to the president and vice president for discussion with College administration. Emelyn dela Pea, Assistant Dean of Student Life and the UC adviser, meets with the president and vice president weekly. Additionally, the president and vice president meet with the Dean of Student Life monthly and the Dean of Harvard College regularly and also meet twice each year with the Dean of FAS and the University President. IV Additional Opportunities

Student-Student Communication Undergraduate Council Although the UC has initiated a number of key initiatives at the College, the perception remains that significant changes are too difficult to achieve through UC advocacy. This is coupled with the perception of the UC as an ineffective governing body for the undergraduate students. For example, the Task Force discussed the many accomplishments of the UC, including increased shuttle service to the Quad, cell phone service at the Quad, UC Rooms, UC Tickets, and advocating for regular deans office hours. Yet there is a general lack of knowledge campus-wide about these many achievements. The UC, therefore, is encouraged to write yearly reports that will be disseminated widely throughout the College and to pursue more effective ways of communicating all the work they do on behalf of the student body. Currently, there are a number of UC committees that have a similar name to those of College committees. Although they work on similar issues from a student-focused perspective, there is very little coordination of work and communication between the student-run committees and the College and University committees. As such, relationships should be developed between the UC and key administrators who oversee such committees. For example, the UC could develop a working relationship between the student-run Education Committee and the Office for Undergraduate Education. House Committees Although the Dowling Report recommended that UC reps work more closely with HoCos, the relationship between the UC and the HoCos remains fragmented. While there are three House Representatives on the UC for each House, these representatives are not always members of the HoCos nor do they always attend HoCo meetings. In addition, HoCos are not currently involved in the UC election process.
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University-Wide Collaboration The Task Force found that given the level of activity of Councils of other University schools, creating a University Student Council is currently not an appropriate means of addressing university-wide issues. Rather than establishing an additional bureaucratic body, university-wide student advocacy can be achieved through collaboration between the existing student governance bodies. If after council collaboration that student-wide advocacy effort becomes futile, then this should be reevaluated. Student-Administrator Communication Members of the UC and other student leaders lamented the difficulty in arranging meetings with College and University administrators. Often, meetings must be set up weeks to months in advance and often result with a referral to a different administrator. In response, the UC leadership is currently working with the Office of Student Life and the Dean of Harvard College to create a website which will explain the role of key administrators within the College. Students also recommended that a designated person, such as the UC adviser or the Dean of Student Life, serve as the main point of contact for student concerns and issues. Additionally, however, student leaders would welcome the opportunity to interact both formally and informally with deans and other administrators on campus in order to facilitate communication. In the spring of 2012, the UC piloted a series of Meet the Deans lunches in order to provide informal opportunities for students to meet administrators. These lunches were well attended and appreciated by those who participated. Student Leadership Transition and Training Although there are a number of opportunities for students to participate in leadership opportunities at Harvard College, the lack of effective leadership training and transition for many student organizations (including the UC), increases the likelihood that institutional memory about important milestones, achievements, and future goals will be lost from year to year. Currently, there is no formal transition plan between terms for many organizations. In fact, during the course of the Task Force meetings, members discovered that there was essentially a gap in UC leadership representation between the end of the academic year (when old representatives transitions out of their roles) and October (when new representatives are elected). Although the UC Constitution states the term of office until new representatives are elected, this policy has not been enforced in recent years. The UC leadership and the Office of Student Life are planning to build upon the momentum created through the first two UC Leadership Intensive meetings, which were new this year. IV Conclusion & Recommendations

The Task Force discussed a number of recommendations that would both capitalize on existing structures at Harvard College and create new opportunities for increased student engagement. Dean Hammonds will share the findings of this Task Force with Harvard University President, Drew Faust, and Dean of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences, Mike Smith. In order to address the communication chasm between students and Harvards central administration, these recommendations allow students not only to understand the senior administrations decisions but also to influence them to reflect better the will of the community. While the Harvard University Forum for Change sought to have "mutually informatory discussions, without altering the decision-making structure of the administration," the Task Force determined that such a Forum, in reality, would establish an additional layer of bureaucracy without any direct action or decision-making. The set of recommendations below more effectively address the motivations behind the Forum for Change proposal by establishing a more transparent, accessible Harvard administration and Undergraduate Council and facilitating multiple avenues of structured dialogue between students of all levels of engagement and administrators.

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Recommendation 1: Increase UC Public Relations Efforts and Improve Student-to-Student Communication Given the current lack of broad knowledge about the UC activities among the undergraduate students, the committee made the following suggestions for increasing the UC visibility and informing the student body about their many accomplishments: Recommended Actions Continue to write an Annual and Mid-Year Report including information about goals for the upcoming year. Post it on the website, distribute written copies to all students, and write an OpEd for the Crimson Conduct more outreach and education in the Houses and Yards, including posting pictures, updates, and contact information for the UC reps in a central location. Person Responsible Timeline Status 2011 Annual Report published in February 2012. Mid-Year Report published in May 2012. Both electronically distributed. UC Pres/VP presented at October House Masters meeting and attend monthly HoCoCo meetings to encourage stronger UCHouse relations. Pictures and contact information of reps are posted. Lowell House HoCo and UC Reps will meet with their House Masters to discuss the implementation of the new Alcohol Policy.

UC Executive Board

By January and May of every academic year

UC House Representatives

Beginning F12 and On-going

UC House Work more closely with HoCos Representatives, in and House Administrators in collaboration with HoCos house activities and discussions. and House Administrators Have HoCo members that are liaisons to the Undergraduate Council, in addition to the UC Hoco-Liaison program. Coordinate study breaks with PAFs and conduct PAF-wide meetings to get feedback on issues facing first year students

Beginning F12 and On-going

HoCos

Beginning S13 and On-going

UC Student Life Committee and UC Student Relations Committee

Beginning F12 and On-going

On-going initiative for firstyear representatives.

Publicize UC student appointees on all College committees and invite all UC student appointed representatives to give updates at UC meetings

UC Executive Board

October of every academic year

Completed recommendation for 2012-2013 academic year. Student appointees are required to report committee attendance and discussion to the Council to be made available to the student body online.

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Increase advertising to student organizations and disseminate information about ways in which the UC supports student organizations and events Distribute a copy of the UC Annual Report to first-year students Utilize the new Updates from the UC widget on my.harvard.edu to update the student body on the latest initiatives Use an analytics software to gage how many students access UC website, email, and social medial efforts. Use Mail Chimp software to send repeat emails to people who have not opened the original email. Communicate with the prospective first-year students at Visitas to begin outreach about the UC Acquire a physical space in Harvard Yard to distribute checks and conduct UC leadership office hours.

UC Finance Committee and OSL Staff

September of every academic year

UC literature to be distributed at FiCom meetings during F12.

UC Student Relations Committee

Every academic year

To be distributed F13.

UC Student Relations Committee

Beginning F12 and On-going

Updated regularly by the Student Relations Chair.

UC Student Relations Committee

Beginning S13 and every academic year

Analytics utilized F12.

UC Executive Board

Beginning S13 and every spring

To be done Visitas S13.

UC Executive Board and UC Advisor

Beginning F12 and on-going

On-going effort with the Office of Student Life.

Collaborate with the Harvard Graduate Council and other Harvard student councils for university-wide student advocacy Create a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on the UC website so students are aware of services and support offered by the Council as well as suggestions for approaching advocacy at Harvard.

UC Executive Board, UCHCG Liaison, HCG

Beginning F12 and on-going

Held joint meeting with HCG with President Faust. Created a UC-HCG Liaison. More efforts underway.

UC Student Relations Committee

Beginning F12 and on-going

This has not been implemented by the Council yet.

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Capitalize on visibility of UC Pres-VP elections through voter engagement and student group outreach to publicize UC efforts.

UC Student Relations Committee and UC Executive Board

Beginning F12 and on-going

UC Student Relations Committee launching a voter engagement drive to publicize UC funding and advocacy efforts and increase voter turnout to 70% in F12 UC Pres-VP elections.

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Recommendation 2: Improve Student Leadership Transition and Training Leadership transition in all student organizations is an important step often neglected. To this end, the Task Force recommends the following steps for the UC and other student organizations: Recommended Actions Enforce UC elections calendar so there are officers and representatives at the start of each academic year Develop a program during Wintersession or at the start of the year similar to the UC Leadership Intensive last winter which will be open to all students and student organizations Develop a transition plan for October/November implementation To develop greater institutional memory, maintain associations with former UC members and solicit UC alumni to create accurate and favorable impression of the UC for the first-year students. For instance, encourage former Elm Yard reps to return to the yard for move-in day to assist firstyears moving in, solicit feedback, and establish the UC presence at the start of each year. Person Responsible UC Rules Committee UC Finance Committee and UC Student Initiatives Committee Emelyn dela Pea UC Executive Board Emelyn dela Pea UC First-Year Representatives UC Executive Board Timeline By September 2012 November 2012 Status Attempted S12-F12. Failed to produce active representatives. On-going effort

October 2012

On-going effort

Beginning F12 and on-going

UC Student-Initiated Group was established through the Harvard Alumni Association to improve institutional memory and maintain association with former UC members. First-year move-in efforts to begin F13.

In addition, student leadership development and training opportunities should be offered to student organizations. Recommended Actions UC will co-lead sessions during the Student Organizations Training in the fall semester UC Leadership Intensive, including Governance Panel, will be conducted twice each year Person Responsible UC Executive Board Emelyn dela Pea UC President & Vice President Emelyn dela Pea Timeline September 2012 Status UC Treasurer led a UC funding discussion at Training. UC Leadership Intensive was held on September 23, 2012. Governance Panel will be held on November 1, 2012 and will be open to the student body.

Every September and January

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Recommendation 3: Create Opportunities for Student and Administrator/Faculty Interaction Students expressed a desire to have both formal means of communication and informal interactions with administrators. Strategies include: Recommended Actions The UC contacts their OSL advisor if they have concerns. Also, bring these concerns to the attention of the Dean of Student Life Person Responsible UC Executive Board and UC Advisor Timeline Status UC Pres/VP weekly meeting with OSL advisor and frequent check-ins.

On-going

Institute monthly meetings between the Assistant Dean who advises the UC and the UC committee chairs to be held during weekday working hours Improve communication between the UC and College committees through regular reports and meeting updates at UC council meetings Continue the Deans Lunch series, implemented in spring 2012, and develop a bi-annual Deans Dinner program and Faculty Luncheon series

UC Executive Board and UC Advisor

Beginning F12 and On-going

Assistant Dean meets with UC exec on a monthly basis beginning F12.

UC Committee Chairs and UC Student Appointed Representatives UC Executive Committee, UC Student Initiatives Committee, UC Student Relations Committee, UC Advisor

Beginning F12 and On-going

Instituted F12.

Beginning S11 and On-going; Two lunches and one dinner per semester

On-going luncheon series. Deans' Dinner program yet to be established.

Develop an online interface in which students can create petitions on issues relevant to the campus and members of the student body can "like" or sign the petition with the understanding that given a threshold number of "likes," the Dean of the College will consider and respond to the petition.

UC President and ViceBeginning F12 and President and UC On-going Advisor

We The Crimson online petition tool made available at Governance Panel on November 1, 2012.

Develop an organization chart of Harvard College Administration and relevant bodies that is accessible to students

UC President and ViceBeginning F12 and President and UC On-going Advisor

Navigate Harvard online organization chart made available at Governance Panel on November 1, 2012.

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Increase Communication between the Dean of the College and Students: Send a Welcome Letter each fall to students from the Dean of the College that highlights administrative plans for the upcoming year and host a UCsponsored State of the College Address by the Dean of the College

UC President and VicePresident, UC Advisor, Beginning F12 and and Associate Dean of On-going Harvard College

Welcome Letter sent F12 based on UC Pres/VP recommendations. "State of the College Address" yet to be established.

Schedule an annual meeting between UC Student Relations UC leadership and House Masters, Committee and UC and monthly meetings between House Advisor Masters and UC House representatives

Beginning F12 and On-going

UC Pres/VP presented at October House Masters meeting to encourage stronger UC-House relations.

Assure attendance of UC president, vice president, secretary, treasurer, UC Executive Board CSL student representatives, and CUE and Secretary of the student representatives at the Meetings Faculty of the Faculty

Beginning F12 and On-going

Acquire a Faculty Advisor to the UC who can represent student interests to the Faculty Council and provide opportunities for greater studentfaculty interaction

UC Executive Committee and UC Advisor

Beginning F12 and On-going

On-going

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Appendix A.

Summary of Recommendations from the Dowling II Report Effective Spring 2009

In the Dowling II report (issued to Deans Smith and Hammonds on January 21, 2009), the following recommendations were made. The status on adopting these recommendations is reviewed below. Recommendation #1: The student-faculty committees should be organized in a hierarchical fashion: College and Residential life (chaired by the Dean of the College); Undergraduate Education (chaired by Dean of the Faculty), and Student Services (Chaired by Dean of Administration). The committee structure of the UC should mirror this organization, with each UC member belonging to one committee. STATUS: The newly proposed CSL is the logical merger of the college and residential life and student services committees. CUE exists and is chaired by Dean Smith. Recommendation #2: Increase number of UC reps to three per House or Yard, and that UC reps work more closely with HoCos. HoCos also help with elections, and one UC rep per House should be appointed liaison to their HoCo. STATUS: There are now three reps per House, except for Dudley, which still has only one due to their small numbers. There are three UC reps per Yard now. HoCos have not been involved in the UC election process. Currently, one of the three House reps is assigned as the HoCo liaison. To date only nine HoCo liaisons are active. Recommendation #3: The UC should be organized into five committeesthe officers, the committee chairs, and the three committees (College and Residential life, Undergraduate Education, and Student Services). STATUS: The UC now has seven actual working committees: The Executive Committee (composed of the President, Vice President, Secretary, Treasurer, and all five committee chairs), The Student Relations Committee (which exists to strengthen ties between HoCos and the UC as described above), The Student Life Committee, Student Initiatives, the Education Committee, the Rules Committee, and the Finance Committee. All members of the UC are members of one or more committee; each committee has 6-13 members plus a chair. Recommendation to appoint an adviser to the UC # 4 STATUS: The Assistant Dean in the Office of Student Life serves as a mentor to the UC, works closely with the officers, and attends the UC meetings.

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Appendix B. Student Focus Groups and Online Comment Box Feedback In spring 2012, Dean Hammonds convened a Task Force to consider the governance policies and interactions between the administration, faculty, and students of Harvard College with the purpose of improving the opportunity for students to share their voice. The Task Force held two open-participation focus groups and an online comment box in order to confidentially solicit responses from students. Below is a summary of the student feedback. 1. How does the College administration engage with students on a variety of issues? Students perceive that administrators do not see the strength of a student concern unless there is a large presence of students who feel that way. Students acknowledge that administrators are essential for hearing student opinions and concerns. 2. How does the Undergraduate Council currently engage with students? Currently, the UC uses email, postering, and facebook to communicate with students which can be ineffective because these media are already saturated. Many students commented that they did not know their UC student representatives. 3. How can communication be improved among College administrators, faculty, student leaders, and students? The UC could move away from using email, postering, and facebook to communicate and switch instead to other types of communication (e.g. word of mouth, petitions). Consider multiple types of meetings in addition to office hours. 4. How might the College and UC develop effective ways to get student input? The UC could set large goals that would impact more students to solicit more feedback. Students commented that the majority of students are not interested in small goals regarding policy and student life which could have contributed to modest participation in the past. Large scale events can attract campus-wide student attention. Increase student-faculty committees these are perceived very positively and share the impact of these groups more broadly to encourage accountability and inform the student body. UC reps could hold student dinner conversations and door-to-door conversations a few times a semester. The UC could further accountability by leveraging the election process. A flow chart could be established to clarify that students should contact regarding different issues or concerns. 5. Are there ways to improve student participation on FAS and College committees? Students are generally unaware of FAS and College Committees. By making participation in focus groups more selective, students would be more inclined to participate.

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