Delving into ‘belonging’ at Harvard
Harvard’s intellectual breadth means that the University has a wide array of academic cultures that handle and experience diversity differently. Understanding those cultures and how they have made diverse members of the community feel at home — or haven’t — is part of the mission in the early going for the Task Force on Inclusion and Belonging. The task force, created by Harvard President Drew Faust in September, has been organizing and taking initial steps in its discovery phase that will run through the spring. The group was convened to explore how to transform Harvard from a place that embraces diversity in its tenets to one where each member of the community feels that he or she truly belongs. The task force is co-chaired by Danielle Allen, professor of government and of education and director of the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics, who on Jan. 1 will be the James Bryant...