The Citizen

Original Cartoon by Drew Madson. See more of his illustrations here. Instagram @drew1drew2drewyou   The irony underlying the Kennedy School’s core pursuit is evident in its very name stone. The light brown, etched marble stone, proudly boasts Harvard Kennedy School as the headline. But below that is a subtle, almost invisible, outcasted subtext, conceding it as the “John […]

Over the past three weeks, as I’ve become intimately familiar with the lovely yet lonely four walls of my Cambridge bedroom, I’ve been mourning the sudden loss of what was the most transformative part of my HKS experience: you.  I think what I miss the most is the casual run-ins. I’ve missed catching up in […]

Drew Madson is an award winning illustrator, educator, and entrepreneur. He studies Technology, Innovation and Education at Harvard Graduate School Education when he’s not in class at HKS. See more of his illustrations here. Instagram @drew1drew2drewyou

Coronavirus has unceremoniously ruined our Kennedy School experience. Cancelled graduation, ending of in-person classes, no spring formal – all snatched away. Many of us are angry, frustrated, and sad. HKS is that rare opportunity to learn, grow, and reflect on how we can bring change to our communities and the world. We are privileged to […]

Photo Credit: Akshay Hallur Regarding the opinion column “HKS Should Dismantle the Mason Program” published by The Citizen, it is important to note the following. Anonymity should be a protecting shield that ignites genuine dialogue and fosters the right of the public to know the truth, not a façade to cover opportunistic agendas and personal […]

Recent changes to the Mid-Career Master in Public Administration Edward S. Mason Program (Mason Program) have prompted debate as to its role and purpose at the Harvard Kennedy School. The Citizen features two opinion pieces about the Mason Program: one in support of the Mason Program as a critical piece of diversity and inclusion at […]

This piece argues that the Edward S. Mason Program at the Harvard Kennedy School is integral to promoting diversity and inclusion. For a different view, read an anonymous piece by a member of the Harvard community, which argues that the Mason Program should end. Opinions expressed by the writers do not represent the views of The […]

This piece argues for the termination of the Edward S. Mason Program at the Harvard Kennedy School. For a different view, read David de Bold’s piece which defends the Mason Program as an integral part of HKS that promotes diversity and inclusion. Opinions expressed by the writers do not represent the views of The Citizen. In […]

Photograph by Stephanie Mitchell/Harvard Public Affairs and Communications Add the Harvard Kennedy School to the long and growing list of institutions making sacrifices due to COVID-19. As students, staff, and faculty entered their third week of quarantine, they received the surprising news that their Dean, Douglas William Elmendorf, has been urgently summoned to Washington to […]

Photo Credit: Kristina B Amid the eerie silence that is our new normal in the time of coronavirus, there is one sound I long to hear: bagpipes. The last day of our mid-career MPA summer program was a hot summer day in August, and our cohort had gathered in the Forum. “This is your time,” […]

Photo Credit: Canadian Blood Services How we can all support the healthcare system through this crisis In surgical residency, I find that after 2:00am I tended to have less patience. Sipping lukewarm coffee, I click the refresh button on the screen more often than was probably reasonable, hoping the results will appear. In these early […]

Nearly as soon as the announcements began that many college classes were going to be moving from in-person to online for the rest of the semester to increase social distancing and ideally lessen the spread of COVID-19, the tweets, memes and social media posts began. The student variety poked fun at teachers clumsy with technology. […]