In early 2008, Harvard President Drew Faust assembled a Committee on Common Spaces and charged the group with guiding a planning initiative that would lead to "the transformation of certain physical spaces" and the enhancement of a "sense of engagement and community." The committee identified a number of opportunities to create a more welcoming and integrated campus, and the Common Spaces program
is an outgrowth of that effort. Created in the summer of 2009, the Common Spaces program is managed through the University Planning Office (UPO) and informed by feedback received in university-wide focus groups. Over the past three years, the program has strengthened the sense of community on Harvard's campus by creating informal gathering spaces and encouraging spontaneous interactions among students, faculty, and staff, as well as members of the community and visitors to campus. Partners from across the University—including the Office of the Provost, Harvard College Office of Student Life, Landscape Services, Hospitality & Dining, and the University Planning Office—contribute to the collaborative programming and successful implementation of events and activities.
