Dean Weinstein shared this message with the HKS community on June 17.

Dear HKS community,  

As many of you know, the University received a request in March to remove Leslie H. Wexner’s name from a building on our campus. Following an initial review as outlined in the University’s denaming process, the Office of the President has informed me and those who submitted the request that the University’s legal obligations prohibit such a denaming. Additionally, it was communicated that Harvard’s policy leaves room for HKS to consider whether some form of contextualization of Wexner’s past association with Jeffrey Epstein would be appropriate.

In light of the University’s guidance about the denaming request, beginning in the fall I will initiate a process to explore potential ways to contextualize this part of our history. In addition, as an educational community, it is critical that we engage in meaningful conversations about the broader issues raised by the Epstein case, including sexual violence, human trafficking, and the circumstances that contributed to a lack of accountability for these crimes. In particular, we will take the following steps, and we are grateful to our faculty and community members who will shepherd them: 

  1. Launch an Annual Lecture Series: Going forward, HKS will host an annual, named lecture featuring a scholar or practitioner who has advocated for women’s rights, particularly in areas related to sex discrimination, sexual harassment, and sexual violence. Organized by the Center for Public Leadership (CPL) and the Women and Public Policy Program (WAPPP), the lecture will be named for a prominent champion of women’s rights, to be determined in consultation with faculty, staff, and students.
  2. Host a CPL Leader in residence: CPL will host a Hauser Leader for part of the coming academic year whose work focuses on the systems and structures that result in gender inequities, particularly as relates to sexual harassment and sexual violence.
  3. Facilitate Two Semester-Long Research Seminars: WAPPP will run two weekly research seminars – one during the fall semester on the theme of women, power, and social change, and another during the spring semester on the theme of gender and violence. These series will be open for anyone to register to attend.

This summer and early in the fall semester, our Office of Belonging, Community, and Connection (OBCC) will create two opportunities for you to share your initial reflections and reactions, as well as your perspective on the way forward through online and in-person listening sessions. These sessions are a starting point for conversations about how the School might acknowledge Wexner’s ties to Epstein and use our platform to further discussion about important issues related to gender and power, sexual violence, and the exploitation of women and girls. The first session will be on July 9 at 12:00pm ET.

I know this news will be disappointing for those who wish to rename the building. In recent months, I’ve spoken directly with students, faculty, and staff, who have shared how hard it has been to learn about Epstein’s relationships with Harvard affiliates and donors. I have also appreciated the purposeful efforts by members of our community to draw attention to this issue and its implications for HKS.

As we work through this together, my leadership team and I are always available to you. I have regular office hours, as do other senior School leaders, if you’d like to share your thoughts and perspective.

I am grateful to all of you for the thought, care, and compassion that you bring to these serious matters and to our community. As a school of government and public policy, we have a unique role to play in calling attention to the problems of sexual violence and exploitation and developing strategies to address them.

I look forward to working together on the important steps to come. 

Best,
Jeremy