Dudley House: The Graduate Student Center

All GSAS students are automatically members of Dudley House, the Graduate Student Center. Located in Lehman Hall at the southwest corner of Harvard Yard, Dudley House is one of the thirteen Harvard houses. It is the only one that is designed especially for the GSAS student population and it also serves undergraduates who live off-campus or choose to affiliate.

Dudley House came into being as the graduate student center in 1991. It was the direct result of the efforts of the GSC to create a place that would act as a focus of graduate student social, cultural, recreational, and intellectual life. The House provides an opportunity for graduate students in GSAS to meet with fellow students and faculty from across FAS in an informal atmosphere. Students from all departments and disciplines come to Dudley House for events and public service projects. Dudley House is driven by student initiative, providing programming that reflects and respects the diversity of its students, creating opportunities for interaction outside the classroom, lab, and library.

As with the other twelve Harvard houses, a faculty Master has overall responsibility for the House. Everett Mendelsohn, Professor of History of Science, and Mary B. Anderson, an economic development consultant, serve as Master and Co-Master of the House. Susan Zawalich, the Administrator of Dudley House (see GSAS Administrators and Staff), supervises the programming that goes on in the House. She also keeps a fabulous collection of toys in her office if you are looking for stress relief or play therapy.

The Dudley House mailing list is the best way to keep up with the latest from the House. There you can read about events, schedule changes, sign-up dates, and event additions. To subscribe, send an email message to majordomo@dudleyhouse.student.harvard.edu, with a blank subject line and message body which says "subscribe dudley".

Dudley House programming is done by a group of twenty-two GSAS students who serve as Dudley Fellows. The fellows work as a team to plan a variety of activities sponsored by the House each year in order to help foster a sense of community within GSAS. All registered GSAS students are eligible to apply for positions as fellows, assistant fellows, conductor or cafe manager.

Lehman Hall offers a number of facilities for use by Dudley House members. The Graduate Student Lounge, the Common Room, the Fireside Room, the Dining Hall, and other common areas in Lehman Hall may be reserved by GSAS students or groups for events and meetings. To make a reservation, go to the House Office on the third floor. Located on the 3rd floor, the Dudley House Library serves as a nice, quiet place to study, read the newspaper, or take a nap on one of the comfortable couches. There are newspapers and magazines in addition to small collections of books ranging in subject from Jung to Early American Novels. The library also houses the GSC's free laser printing facilities, available to all GSAS students who have paid their GSC fee. There is a small game room located on the 3rd floor, opposite the library. It houses two pool tables, one ping-pong table, an air hockey board, several couches, and a television, and a soda machine.