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Harvard GSAS Shield
Dear Colleagues,

By now, we hope you’ve had the chance to read the message from FAS Dean Claudine Gay, outlining the FAS’s approach to dynamic work. This approach is first informed by the need to best support in-person learning and research on campus and guided by the principles outlined by Dean Gay regarding flexible work. Of note, the FAS expectation is that for the upcoming academic year, staff work on campus for a minimum of three days a week.

Over the past two years, we have enjoyed benefits from the flexibility hybrid work has provided, and we will continue to do so. By working together on campus at least three days a week, we hope to foster increased collaborations amongst and within teams and reenforce the in-person social connections so important to developing a strong team, especially for new staff. We also expect to benefit from the serendipitous encounters that lead to more effective and rewarding work.

To help us rebuild that in-person community, and in light of the FAS guidance, effective August 22, everyone will be expected to work in the office three days a week. We will also establish Thursdays as an all-staff anchor day when everyone is expected to be in the office. Coordination and the All-Staff meetings will take place in person on Thursdays, and we will endeavor to schedule most social events on Thursdays so that staff can attend in person. If it’s possible, teams are encouraged to schedule in-person meetings (both within the team and with other offices) on the anchor day, with hybrid options in some cases, to avoid team members being on campus and spending the day at their desk on Zoom.

You should work with your manager to determine your other days in the office to ensure that business needs are met. Please remember that these days are a baseline and circumstances may arise that require you to be on campus on additional days.

For those who wish to engage in a flex work schedule under the new guidelines, Blake will follow up with instructions on how to document your preferences for manager review.

Finally, now that key GSAS events are again taking place on campus, we want to emphasize that these events require multi-unit participation, regardless of remote schedules. As was the case before the pandemic, all staff are expected to provide support for Orientation and Commencement and are encouraged to volunteer for other events such as Alumni Day, Admitted Students Day, EDIB events, Harvard Horizons, and residence hall move-in. We also hope you will help out with 150th events as they are scheduled.

GSAS is an incredible, high-performing team, and we are grateful for everything you do to benefit GSAS students, staff, and alumni. We are looking forward to engaging more with you in person this fall.

With all best wishes,

Emma, Allen, Jen, Sheila, Ann
GSAS Website
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The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, Harvard University
Richard A. and Susan F. Smith Campus Center
1350 Massachusetts Avenue, Suite 350

If this email was sent to you in error, please contact gsas@fas.harvard.edu

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