BRIDGING THE IOP FORWARD
%20(1)_mp4.jpg)
Our why.
We love the IOP. But we've also seen firsthand how it can feel inaccessible, how unspoken hierarchies divide our programs, and how public service too often takes a back seat.
A bit about us!
SCARLETT
Hi! My name is Scarlett and I’m running to be your next IOP President! As Director of Organizing & Special Projects, I launched the IOPAF program, spearheaded an inaugural State House Advocacy Day, created a Grassroots Organizing Fellowship, and engaged alumni in a first-of-its-kind Pathways to Public Service panel. I previously served as co-chair of PRE, and I’m co-community director for FSG, comms for CAP, in HPOP, CIVICS, HPU, HVC. From two Director’s Internships to meeting my political role models, the IOP has given me more than I ever could have imagined for the past two years. I would be honored to continue to serve the institution that has meant so much to me <3
HENRY
Hey guys! My name’s Henry and I’m running to be your next IOP Vice President. As chair of the Campaigns and Advocacy Program, I’ve connected students with leading political strategists and messengers and organized a first-ever midterms trip to New Hampshire. Previously, I chaired the Coalition for the Arts 🎨, where I organized first-ever panels on the role of popular culture in public policy, elections, and protest movements. I’m also a member of HPOP, HPU, HVC, FSG, and Conferences. The IOP has given me incredible professional opportunities, experiences across the country, and lifelong friendships. Now, I want to help create those same opportunities for others!
Winthrop 🦁
Social Studies 📚
Boston, MA 🦞
Pfoho 🐻❄️
Gov 🏛️
Maribel, Wisconsin 🧀
OUR PLATFORM
INCREASING ACCESSIBILITY
Leveling the Playing Field
We believe that it's important for program acceptances to remain strictly merit-based. We also hope to raise member retention rates over time. Thus, we propose creating entry-level positions in competitive programs for freshman fall that act as stepping stones for members to both learn and demonstrate commitment before spring applications.
Right now, the IOP expects freshmen to hit the ground running, and by the middle of freshman fall, many already feel behind. An entry-level position for your first semester within competitive programs would 1) give freshmen room to breathe during their first semester, 2) increase opportunity for students to demonstrate their commitment to programs over a semester before the competitive applications roll around, and 3) push back program timelines, increasing retention.
If you don’t attend Visitas, you likely wouldn’t know about our pre-frosh summer programming. We would collaborate with the College to ensure that summer programming details are shared in official emails and that all pre-frosh have access to the same opportunities, so that freshmen aren’t arriving on campus feeling already behind.
Right now, the IOP expects freshmen to hit the ground running, and by the middle of freshman fall, many already feel behind. An entry-level position for your first semester within competitive programs would 1) give freshmen room to breathe during their first semester, 2) increase opportunity for students to demonstrate their commitment to programs over a semester before the competitive applications roll around, and 3) push back program timelines, increasing retention.
Democratizing Access Between Programs
Many freshmen enter the IOP without previous connections or friends. Success in the IOP should not require extensive networking before pre-frosh even arrive on campus. This fall, Scarlett introduced the IOPAF program, partnering new members with established upperclassmen. On Exec, we’ll expand the IOPAF program to cover pre-frosh over the summer.
The IOP has incredible people walk in and out of our doors every day. But right now, those guests are not accessible to most of our members. We’ll create a shared internal calendar for all upcoming speakers and connect programs to relevant speakers coming to the IOP (Journalists with HPR, Ambassadors with GAP, etc.). Ideally, for a roundtable event before their forum — if that’s not possible, we’ll reserve seats and green room space for program members.
Give programs the opportunity to co-host one forum a year with the Forum Committee, allowing them to bring in a speaker that interests their students and giving more students access to the forum space. We would also allow individual students to pitch their ideas to Forum for guests they want to see.
The IOP is Harvard’s largest student organization — but our 17 programs feel disconnected. To bridge our programs together and break outside the IOP bubble, we will lottery off opportunities for all IOP members to attend Red Sox Games, theatrical productions, go to Six Flags, and more.
Increased Transparency
Aspiring program members often lack a clear example of what makes a strong application, rewarding students who know existing members of the programs. We will mandate that each program chair release public application rubrics, as well as previous exemplary answers. We will also hold a tips and tricks workshop to prepare applicants for the interview portion of the comp process.
For far too long, Exec has seemed distant from the members it is supposed to represent. We pledge to offer weekly, accessible office hours and encourage IOP staff to do the same. Moreover, we will make an effort to be a regular presence around the Institute, attending as many regular program meetings and events as possible. Lastly, we will publicize weekly SAC meeting times and locations, and share our meeting notes in the IOP newsletter for transparency.
Sidechat shouldn’t be the only place you go to complain about the IOP! We’ll create an anonymous feedback form to serve as a direct line of communication between Exec and general members and hold us accountable. Feel free to share feedback, advice, or ideas for future programming!
Fostering Diversity
Rarely at the IOP do we discuss what brought us into politics in the first place, and why we believe what we believe. To foster viewpoint diversity, we will relaunch and expand the Dinners Across Differences Series to bring students together with guests — not to debate across party lines, but to build understanding.
We are committing to bridging the IOP to affinity spaces on campus, in a way that doesn’t feel performative. We’ll host networking nights with affinity spaces (ex. Black Public Service Networking Night). We will also connect IOP fellows to affinity groups on campus for mentorship.
Right now, most people on campus see the IOP as a resource only for ‘IOP kids.’ To break this mold, we’ll host more events with fellows and other cool guests in D-halls, houses, and classroom buildings.
Many progressive, left-wing students feel underrepresented within the IOP, and many conservative students feel that the IOP reinforces the perception that conservatives are sidelined by having only a conservative coalition. To balance the IOP ideologically, we will introduce a Progressive Coalition to serve a similar role to the Conservative Coalition, leaving the IOP truly non-partisan.
RECENTERING SERVICE
To increase our real-world impact and break out of the Harvard bubble, we will make Scarlett’s IOP-wide State House Advocacy Day an annual occurrence, and add an annual IOP-wide Day of Service in the Fall. These events will not only provide people opportunities to engage in service but also bridge together IOP programs, strengthening our community.
We will rebuild the relationship between the IOP and PBHA to ground the IOP in service. We will establish a joint IOP x PBHA Public Service Commencement Ceremony for graduating seniors and meet monthly with PBHA leadership to plan collabs between our organizations.
Right now, we spend an outsized amount of money on IOP leadership. We will redirect that funding to public service programs, where the money can help change people’s lives.
If you take a look at IOP social media, not all programs are highlighted in the same way. We will work with the Comms Director and staff to ensure public service programs are highlighted and promoted equally through the IOP’s communication channels.
Expanding Scarlett’s Organizing Fellowship by pairing students interested in grassroots organizing with non-profits in the Boston area for term-time projects.
ADVANCING YOUR FUTURE
The IOP sits within HKS, but we rarely take advantage of its resources! We’ll work with Dean Weinstein, HKS faculty, and the Harvard Government department to place students in term-time research positions with relevant policy labs and professors.
Stressed about your post-grad plans? To ease the transition after graduation, we’ll pilot funded 1-year fellowship placements in government, politics, or public service, modeled after our current Director’s Internships program.
The IOP can claim everyone from Pete Buttigieg to Vivek Ramaswamy as former members. In spite of this, we have yet to fully tap into our network of alumni! We’ll work with the Internships and Career Services team to found an IOP alumni organization, create a portal where IOP students can reach out to alumni working in fields they’re interested in, and match interested program alumni with program chairs to advise their programs.
Harvard students often don’t know where to start looking for opportunities in public service outside of the Director’s Internship program. We’ll work with alumni, staff, and current students to source a list of term-time opportunities and summer opportunities outside the DIs that previous IOP students have found success with.
We will break out of the Harvard Bubble by collaborating with and hosting colleges in the Boston area and Institutes of Politics at other universities, allowing students to expand their networks. This includes future voting and civic engagement summits in partnership with the DSO, simulation events with UChicago IOP, a presidential primary series with the New Hampshire IOP, and more!
Hundreds of IOP members converge on New York City and Washington, D.C., each summer, but housing remains complicated and expensive! We’ll create a comprehensive summer housing guide, demystifying affordable student options in each city. Looking for a roommate? We’ll match you with other students in your city!
We will tap the resources of our many Harvard grad schools by hosting workshops with HLS and HKS students to provide mentorship and advice for seniors applying to grad school.
We will pave the way for an IOP house in Washington, DC that can serve as a home base for IOP students and alumni to gather in Washington, whether over summer breaks or post-grad!
Our programs have traveled everywhere from Ohio to New Hampshire—shoutout to the midterm CAP trip Henry planned! But access to these opportunities remains uneven across programs. We'll create an easily accessible application portal where program chairs can pitch trip ideas directly to IOP staff, making it easier for more programs to secure funding and logistical support for experiential learning opportunities.
There’s no clear pathway to a career in public service, and navigating which internships to do and how to think about post-grad for your areas of interest is intimidating! We will add area-specific peer advisors for students to the student career services team, so that students can direct their questions to upperclassmen who have experience in their area of interest (ex. national security, campaigns, non-profits, data analytics, etc.)
We want to hear from you!
