Educating Our Design Leaders

Support Our Future Design Leaders with a Gift to the GSD Fund 

The global challenges we face are more pressing than ever. Whether it is social equity or sustainability, public health or transportation, the Harvard University Graduate School of Design shapes the future design leaders who will address these complex issues. With a legacy of preparing critical thinkers and practitioners, the GSD has remained focused on a transformative, project-based, and solution-oriented model of teaching.

You can help the GSD attract the most talented students to the Harvard community. Replete with diverse backgrounds and experiences, they are broad-thinking, intellectually rigorous, innovative students who will be the next generation of design leaders. Your donation to the GSD Fund provides immediate support to these students to participate in the activities and experiences that are hallmarks of a GSD education.

Financial aid is a prerequisite for design education. The GSD allocates 25 percent of its operating budget to subsidize students’ tuition, yet this is not nearly enough to cover the cost of an unparalleled educational experience. We invite you to invest in GSD students to give them the opportunity to freely create and apply design solutions for the challenges our society faces today and in the future.

Double Your Impact 

June Matching Gift Challenge: In the final month of this fiscal year, all gifts that are from new donors or increased from last year’s contributions will be matched by GSD Campaign co-chair John K. F. Irving AB ’83, MBA ’89. Please consider a gift by June 30 to help unlock this generous donation.

Presidential Match Challenge: Harvard University recognizes the importance of graduate school financial aid support and will match every dollar raised up to $550K to the GSD Fund. Make your gift to the GSD Fund today and your contribution will be matched by this Harvard University presidential match.

We asked current faculty members, who are also GSD alumni, to speak about why it is important to support our students as they prepare to create a more beautiful, just, and coherent world. Read what they had to say:

MEGAN PANZANO MARCH ’10
Design Critic in Architecture
“The intense commitment that characterizes the GSD is what made me most honored and excited to return as a faculty member. This includes the dedication of the School to student growth, as well as the diligence and creativity of the students. From seminars to option studios to research funding, the offerings to students at the GSD stay current and relevant with an incredible array of in-depth possible contexts through which to interrogate contemporary global issues.”

MARTIN BECHTHOLD DDES ’01
Kumagai Professor of Architectural Technology and Director of the Doctor of Design Program
“Our students come from a diversity of backgrounds and a range of design disciplines. They become leaders beyond the world of design, taking design thinking and methods into different domains to advance ideas of innovation for society. They acquire the ability to understand the architecture of a problem and reframe it to develop innovative solutions.”

FELIPE CORREA MAUD ’03
Associate Professor of Urban Design and Director of the Master of Architecture in Urban Design Program
“As the world becomes inherently more urban, it is essential to train architects, landscape architects, and urban planners who can engage, analyze, and project for the diverse scales and constituencies of cities and regions. The GSD’s strong legacy in design education makes it an ideal academic setting in which to investigate the role of design across a wide variety of scenarios.”

GARY HILDERBRAND MLA ’85
Professor in Practice of Landscape Architecture
“My commitment to the School stems from my rich experience as a student. I had great teachers and amazing classmates, many of whom are still my friends. It was eye-opening and affirming. I hope I’m able to give our students comparable opportunities for socially relevant work in the field.”

HOLLY SAMUELSON MDES ’09, DDES ’13
Assistant Professor of Architecture
“GSD students have the capacity to institute real change in our industry. They have a knack for questioning the questions, thinking broadly about problems, and seeking solutions from multiple disciplines.”