Dear Members of the HMS Community:
The educational and scholarly environment of an academic community must encourage the free exchange of ideas, welcome a wide range of viewpoints, and foster inquiry, debate, and constructive disagreement. Ensuring that such a culture thrives at Harvard Medical School requires our focused attention.
To that end, I am writing to announce a new Working Group on Open Inquiry, to be chaired by former HMS Dean and George Higginson Professor of Physiology and Medicine Jeffrey Flier. Among a range of topics, the working group — whose names are listed below — will consider how we cultivate spirited dialogue in our pluralistic community so that all members feel safe to express themselves, how we can ensure that our scholars have the freedom to tackle even potentially controversial research topics, and how we might best promote intellectual rigor and civil discourse in our medical and graduate curricula. It is my hope that in being introspective about our own biases, especially on politically polarizing issues, we can foster a culture that encourages freedom of expression while sustaining a respectful environment where learning and inquiry can flourish.
I am grateful to Jeff for taking on this important project, and he has assured me of his devotion to building capacity for constructive dialogue in our community. As co-president of the Council on Academic Freedom at Harvard, Jeff has correctly pointed out that a lack of attention given to these issues “impedes the search for truth.” I couldn’t agree with him more.
Our community consistently strives to embody humility over arrogance, service over self-interest, and compassion over callousness. These values shape the HMS community that I experience every day. We see them in action in the clinic, for instance, where our practitioners and trainees listen intently and without judgment to their patients. Let us take care to extend that same grace and curiosity to our peers.
It is with great hope and confidence that I look to the Working Group on Open Inquiry to elevate and strengthen the very best of what Harvard Medical School can be.
Sincerely,
George Q. Daley
Dean of the Faculty of Medicine
Harvard University
HMS Working Group on Open Inquiry members:
Jeffrey Flier, chair
HMS Dean 2007-2016
Harvard University Distinguished Service Professor and George Higginson Professor of Physiology and Medicine
Eman Samih Ansari
Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, Boston Children’s Hospital
Richard T. Born
Professor of Neurobiology, Blavatnik Institute at Harvard Medical School
John Patrick Tan Co
Associate Professor of Pediatrics, Massachusetts General Hospital
Barbara Cockrill
George E. Thibault Academy Professor of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Associate Dean for Faculty Development in Medical Education and Director of the Academy, HMS Program in Medical Education
Krisztina Fischer
Associate Professor of Radiology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
Faculty Director of Master of Medical Sciences in Medical Education
Liz Gaufberg
Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Cambridge Health Alliance
Keri Godin
Director for Professional Integrity, HMS Office for Academic and Research Integrity
Tamara B. Kaplan
Assistant Professor of Neurology, Brigham and Women’s Hospital
José Martinez
Title IX Resource Coordinator and Director of HR Compliance and Professional Conduct, HMS
Joan Reede
Dean for Diversity and Community Partnership, HMS
Professor of Medicine, Massachusetts General Hospital
Jeffrey E. Saffitz
Mallinckrodt Professor of Pathology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Rich Schwartzstein
Ellen and Melvin Gordon Distinguished Professor of Medical Education, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center
Tari Tan
Lecturer on Neurobiology, Blavatnik Institute at Harvard Medical School
Assistant Dean for Educational Scholarship and Innovation, HMS Office for Graduate Education