This report describes the findings of a 16-member committee that began to assess in May 2025 the state of open inquiry and public discourse at HMS. The report recounts the establishment of the HMS Open Inquiry Working Group, its deliberative activities and major conclusions, and its recommendations for enhancing and promoting a culture of constructive dialogue and engagement across differences.
On April 21, 2026, HMS Dean George Daley shared the final report of the HMS Open Inquiry Working Group (OIWG) in an email to the community, noting that the report “frames open inquiry as a proactive habit and an aspiration without end — which, if properly nurtured, promotes a vibrant intellectual community that is welcoming to a diverse array of perspectives.”
This report is the culmination of 17 meetings of the OIWG over a period of eight months after the April 2025 announcement of the formation of the group. Meetings included discussions with key members of the HMS community and other individuals with relevant expertise from outside HMS. The working group also conducted several listening sessions with additional members of the HMS educational and research communities.
Together, the committee’s 11 key recommendations — a direct result of those conversations — serve as a roadmap for fostering and advancing a culture at HMS that is dedicated to open inquiry and respectful discourse.
Dean Daley’s April 21 email to the HMS community
Final report of the Working Group on Open Inquiry
Beyond HMS, Harvard University leadership has taken steps to enhance open inquiry and civil discourse at Harvard, initially through establishment by President Garber of a faculty group drawn from across the University. The Harvard University Report on Open Inquiry and Constructive Dialogue, issued on October 1, 2024, examines these issues and proposes a variety of approaches, syllabi, tools, curricula, and policy changes — as well as teaching and advising norms — to support the University’s renewed commitment to open inquiry. HMS guidance flows partially from these recommendations.