Agents of Change: The Founding and Impact of the African-American Student Union celebrates the 50th anniversary of the formation of the African-American Student Union (AASU) at Harvard Business School (HBS) in 1968. "It was not until the 1960s," the Harvard Business School Bulletin noted on AASU's 25th anniversary, "when the civil rights movement forced America's mainstream institutions to acknowledge the shortcomings of their policies, practices, and attitudes regarding racial minorities—that Harvard Business School, like the rest of the University and society at large, gradually became more welcoming to students of color." Agents of Change examines the African American experience at HBS from 1915 to 1990. The exhibition focuses on the establishment and subsequent impact of AASU on the African American community at HBS and on the School itself—and honors the first 75 years of groundbreaking contributions of Black alumni and faculty.
The Agents of Change website was originally launched in 2018 as part of the HBS celebration of the 50th anniversary of the founding of the African-American Student Union (AASU) in 1968. The site was migrated, with the original content, to a new platform in 2025 with the guidance of Adam Jacobi and Jennifer Wilson.
Supported by the de Gaspé Beaubien Family Endowment at Harvard Business School
