Although his friends lament that rather than Mather House, Joe resides in the brick house tucked in the corner of the Yard, his superior dedication to PBHA has not gone unnoticed. Dean Judith Kidd, Assistant Dean for Public Service and Director of Phillips Brooks House marvels at Joe's ability to balance his love for actual service itself with an understanding of the larger picture.

"He has never lost sight of his mission--keep PBHA student-led," Dean Kidd said over email. Fellow members of the PBHA cabinet acknowledge that, at every meeting, Joe will not only help generate new plans and strategies for the organization's future, but will also check off what they have accomplished so far.

Strategic plan. Organizational mission. Larger picture. These are big, power-hungry and empty words. At heart, what Joe really loves and cherishes is spending time with his little siblings, who are now high school student. He has been hanging out with his three younger siblings every Saturday since our first year. Joe is committed to these Boston students and is currently mentoring the youngsters on getting into college. One of them was so inspired by Joe that this summer he volunteered to be a big brother himself.

While Joe shifted uncomfortably in his chair when I grilled him on his "leadership" role, a content smile spread across his face when he avidly began describing these little sibs. The genuine care and love he feels for them was immediately evident.

With all the strange connotations of leadership at Harvard, its reassuring to know that people like Joe are at the top.