"What we're looking to do this year is to establish legitimacy," Stallings says. "The advisory board will provide technical knowledge and expertise."

HOP also hopes to expand virtually, by establishing a presence on the Internet.

Yaw D.K. Osseo-Asare '02, the group's public relations director, says the program is already using the Internet for research and will launch its own website next semester.

"We're carrying out an in-depth study of the affordable housing presence on the Internet," Osseo-Asare writes in an e-mail message. "When our site goes up next semester I think it will establish us as an integral component of how the community which houses Harvard deals with the issue of affordable housing and homelessness."

In addition, HOP hopes to attract new volunteers.

Two first-years have already expressed interest, attracted by the program's ambitious mission and businesslike approach.

"This is a serious organization that has serious repercussions in the Boston and Cambridge community," says Johnathan J. Smith '04. "They have clear goals and aspirations about what they want to do and accomplish."