Haverford College

Haverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, Pennsylvania, United States, a suburb of Philadelphia. All students of the College are undergraduates, and nearly all reside on campus.

The College was founded in 1833 by area members of the Orthodox Philadelphia Yearly Meeting of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers) to ensure an education grounded in Quaker values for young Quaker men. Although the College no longer has a formal religious affiliation, the Quaker philosophy still influences campus life. Originally an all-male institution, Haverford began admitting female transfer students in the 1970s and became fully co-ed in 1980. Currently, more than half of Haverford's students are women. For most of the 20th century, Haverford's total enrollment was kept below 300, but the school went through two periods of expansion after the 1970s, and its current enrollment is 1,190 students. As of the 2012-2013 academic year, Haverford College's tuition is $43,310; room and board, $13,290; activity fee, $392; and orientation fee, $210. This amounts to a total of $57,202.

Haverford is a member of the Tri-College Consortium, which allows students to register for courses at both Bryn Mawr College and Swarthmore College. The College enjoys an especially close relationship with Bryn Mawr College. It is also a member of the Quaker Consortium ("Penn-Pal") which allows students to cross-register at the College of General Studies (CGS) and the Wharton School of Business at the University of Pennsylvania. The college was ranked 27th among all colleges and universities in the 2013 edition of Forbes' "Top Colleges," and 9th among national liberal arts colleges by the 2012 edition of U.S. News and World Report. A 2012 Forbes ranking on the colleges which produce the most entrepreneurs per capita placed Haverford first among liberal arts colleges (followed by business-oriented Babson College, Harvey Mudd College, Swarthmore College, Claremont McKenna College, Amherst College, and Williams College) and tenth overall (between Yale and Princeton).

Honor Code
In 1896, the students and faculty of Haverford voted to adopt an Honor Code to govern academic affairs. Since 1963, every student has been allowed to schedule his or her own final exams. Take-home examinations are also common at Haverford. These exams may include strict instructions such as time limits, prohibitions on using assigned texts or personal notes, and calculator usage. All students are bound to follow these instructions by the Code.



Originally conceived as a code of academic honesty, the Honor Code had expanded by the 1970s to govern social interactions. The code does not list specific rules of behavior, but rather outlines a philosophy of trust, concern, and respect for others that students are expected to follow. When a student (or other community member) feels that another student has broken the Code, he or she is encouraged not to look the other way but rather to confront the possible offender and engage in a dialogue with him or her, before taking matters to an Honor Council which can help mediate the dispute. Ideally, many potential violations are worked out through dialogue (mediated or not) and common understanding.

Student government officers administer the Code, and all academic matters are heard by student juries. More severe matters are addressed by administrators. Abstracts from cases heard by students and joint administrative-student panels are distributed to all students by several means, including as print-outs in mailboxes. The trial abstracts are made anonymous by the use of pseudonyms, which are often characters from entertainment or history.

The student body convenes every semester in a plenary session with a 50 percent quorum. At these meetings, the Honor Code or Student Constitution can be amended, and at Spring Plenary the student body votes to put the Honor Code up for ratification (now done electronically with 2/3 quorum). In addition to revisions of self-governance, the student body debates resolutions that get passed to the faculty and administration for approval and action.

The Honor Code is touted by the Office of Admissions, and every student is required to sign a pledge agreeing to the Code prior to matriculation. Unlike Honor Codes at institutions such as Brigham Young University, which are imposed on the students by the administration, the Haverford Honor Code is entirely student-run. The Code originated with a body of students who felt it necessary, and current Haverford students administer and amend it every year.

Academic Program
Haverford offers Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees among 31 majors in the natural sciences, social sciences and the humanities. All departments require a senior thesis, project or research for graduation, and many departments also have junior-level seminar or year-long project such as in biology (superlab) and chemistry (superlab). The College also maintains a distribution requirement, spreading course work in all three areas of humanities, social sciences and natural sciences, in addition to major course works. Additional program and course offerings are available via the Quaker Consortium.

In addition to majors and minors, Haverford offers concentrations in Africana studies, biochemistry, biophysics, computer science, East Asian studies, education, feminist and gender studies, health and society, Latin American and Iberian studies, mathematical economics, neural and behavioral sciences, and peace studies. Students may pursue pre-medical, pre-law or pre-business intentions through any major; the College offers special advising by professionals in those fields. Music students enjoy close proximity to Philadelphia's music tradition: the Philadelphia Orchestra and The Curtis Institute of Music, where students can receive discounted concert tickets and take on extra instrument or voice lessons.

The Sciences
Despite its relatively small size and academic strength in the humanities and arts, Haverford is also notable in the sciences. In the 1950s, Haverford was the first institution in America to teach modern laboratory biology (molecular biology) to undergraduates; within the department of physics is the only National Academy of Sciences member to currently teach at a liberal arts college; many current faculty also are recipients of national awards for undergraduate teaching such as the Lindback and NSF CAREER awards, American Physical Society Award for Research in an Undergraduate Institution, The Henry Dreyfus Teacher-Scholar Award, and The Bruce H. Mahan Memorial Teaching Award.

Haverford graduates have also been eminent figures in their respective fields. Both physics and chemistry departments boast graduates who have been awarded the Nobel Prize. On two occasions since 1996 have Haverford physics students won the prestigious LeRoy Apker Award.

Haverford does not maintain its own program in engineering, but students may elect to pursue the 4+1 engineering program in cooperation with the University of Pennsylvania. Under this program, the first of its kind, students spend four years at Haverford, then one year at Penn, and obtain a Bachelor's of Science from Haverford and a Master's in Engineering from Penn. Alternatively, students may enroll in the 3/2 liberal arts and engineering course of study. This option allows students to enroll in three years of liberal arts and science courses at Haverford and then two years of engineering courses at the California Institute of Technology, ultimately obtaining bachelor degrees from both institutions.

Postgraduate placement
The National Science Foundation ranks Haverford #7 among liberal arts colleges, and #13 among all colleges and universities in the United States, for producing the greatest number of science and engineering students to pursue PhDs per capita many of whom continue their studies at top national universities including Harvard University, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the University of Chicago, the University of California, Berkeley, and Stanford University among others. Of these graduates, many also receive postgraduate research fellowships under NSF-GRF, Fulbright and Churchill scholarships.

In a 2003 publication on the placement of recent graduates into "top" programs in business, law and medicine, The Wall Street Journal ranked Haverford among the top twenty colleges and universities in the United States.

Campus
Haverford College is located on the Main Line about 3 mi west of Philadelphia. The school is connected to center city Philadelphia by the Paoli/Thorndale Line commuter rail system and Norristown High Speed Line (R100). The northwest portion of the campus is located in Haverford Township in Delaware County, and the southwest part of the campus is located in Lower Merion Township in Montgomery County. The campus itself is situated is an affluent suburban neighborhood, adjacent to the Haverford School, the Merion Golf Club and the Merion Cricket Club, one of the oldest country clubs in the United States. Nearby attractions within walking distance include various food markets, grocery stores, fast food restaurants, and Suburban Square, which hosts retail stores, restaurants and a local farmer's market.

Buildings
The College operates more than 50 academic, athletic, and residential buildings, which are mostly stone and reflect Quaker and colonial design principles. The most recent additions are the Marian E. Koshland Integrated Natural Science Center and the Douglas B. Gardner '83 Integrated Athletic Center (colloquially referred to as the GIAC). Two dorms, by Tod Williams Billie Tsien Architects, began housing freshman and upperclassman in the fall of 2012. Haverford's Magill Library boasts more than a half million of its own volumes and has access to nearly two million more through its unusual Tripod computerized catalog system, which integrates its library with those of neighboring Bryn Mawr and Swarthmore Colleges. In addition to Magill's main resources, the College houses a number of special collections including the Quaker Collection, the C.C. Morris 1904 Cricket Library, and numerous rare books and other treasures; the College also maintains three smaller music, science, and astronomy libraries on campus. Planned additions in the future include renovating the now empty Ryan Gym (since being replaced by the GIAC, it has been used as a mostly informal hang-out space) to make space for a cafe, a large space suitable to house the college's sizable special collections, a technology commons, classrooms and study space as well as offices and performance space for the Huford Arts and Humanities Center. A second phase to the project will involve a replacement for Magill Library. Beyond that, the school hopes to build a new arts building. Renovations during the summer of 2012 added common space to the up-campus dorms. Recently the student-run Lunt Cafe was renovated to meet health and safety codes.

Arboretum
The campus is a national arboretum, and the oldest collegiate arboretum in the United States. The year after the College's founding, the English landscape gardener William Carvill was hired to design the plan for the campus. Carvill developed a design to replace the tilled fields, woodlots and pastures, using trees to frame and complement open spaces. He bordered the lanes with alleés of trees and planted groups of trees in odd numbers. Carvill also constructed grape arbors and a serpentine walk, reflecting the English landscape tradition of Sir Humphrey Repton. Carvill’s mark is still evident today in the pastoral landscape which includes several original trees including a Swamp white oak, Quercus bicolor, and Bur oak, Quercus macrocarpa, on Founders Green.

In 1901, a group of students and alumni formed the Campus Club to help preserve the campus landscape after discovering Carvill’s original plan. Their work eventually led to the founding of the Haverford College Campus Arboretum Association (now the Haverford College Arboretum Association) in 1974, which continues to perpetuate Carvill’s original design. To date, the arboretum's 216 acre contain a nature trail, a pinetum with 300 different conifers, a duck pond, historic trees of diverse species, sculpture, as well as flower and Asian gardens.



Housing
Roughly 99% of the student body resides on campus, where housing options include apartments, themed houses and traditional dormitories. The minute fraction who choose to seek other accommodations do so nearby in neighboring townships. Approximately 75% of faculty also reside on campus, which is unusually high for liberal arts colleges.

Themed housing options include La Casa Hispanica, which "supports the endeavors of students actively engaged in organizing programs concerned with the cultures and civilizations of the Spanish-speaking world," the Ira de A. Reid House, which seeks students active in the Black Students' League or members of the African Diaspora interested in the culture and politics of Africans, Cadbury house, which provides a substance-free and quiet living environment, and Yarnall, which has no permanent theme.

Various housing and room arrangements exist, including suites of singles, doubles, and triples. Housing is liberal and many non-freshman suites are co-ed. In 2000, at the urging of Haverford’s inQUEERy, co-ed roommate options were officially permitted for the first time, having occurred without official sanction since 1974.

Student life
Activities available at Haverford range from a cappella singing group performances, sponsored music events, college radio, bi-college news and fashion publications, an academic journal, an annual yearbook, to multiple community service groups. Haverford has no fraternities or sororities, but Drinker House is considered to be the closest resemblance to one on campus.

In 2002, a group of students founded a computing club called FIG (a recursive acronym for FIG Is Good). Services provided by FIG include the College's student portal "Go!", server space for students, and an online discussion forum called the Go! Boards. Amid controversy, the boards have become a major venue for discussion on campus.

The College regularly sponsors events, such as a "Screw-Your-Roommate" Dance, where roommates set each other up on blind dates, formal and informal dances, and smaller adventures, such as tag or sardines in the sciences center. Fords Against Boredom (FAB) is a school-funded student group that began in 1993, and plans and sponsors free non-alcoholic events on campus and in Philadelphia. FAB has become known for its traditional events such as Ben & Jerry’s Bingo, Bowling Night, Midnight Cheese Steak Run, FAB Quizzo, and trips to sporting events and the many arts and theatre venues in Philadelphia, the FAB Film Series (the screening of a film's pre-DVD release every other weekend) and other unorthodox events such as Love Shack: Valentines Ginger Bread House building and Iron Chef: Dining Center. Additionally, FAB co-sponsors events with other student groups and is open to ideas and proposals.

Of the nation's 357 "best" colleges, the Princeton Review ranks Haverford as #6 for Best Overall Undergraduate Experience. In addition, Haverford, unlike many of its peers, is located within easy travel of a large metropolitan center and the opportunities that Philadelphia offers. Princeton Review placed Haverford on several other lists for the 2007 year. On the list for "Best Overall Academic Experience for Undergraduates," Haverford ranks #8; "School Runs Like Butter," #17; "The Toughest to Get Into," #20; "Best Quality Of Life," #14; "Happiest Students," #16.

Music
A cappella is a widely popular student activity at Haverford College. The College's own groups include the Haverford College Humtones, The Oxford Blues, The Mainliners, The Outskirts, and the Ford S-Chords. Two a cappella groups shared within the bi-co are the Looney Tunes and Counterpoint. A single group shared between Haverford, Bryn Mawr College, and Swarthmore College is Chaverim. In total, including shared a cappella groups, Haverford is believed to maintain a world record for the number of a cappella groups per capita.

More formal music organizations also exist within the bi-college consortium. Chamber Singers is a mixed choir of 30 voices from Haverford and Bryn Mawr who perform challenging repertoire ranging from the Renaissance to the present day in a variety of languages and styles. Chorale is a Wednesday night institution in bi-college life. A symphonic choir of 150 singers, the Chorale performs a major work with an orchestra each semester.

Additionally, free music events are often presented in the basement of the student dorm Lunt, adjacent to the Lunt Café, through the campus organization the Federation of United Concert Series, showcasing genres including funk, rock, blues, and jazz. Student musicians have also created a vibrant musical community on campus, forming a number of bands with eclectic styles. Haverford boasts practice facilities, a recording studio, and a record label, Black Squirrel Records, which releases compilation albums that feature Haverford student bands. Students also run their own college radio station, WHRC Radio, which broadcasts streaming audio.

Journalism
Student publications include the Bi-College News, a newspaper in collaboration with students at Bryn Mawr College that serves both campuses; The Clerk, an independent, online newspaper; Feathers & Fur, a fashion magazine also in collaboration with students at Bryn Mawr College; The Haverford Review, a student literary magazine; Without a (Noun), the Haverford satire/humor magazine; the Haverford Journal, an academic journal; and The Record, the student yearbook.

Improvisation
Haverford is home to two satirical improvisation groups which hold free shows throughout the year:

The Throng was founded in 2000 among Haverford students and focuses on exclusively on long-form improvisation, creating its own brand of comedy in the process. The Throng has performed with such professional groups as Dillinger and The Shoves at the UCB Theatre in New York, as well as the Rare Bird Show in Philadelphia.

Lighted Fools was founded officially in 1991 within the bi-college and claims to focus on the "satirical, weird, and zany." This group is also involved in the burgeoning Philadelphia improvisation scene, and has performed at the Dirty South Improv Festival, Skidmore College Comedy Festival, Oberlin College Improv Conference, Delaware Improv and Sketch O'Festival, and the UMass Amherst Improv Festival, as well as nationwide in New York at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater, Magnet Theater, and in Chicago City Limits at the Improv Olympic, and in Los Angeles at the Upright Citizens Brigade Theater.

James House
James House was begun as a student initiative in 2005 whose goal was to create a space in the former security building located between Gummere, Parker House and Woodside that could be used entirely by students to make art on their own time. To date, the space is filled with comfy furniture, tons of art supplies, and a continually rotating set of murals on the walls. Each semester several student-led workshops are held on arts and crafts projects ranging from tie-dye to scrapbooking to chip carving. James House also generally holds one or two arts-themed parties a semester. James House is headed by a board of students, which maintains the house and hosts workshops and parties. It is a designated student space and is accessible 24-hours a day, seven days a week.

Community Service
Many students are involved in volunteering, either on their own or through Haverford's volunteer coordination organization, Eighth Dimension. Volunteer opportunities are especially plentiful due to Haverford's proximity to Philadelphia. Activism is also a part of student life, and groups such as the Sexuality and Gender Alliance (SAGA), Students Toward a New Democracy (STAND), Amnesty International, College Republicans, and College Democrats have a presence on campus. The student body tends to be politically liberal, but is not without its vocal conservative elements. High value is placed in listening to many sides without disrespect or vitriol, in spirit with the Honor Code.

Athletics
Haverford College competes at the NCAA Division III level in the Centennial Conference and has a rich history in collegiate athletics: Haverford boasts the only varsity cricket team in the United States; its men's and women's track and field and cross country teams are perennial powerhouses in their division, with men's cross country winning the 2010 Cross Country Division III National Championships; its soccer team is the nation's oldest and won the first intercollegiate soccer match in 1905 against Harvard College; its fencing team has competed since the early 1930s and is a member of both the Middle Atlantic Collegiate Fencing Association (MACFA) and the National Intercollegiate Women's Fencing Association (NIWFA).