For information about Web accessibility, please contact the Webmaster at webmaster@haverford.edu.

Haverford College

First-Year Students

Frequently Asked Questions

Email & Electronic Resources

  1. When will I get my Haverford email account?
  2. Why should I activate my Haverford email account?
  3. How do I read my Haverford email?
  4. I'm concerned that I missed a first year related email sent to my Haverford account. Is there a way I can check what has been sent to me?
  5. I'm concerned about an email I sent to a Haverford email address. What should I do so my emails to Haverford email users do not get mistaken as spam?
  6. How do I find my student ID number?
  7. How do I get help?

Customs

  1. Why do we have Customs?
  2. What are Customs People (CP)?
  3. What's an Upper Class Advisor (UCA)?
  4. What's an Honor Code Orienteer (HCO)?
  5. What are Peer Awareness Facilitators (PAFs)?
  6. What are Ambassadors for Multicultural Awareness (AMA)?
  7. What's Customs Week?
  8. Is Customs really a year-long program?

Safety & Security

  1. Are Security officers merely "rent-a-cops"?
  2. How does Security handle sexual assault statistics?
  3. If I call security about a student who is sick from alcohol and may need to go to the hospital, do I need to worry about police citing for underage drinking?

Library

  1. How do I borrow materials from the libraries?
  2. Where is the Music Library?
  3. Where are the Science Libraries?
  4. Where is the Quaker Collection? Special Collections?
  5. Where is the Cricket Library?
  6. Are there computers I can use in the libraries?
  7. Where are the photocopiers?

Academics

  1. How can I find more information about each department at Haverford?

 

Email & Electronic Resources

When will I get my Haverford email account?
Your Haverford email account activation info will be emailed to you by June 1st at the personal email address you gave us. Please check your email often and let us know if your personal email address has changed.

Why should I activate my Haverford email account?
We will send you most of our summer communications electronically and only to your Haverford address. Therefore, you should check your email account weekly to make sure you are up to date with all communications from the College. You will also use your Haverford email account username and password to complete some of the placement tests online and complete various forms such as the housing application, due June 13th.

How do I read my Haverford email?
You can check your Haverford email using HaverApps, Haverford's implementation of the Google Apps Education Edition suite, available at: https://mail.haverford.edu.

I'm concerned that I missed a first-year related email sent to my Haverford account. Is there any way I can check what has been sent to me?
Aside from carefully searching your inbox, there is no tool for finding every message that has been sent to your account. You can, however, view an archive of all messages sent from the Deans' Office and other campus offices to the entire class of 2015. You can read the archive at http://list.haverford.edu/mailman/private/hc15/. This archive is kept on our Mailman mailing list server and requires a password that is different from your Haverford email password. Get your Mailman password. Enter your Haverford email address as "Your Email Address" and select HC15 from the "list name" drop down menu. Click on the "email my password" button to have your password emailed to your Haverford Email account.

I'm concerned about an email I sent to a Haverford email address. What should I do so my emails to Haverford email users do not get mistaken for spam?
We suggest that when you send email to a Haverford address, you use your Haverford account. Doing so reduces the chance that your message will get caught in our spam filters. Use descriptive and relevant subject lines. Also, double check that you have the correct email address for your recipient. You can look up most email addresses using the online campus directory: http://www.haverford.edu/contacts/

How do I find my student ID number?
You can get your ID number online. Please note that you will need a valid Haverford email username and password to use this tool.

How do I get help?
Contact Raisa Williams, your First-Year Dean. If she cannot answer your question, she can direct it to an appropriate staff member for help. If you are having problems activating your Haverford email account or have not received your email account activation credentials, fill out the Account Management Help Form at http://accounts.haverford.edu/activate/help.html.

Customs

Why do we have Customs?
Customs is probably Haverford's oldest tradition. Harkening back to the mid 1800's, the tradition of upperclassmen showing lowerclassmen the ropes of the College is certainly an old one. Today, the Customs Program is drastically different from the sometimes institutionalized hazing it has been in the past. The overarching goals of the Program are to introduce students to Haverford and to prepare them for the upcoming year. To facilitate this, Customs introduces freshman to a wide range of resources and information on campus, as well as encourages students to pursue the College's mission: "Non Doctior Sed Meliore Doctrina Imbutus" or "Not more learned, but imbued with a higher spirit." This essentially hints at the College's commitment to the ideal of not just giving students a degree, but helping them learn more about both themselves and the world around them.

What are Customs People (CP)?
Customs People are Haverford’s alternative to a residential advisor program, with two living on each Freshman Hall. Essentially, Customs People serve as an automatic upper-class student resource, as well as big brothers/sisters for the freshmen. Instead of penalizing freshmen or enforcing stringent policies as other residential advising programs may do, CPs serve as support systems and role models for their freshmen. They help the freshmen in any way possible by alleviating the stresses of the freshman college transition process, resolving residential life queries, intervening in emergency situations, and, potentially most importantly, forging strong relationships with each freshman on an individual basis.

What's an Upper Class Advisor (UCA)?
UCAs are juniors or seniors who live on or near the hall and are particularly adept at navigating the complicated waters of academic requirements and the academic departments. UCAs work in tandem with the Faculty Advisors in advising first-year students about their class choices. UCAs are chosen from a wide pool in the spring by the Deans' Office and undergo rigorous training to serve as an advisor.

What's an Honor Code Orienteer (HCO)?
HCOs are responsible for overseeing first-year students' introduction to the ever-present Honor Code. Nearly as old as Customs, the Honor Code is quite possibly the most widely-discussed topic on campus. Each Customs team's HCO facilitates discussions about Honor Code issues and encourages attendance at the bi-annual Plenary meeting. HCOs also function as an off-the-hall resource for the freshman.

What are Peer Awareness Facilitators (PAFs)?
PAFs are pairs of upper-class students who work with each Customs Group to foster dialogues about important issues to college students. Each Dialogue takes place at a weekly hour-long session and addresses topics like "Ableism," "Sexuality," and "Body Image". Peer Awareness Facilitators also function as off-hall resources for first-year students and can typically help students get in-touch with the many student life offices available.

What are Ambassadors for Multicultural Awareness (AMAs)?
The Ambassadors for Multicultural Awareness, AMA, work in conjunction with the Office of Multicultural Affairs in keeping the Customs Groups informed about the myriad of activities designed to explore and celebrate multiculturalism in our campus community and beyond. They also serve as resources to the rest of the Customs Team as they address issues of diversity.

What's Customs Week?
Customs Week is the College's Orientation for first-year students. It takes place during the five days prior to the beginning of classes, just before the Fall Semester. During this time, the freshmen meet the other freshmen on their hall, their Customs People, UCAs, Honor Code Orienteers, Faculty Advisors, and a host of other people including many of their classmates. During Customs Week, freshmen can expect to have an introduction to several major aspects of the College as well as having an opportunity to meet more people than they'll be able to keep track of. It's an exciting time, but most importantly, it's the beginning of everyone's time here at Haverford.

Is Customs really a year-long program?
Absolutely. While the language may seem a little confusing, the Customs Program itself reaches beyond the first five days of the year. Customs Week is the Orientation, but Customs is what happens afterward. Essentially, Customs denotes the relationships and experiences a freshman takes away from living with his/her Customs Group. It is the word we use to describe how our Orientation Program goes far beyond a brief introduction to the school; instead, Customs teaches everyone involved (including Custom Team members) about the new ideas, people, and issues encountered throughout the entire year at Haverford.

Safety & Security

Are Security Officers merely "Rent-a-Cops"?
Our officers have diverse backgrounds – many have police experience, including several who worked for years with the Philadelphia Police and Lower Merion Police Departments. We have a female officer who was an investigator with the Philadelphia Special Victims Unit, a manager who has extensive training in Sexual Assault, a Safety Coordinator who is a Deputy Chief with the Brookline Fire Department, as well as several other officers with various sorts of professional experience. All security officers undergo extensive training in CPR, First Aid, Cultural Diversity, Crimes Code, and Rape and Sexual Assault issues as well. A number of the officers have advanced degrees (Education, English, Criminal Justice) and many of the officers have children in college. Hence, our security officers have a genuine enthusiasm and commitment for maintaining a safe environment for our community.

How does Security handle sexual assault statistics?
ALL reports received by Security are reflected in our statistics, even when the initial report does not identify the victim by name and the incident cannot be investigated. Since sexual assault is such an underreported crime, we err on the side of including everything reported to our department, even anonymous complaints.

If I call security about a student who is sick from alcohol and may need to go to the hospital, do I need to worry about police citing for underage drinking?
It is critically important to call for help whenever a student's health/life may be at risk and that determination should be made by medical professionals. No matter how worried one is about the consequences of underage drink, the health of another student takes precedence. With respect to potential citations, one must remember that drinking underage is a legal offense. Haverford recognizes that the police exercise full discretion when it comes to the law. Thus, students may or may not be cited for underage drinking at Haverford, but that decision is in the hands of Law Officers. That said, we cannot emphasize enough how critically important it is to remember that preserving the health of another transcends any potential for a citation.