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Haverford College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college located in Haverford, Pennsylvania. The college is known for its academic excellence and is consistently rated as one of the top liberal arts colleges in the country.

Haverford is a member of the Tri-College Consortium, which allows students to register for courses at both Swarthmore College and Bryn Mawr College. Haverford enjoys an especially close relationship with Bryn Mawr. The two schools share a student newspaper and radio station and have a fairly integrated student life. Students may also take classes at the University of Pennsylvania College of General Studies (CGS).

The college was founded in 1833 by Philadelphia members of the Religious Society of Friends (Quakers). Haverford is the oldest college or university in North America with Quaker origins. Although no longer religiously affiliated, the Quaker philosophy still heavily influences campus life. Originally an all-male institution, Haverford admitted its first female students in 1980. Today more than half of Haverford's students are women.

All students at the college are undergraduates. The current enrollment is 1168 students.

Honor Code

In 1896, the students and faculty of Haverford voted to adopt an Honor Code to govern academic affairs. The Social part of the Code was started in the 1980's. The code does not list specific rules of behavior, but rather outlines a philosophy of trust, respect, integrity, and concern for others that students are expected to follow in both academic and social matters. When a student (or other community member) feels that another student has broken the Code, he or she is expected to "confront" the possible offender and engage in a dialogue with them, before taking matters to Honor Council. Ideally, many potential violations are worked out through dialogue (mediated or not) and common understanding.

Student government officers implement the code, and all academic matters are heard by student juries, which are chosen by the Honor Council secretaries. Although students formerly heard trials regarding sexual assault, students and administrators agreed to allow college deans to hear cases pertaining to all types of violent crimes. Abstracts from cases heard by students and joint administrative-student panels are available on the Honor Council website.

The student body convenes an annual Spring Plenary to amend and ratify the Honor Code. In Spring 2006, several key amendments were made to the code. The code was ratified at Plenary; however, Honor Council failed to receive enough ratification cards to ratify the code formally, leaving the college without an honor code as of February 18, 2006. On March 19th, students gathered in a Special Plenary and passed an Honor Code. The code passed electronically, reinstating the long held judiciary process.

Some students have argued against reinstating the Honor Code, arguing that the failure is a result of a marked lack of respect, but this opinion seems to belong to a minority, as the majority of the students seem to feel that the Honor Code is central to their existence as students, and that its failure was not due to apathy but to bureaucracy.

Academics

Haverford offers the Bachelor of Arts Degree in: Natural Sciences: astronomy, biology, chemistry, geology, mathematics, physics. In the Social Sciences: anthropology, economics, growth and structure of cities, history, political science, psychology, sociology. Humanities: archaeology, classics, comparative literature, East Asian Studies, English, fine arts, French, German, history of art, Italian, Japanese, music, philosophy, religion, Russian, Spanish. Science majors may choose to receive a Bachelor of Science degree.

In addition to majors and minors, Haverford offers several concentrations: Africana studies, biochemistry, biophysics, computer science, East Asian studies, education, feminist and gender studies, Latin American and Iberian studies, mathematical economics, neural and behavioral sciences, peace studies. Students may pursue pre-medical, pre-law or pre-business intentions through any major; special advising is offered in these areas.

A particularly rare but nonetheless available option is the "3/2 liberal arts and engineering" course of study *. This allows students to take three years of liberal arts and science courses at Haverford and then two years of engineering courses at the California Institute of Technology. Students who successfully complete the program are awarded both a Bachelor of Arts in Liberal Arts from Haverford College and a Bachelor of Engineering degree from Caltech. This program requires early and very close planning with a faculty advisor.

There is very little grade inflation at Haverford, and a straight "4.0" student is a rare find. According to student discussion on the Go! Boards (see below in student life), Haverford's office of the registrar annually reports the average cumulative GPA to be around 3.30 -- however there has been no official publication regarding the fact.

Athletics

Haverford competes at the NCAA Division III level in the Centennial Conference.

The track and field and cross country teams have often been among the best in the division. In 1997, then-senior Karl Paranya became the first (and, until spring 2006, the only) Division III runner to run a 4:00 mile, running 3:57.6. The history of track at Haverford also includes former captain Lord Phillip Noel Baker 1908 who subsequently captained Great Britain's "Chariot's of Fire" Olympic team from which the movie was based.

The men's soccer team, the nation's oldest, won the first intercollegiate soccer match, beating Harvard College in 1905.

The College's football team disbanded after the 1971 season, but Haverford boasts the best (and only) varsity cricket team in the country.* The team, which was started in the 1830s, has a rivalry with the University of Pennsylvania that dates back about 150 years. The first game, between Haverford and the University of Pennsylvania was played in 1864 and was one of the first intercollegiate athletic competitions.

The 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). Coached by only three fencing masters in over 70 years, Haverford has had varying success. The men's team was the conference champion in 1983, and again in 2004, under the leadership of Coach David Littell, a 1988 Olympian and 3-time All American.

The men's club volleyball team recently attained a national Top-25 ranking in NIRSA's Division II (enrollments under 15,000). The club was 14-6 in 2005 and 15-7 in 2006. The team competes in the Mid-Atlantic Club Volleyball Conference (MACVC), which is a 34 team super-conference of teams in PA and NJ.

The campus

The campus includes the Haverford College Arboretum with a beautiful nature trail, a duck pond, historic trees of diverse species, sculpture, and a zen garden.

Almost the entire student body (97%) lives on campus, where housing options include apartments, themed houses or traditional dormitories.

Haverford is located on the Main Line about 10 miles west of Philadelphia. The school is connected to downtown by the SEPTA R5 commuter rail system and Norristown High Speed Line.

Student life

While the workload is generally considered heavy by Haverford students, students usually manage to find time to relax and have fun, especially on weekends. Weekend activities range from the usual college options of a cappella singing groups, indie bands, student films, and improv comedy, to more unusual adventures, such as tag or sardines in the INSC (Integrated Natural Sciences Center). Of the nation's 357 "best" colleges, the Princeton Review ranks Haverford as #6 for Best Overall Undergraduate Experience.

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 first student portal, Go!, and server space for students. In 2003 FIG created discussion boards as a part of Go!, called the Go! Boards. Amid controversy, the boards have come to constitute much of the discussion on campus as well as providing a place for procrastination.

Free music events are often presented in the basement of Lunt (a student dorm), adjacent to the always-popular Lunt Cafe. Professional funk, rock, blues, and jazz bands are brought in by the Federation of United Concert Series, a student organization. Student musicians have created a vibrant musical community on campus, forming (in 2005) at least ten bands whose styles include jam rock, hardcore punk, folk, and jazz. Haverford boasts excellent practice facilities. In 2005, students created a recording studio and a record label, Black Squirrel Records, which in April released a compilation album that featured Haverford student bands.

Student publications include the Bi-College News, a newspaper that is a collaboration of Bryn Mawr and Haverford Colleges; The Haverford Review, a student literary magazine (available here); the Haverford Journal, an academic journal; and The Record, the student yearbook. All of these organizations are completely student-run. Students also run their own radio station, WHRC Radio, which broadcasts through the internet.

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.

Major student social events on campus also include Screw Your Roommate, Snowball, La Fiesta, Sundance, and Haverfest (a weekend-long party at the end of the year, organized in 2006 by All-Stars Gabe Sanders and Desmond "Tutu" Hubbard), all of which are organized by Students' Council. The college has no fraternities or sororities, but Drinker House is considered to be the closest resemblance of one on campus, along with non-residential quasi-Greek Life in the form of sports teams and acappella groups. Drinker House is the host to First Drinker, Pong Tournaments, and a Holiday Party that marks the end of the Drinker Toy Drive each winter.

Notable alumni (in alphabetical order)

Notable faculty, current and past

Notable Administrators

  • Isaac Sharpless, president of Haverford, noted historian
  • John R. Coleman, President of Haverford, Author of The Blue Collar Journal, Economist, Innkeeper

Fictional Alumni

Trivia

A number of campus legends revolve around the brief time that Chevy Chase spent at Haverford, and pranks that he is alleged to have pulled. ''See Chevy Chase

External links

Further reading

Jones, Rufus Matthew. Haverford College: A History and Interpretation. New York: Macmillan, 1933.

Kannerstein, Gregory, ed. The Spirit and the Intellect: Haverford College 1883-1983. Haverford, Pa.: Haverford College, 1983.

Langlieb, David M. Haverford College Off the Record. Pittsburgh, PA : College Prowler, 2005.

Universities and colleges in Pennsylvania | Liberal arts colleges | Peace studies | Quaker schools | Pennsylvania Main Line

Haverford College

 

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