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2023-2024 Handbook Updates

Campus policies in the Student Handbook are reviewed annually and some policies may be updated, added, or deleted. These changes typically occur in August prior to the start of the academic year, however some changes or updates may occur throughout the year. It is our practice and goal to inform the community as soon as practical about any changes. This section provides an overview of major changes to the Student Handbook for the 2023-2024 academic year.

  • The Student Handbook was reorganized to make finding policies and information more intuitive. 
  • This section, Handbook Updates, was added.
  • The Demonstration and Free Expression Policy was added in April, 2023.
  • Updated the Residence Life section with a number of elements: 
    • In Safety and Security, Fire Safety information has been updated to better outline safety equipment expectations, prevention tips, and response protocol to fires on campus. Note that personal furniture must be registered in advance of move-in to meet MA fire code standard without banning personal furnishings (as is typical at other colleges).
    •  A new subsection on this page outlines safe practices and limitations with Lithium batteries which are a rising cause in home and dormitory fires across the country.
    • The Provided Furniture section in Bedrooms and Suites has been updated to better reflect fire code standards:  Beds, mattresses, and bed lofts are only permitted within bedrooms and may not be stored or used within suite or common areas. 
    •  The “Ceilings & Plenum” related policies has also been moved to Bedrooms and Suites and has been updated to explicitly note the prohibition of storage of items within ceiling plenums in response to repeated issues with facilities encountering items unsafely stored in these spaces.
    •  Residence Life and Campus Operations collaborated to create the new “Heating & Cooling Your Room” subsection in Bedrooms and Suites to better outline expectations and responsibilities around achieving comfortable temperatures on campus.
    •  The Noise subsection of the Living with Others page was updated to reflect standards previously only listed within Party Host training and registration process.
    •  The Guests & Visitors subsection of Living with Others  has been edited to describe limitations on hosting a guest versus being a guest. Four nights in 14-day period remains the policy, this has been updated to prevent unapproved “couch surfing.”

  • A new section on Supportive Measures was added, with subsections of No Contact Orders (an existing supportive measure) and Teaming Conflict Notices (a new supportive measure). 

  • The Mental Health Services section was updated to reflect changes in mental health services.

  • A section, now called Long-Term Modifications of Facilities and Grounds, was pulled out of the Posting section to make a stand-alone section that would be more visible. The text was updated to clarify the need for approval for long-term/permanent modification of grounds as well as facilities.

  • The Travel policy was added to reflect current practice.
  • The deadline to apply for return after withdrawal in the College Withdrawal section (found in both the Handbook and Catalog) was change from 30 to 60 days to allow sufficient time for collection of additional information and processing of financial aid and student account.
  • The CORe/Student Government section was updated to reflect structural changes implemented for the 2023-2024 year.