Residential Campus

College Staff Access to Rooms     

College staff (including but not limited to Public Safety & Service, the professional staff on call, Residential Life, Facilities Management and LITS personnel) may enter a student’s room to perform services and maintenance or respond to an emergency. Professional Residential Life staff may enter a student’s room in case of health and safety concerns. 

Occasionally, rooms may have to be entered in a student’s absence to carry out non-requested services or maintenance, or the restoration of heat, water or electricity. In these circumstances, the College will endeavor to leave behind notice of the entry and its time and purpose. 

All student rooms will be regularly inspected during vacations and other scheduled times throughout the year by College Residential Life, custodial, housekeeping or maintenance personnel to inspect for fire, health or safety hazards, liberate confined pets, or to ascertain damage to College property. 

The College reserves the right to escort insurance inspectors, engineers and other officials through the residence halls and to conduct surveys of selected buildings or rooms for the purpose of planning renovations. Advance notice of these inspections will be given whenever possible. 

The College reserves the right to enter a student’s room when necessary for the furtherance of College business, which includes, but is not limited to: inspection for compliance with fire, health and safety regulations, inspection and inventory of College property, maintenance of security, the furtherance of security investigation, and necessary building maintenance.

Emergency Entries

The usual rights of privacy and guarantees against trespass may be suspended in the course of disturbances of the peace, domestic violence, serious criminal incidents, fire alarms, and fires, floods or similar disasters.

Fire officials may enter a student’s room without permission to search for, or to confirm the presence of, a fire or related dangers. Any person, including law enforcement officials, may enter a student’s room without permission to search for, rescue, evacuate or treat fire or disaster victims, or to otherwise save lives or property from destruction.      

In the course of assisting at a fire, disturbance or disaster, police officers may lawfully seize any evidence of a crime they observe in plain view for purposes of prosecution. Being lawfully on the premises, they do not need to obtain a warrant to authorize the seizure. However, a police officer who seeks to enter a student’s room solely to investigate such a report is under legal obligation to obtain consent or a judicial warrant.

Fire officials are responsible for reporting any evidence of a crime they have observed to law enforcement officials.

Furniture and Furniture Removal

Each residential space is equipped with furniture provided by the College. All College-owned furniture must remain in the student’s room. The resident(s) of a room will be charged for any damaged furniture and/or furniture missing from their space. Requests regarding furniture and/or furniture removal must be fully approved through Disability Services prior to removal of the furniture.

Golden Pears

Students are responsible for the proper maintenance of the Golden Pears (kitchens) and associated areas of the residence halls. Countertops, cupboards, cutting surfaces, dishwashers, floors, ovens, refrigerators, sinks and stoves must be cleaned at least daily to lessen the risk of food-borne illnesses, and to discourage unwanted bugs and rodents. Failure to keep the kitchen area in proper sanitary condition could result in closing the Golden Pear. Students with documentable need to be living in proximity to a Golden Pear kitchen should contact Disability Services to request proximity housing and will retain access to the Golden Pear in case of closure.

Guest Policy

Student rooms serve multiple purposes and the Office of Residential Life encourages roommates to discuss rest, academic and social expectations within their room. As a residential college, rest and study have priority over entertainment. The guest policy applies to all residential students and is in effect for the fall and spring semesters. No guests are permitted during summer housing, winter break and January Intersession.

Students are allowed to invite guests into the residence halls. The College considers a guest of the campus to be anyone who is not an actively registered Mount Holyoke student. A guest in a residential context is any student who is not a resident of the hall or an assigned occupant in the residence hall room.

Student organizations hoping to have more than 15 guests on any given night must follow the hosting guidelines:

• Guests must abide by the regulations of the residence hall and the larger College community while they are on campus.
• If the guest’s conduct offends other residents or breaks policy, or if the frequency of visits becomes problematic, the hosts will be asked to have the guest leave immediately.
• Any guest without a host will be asked to leave immediately.
• The host(s) assumes full responsibility for informing their guests of the College policies, procedures and community expectations.
• The host is held responsible for the behavior of their guests.
• In instances of inappropriate behavior, this policy will be applied to currently registered Mount Holyoke students.

Overnight Guests

Students are permitted to host guests for overnight stays. The Office of Residential Life asks roommates to discuss and come to an agreement on overnight guests, including overnight visits of other Mount Holyoke students. The overnight provision of the guest policy is intended for short-term visits. Short-term is defined as less than three nights. The overnight provision of the guest policy also applies to students living in apartments, singles and suites as well as students living with roommates. Below are the specific guidelines for overnight visits: 

• Overnight is considered any stay in the residence hall between the hours of 2 am and 8 am.
• The actual permitted number of overnight visits should be agreed upon by roommates. The maximum number of overnight visits per semester is 14 per visitor.
• No overnight guest can stay in residence longer than five (5) consecutive days. Overnight guests are limited to one five (5) consecutive day stay per semester. 
• Host and guests cannot sleep in residence hall common rooms, academic spaces or community spaces such as the Community Center.

Hallways

Hallways must always be clear in case of fire. Items found in hallways and stairwells are considered abandoned. A delay in removing items from a hallway will result in their immediate removal and disposal. This includes but is not limited to bicycles, boots, shoes, boxes, trash, suitcases, clothes, umbrellas, beds, furniture, doormats and decorative items. 

Illegal Moves/Room Changes 

Students are not allowed to move into a new room assignment or change rooms with another student without the express permission of the Office of Residential Life. For questions about changing rooms, students should contact the Office of Residential Life.

Animals

For the safety and comfort of all residents, animals are forbidden in College-provided housing at all times, with the exception of service animals, emotional support animals approved through Disability Services, and fish that can be safely and humanely contained in a tank or bowl of 5 gallons or less. 

If a student’s family or friends intend to bring an animal to campus, they must remain outside of the College-provided housing and follow all College policies on walking animals on campus.

Students who would like to have an emotional support animal must be approved for this accommodation by Disability Services before the animal arrives on campus. Students seeking to bring a service animal on campus should refer to the Service Animal Policy for specific details and guidelines. Students approved for an emotional support animal must follow the guidelines that are provided in the animal contract that will be signed with Disability Services. Aquarium lights and filters are allowed and must meet Mount Holyoke College’s fire safety guidelines. 

Students are responsible for the well-being of their animals throughout the academic year and break periods. The College will consider other animal species in residence on a case-by-case basis in accordance with federal regulations. Such requests should be made through the Disability Services.
 

Quiet Hours

Students are expected to be courteous and respectful of one another regarding room noise and activity at all times. Established quiet hours are 10 pm – 8 am from Sunday night to Friday morning and 2 – 10 am from Friday night to Sunday morning. Quiet floors are located on the first, second and third floors of Safford Hall and the fourth and fifth floors of 1837 Hall. These spaces have 24-hour quiet hours with silent hours from 10 pm – 8 am. Outside of quiet hours and courtesy hours, there are 24-hour quiet hours during the examination period, which begins at midnight of the first reading day. Quiet hours can be extended — but not reduced — through voting facilitated by the hall staff.

Residential Community Responsibility 

Students are members of a residence hall and are expected to act responsibly and not to interfere with the rights, comfort or safety of their roommates and other students.

Smoke-Free Residence Halls 

Mount Holyoke College is a smoke- and tobacco-free campus. All residence halls are completely smoke-free spaces. The definition of smoke-free includes the use of all tobacco products, including cigarettes, cigars, pipes, all forms of smokeless tobacco, vaping and electronic cigarettes, tobacco and tobacco products, and any substance burned for the purpose of inhalation. No smoking may take place in any space in these buildings. This includes but is not limited to student rooms, lounge spaces, bathrooms, balconies, porches, and fire escapes. Students caught smoking in the residence halls will be assessed a minimum fee of $50.

See the Residence License Agreement.

Right to Assign/Reassign Student Room Placement

The College, through the Office of Residential Life, reserves the right to assign any vacancy in College-owned housing at any time and/or to reassign any student at any time. The College reserves the right to relocate housing assignments as deemed necessary. This includes relocating a student to another room/hall or assigning a new roommate to any open housing space. 

Roof and Porch Access 

For safety reasons, students are not permitted on the balconies — excluding the Dickinson balconies — or roofs of Mount Holyoke College buildings, including residence halls. Damage to the roofs, unknown structural integrity problems and missing guardrails and handrails make climbing or walking out on roofs very hazardous. Excluding Dickinson House, no rooms have private outdoor spaces or balconies.  

Searches by Law Enforcement Officials

Nothing in the legal relationship between the College and the student gives the College authority to consent on students’ behalf to the search of a student’s room, vehicle or other possessions by law enforcement officials.

The College will advise law enforcement officials that they must obtain the student’s permission or a judicial search warrant for permission to search a student’s room, vehicle or other possessions. 

(Note: Law enforcement search warrants must be based on probable cause to believe a crime has been committed and that evidence of that crime is in the place to be searched. Law enforcement officials do not have to have reason to believe that the occupants of a particular room, or the possessors of a vehicle or trunk, have committed the crime under investigation.) 

Law enforcement officials who have a valid search warrant are required to show it to the occupant of the room if the occupant is present. Law enforcement authorities have the authority to use whatever physical force is necessary to execute the warrant. Questions about the validity of the search warrant should be reserved for the courts. 

In exigent circumstances (such as an immediate situation where there is insufficient time to obtain a search warrant and where evidence would be destroyed by the delay), particularly with motor vehicles, law enforcement officers operating on probable cause may not need a search warrant. 

The Public Safety & Service department is responsible for the coordination of all searches and seizures by public officials and outside law enforcement on the Mount Holyoke College campus.

Roommates’ Rights and Responsibilities Connected to Privacy and Inspection

Students may incur legal liabilities as a result of actions taken by their roommate(s). Roommates who tolerate the commission or evidence of a crime (including illegal drugs) in their rooms open themselves to the possibility that all of their private possessions in that room may be searched pursuant to a warrant, even though they are not suspects, and that they may be prosecuted for any stolen goods or prohibited substances found therein. 

Roommates may authorize law enforcement officers, official inspectors or anyone else to enter rooms shared in common and a successful prosecution may follow from the observation of the evidence of a crime in plain view. However, a roommate may not waive another student’s right to the privacy of a desk, bureau, closet, trunk or other presumptively private container not shared in common. A judicial warrant is required to search closed containers.

Statement on Privacy and Room Inspections

Residential Life and Facilities Management assess the condition of each room at the beginning of the academic year. This assessment indicates the physical state of the room and all of its contents at the time of the student’s arrival. Any missing furniture or change in the state of the room or its facilities beyond reasonable wear will be billed to the student. Students will be charged for the actual labor of a major repair and replacement costs of furniture. A $100 cleaning fee is assessed if any personal belongings or trash is left behind in the residence hall room when students vacate the space. Any painting of student rooms or College furnishings is prohibited. There will be a minimum fee of $400 for any painting in a student room or on College furnishings.

Residential Life staff and Facilities Management staff inspect rooms periodically to ensure compliance with fire safety regulations. Another inspection takes place after students leave. Students will be notified in advance of these inspections. 

In addition, South Hadley departments of public health, public safety, and fire may send inspectors to conduct routine inspections of residence halls, including student rooms, bathrooms and common areas, and storage areas. These inspections may result in College sanctions for any student who is responsible for violations of College policy. 

Routine inspections are scheduled in advance and generally occur during the College business day (Monday–Friday, 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m.). Inspectors will provide a minimum notice of 24 hours. Inspectors are escorted by a Mount Holyoke College employee. To inspect an occupied student room, the inspector must present the appropriate credentials and request permission from an occupant before inspecting. 

If permission for a scheduled inspection is denied and the occupant refuses to arrange a convenient time for the inspection, the inspector may obtain a court order permitting entry without the occupant’s permission. 

These inspections are limited to the purposes for which they are authorized and should not involve examining any desk, bureau, trunk or other presumptively private container. Closets may be searched for illegal heating devices. 

If an inspector should see evidence of a crime in plain view, the inspector has the responsibility to report the observation to law enforcement authorities. At Mount Holyoke College, these reports can be forwarded to Public Safety & Service. 

To ensure the health and safety of the community, emergency and/or safety inspections can occur at any time without notice.

Vandalism

Vandalism is defined as any intentional behavior that causes destruction of College and/or private property. Students are expected to refrain from behavior that can damage their residence or the belongings of others, including any College property. In addition, students are responsible for the behavior of their guests and will be held accountable for their actions. Students will be billed for the costs of any vandalism that they cause or that may be caused by their guests, and may face additional sanctions. In the event the cause of any loss or damage to the residence hall, its common areas, furnishings or fixtures cannot be determined after reasonable investigation by the College, the cost of such loss or damage shall be prorated to each student assigned to the residence hall (or room, suite, where appropriate) regardless of whether such student was present in the residence hall at the time of such loss or damage.