Non-Discrimination and Non-Harassment Policies

Haverford College is committed to providing an employment and educational environment free from all forms of unlawful discrimination because of race, color, sex/gender (including pregnancy, childbirth, related conditions, and lactation), religion, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, disability, status as a medical marijuana cardholder, genetic information, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, current or past membership or service in the U.S. Armed Forces or a state military unit, or any other characteristic protected by law. This policy applies to all aspects of the employment relationship, such as recruitment, selection, training, promotion, salaries, benefits, discipline, terminations, and all other terms and conditions of employment.

The detailed policies are available on the Human Resources webpage at www.haverford.edu/human-resources/handbooks-policies.

Title IX Requirements 

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 (“Title IX”) prohibits discrimination on the basis of sex in any educational programs or activities that receive federal funding, whether they take place in the facilities of a school or at an event sponsored by the school at another location. Additional details can be found at www.haverford.edu/sexual-misconduct. 

PA Act 153 Child Abuse Related Background Checks

Pennsylvania Act 153 requires employees who work with minors to obtain child abuse and criminal background clearances. Employees or volunteers who work with dual enrollees (e.g., high school students who are taking classes at Haverford) or who have direct contact with minors who participate in various summer camps or academic programs, are subject to background check requirements. Employees, including student employees, are not required to obtain a background check if their contact with minors is limited to interacting with matriculated and prospective students of the College. 

The Office of Human Resources coordinates with hiring managers and supervisors to ascertain whether or not an employee or volunteer requires a background check. If it is determined that a background check is required due to the nature of work performed, the College will pay the fees associated with obtaining the clearances.

If an employee or volunteer is convicted of an offense under Title 18 of the Pennsylvania Code (as articulated below) or of an offense similar in nature under the law or former laws of the United States or one of its territories, another state, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a foreign nation during employment at the College, the employee or volunteer must notify the Director of Human Resources within five days of the conviction.

Failure to do so, or conviction of a crime that makes the employee unsuitable for continued employment, may be grounds for immediate dismissal. 

Title 18 offenses include:

• Chapter 25 (relating to criminal homicide)
• Section 2702 (relating to aggravated assault)
• Section 2709 (relating to stalking)
• Section 2901 (relating to kidnapping)
• Section 2902 (relating to unlawful restraint)involuntary
• Section 3121 (relating to rape)
• Section 3122 (relating to statutory sexual assault)
• Section 3123 (relating to involuntary deviate sexual intercourse)
• Section 3124 (relating to sexual assault)
• Section 3125 (relating to aggravated indecent assault)
• Section 3126 (relating to indecent assault)
• Section 3127 (relating to indecent exposure)
• Section 4302 (relating to incest)
• Section 4303 (relating to concealing death of a child)
• Section 4304 (relating to endangering welfare of child)
• Section 4305 (relating to dealing in infant children)
• A felony offense under 5902 (b) (relating to prostitution and related offenses)
• Section 5903(c) or (d) (relating to obscene and other sexual materials and performances)
• Section 6301 (relating to corruption of minors)
• Section 6312 (relating to sexual abuse of children)
• The attempt, solicitation, or conspiracy to commit any of the above offenses; and
• A felony offense under the Act of April 14, 1972 (P.L. 233, No. 64) known as The Controlled Substance, Drug, Device or Cosmetic Act, committed within the past five years.

Affirmative Action Policy

Haverford College has a longstanding commitment to diversity rooted in our Quaker heritage, which emphasizes inclusion and social justice, a commitment reflected in the academic program, lived experience, and composition of the College community. A faculty and staff body of diverse identities, experiences, and capacities is central to fulfilling the College’s educational mission.

Concordant with the values of our community, Haverford actively seeks qualified prospective employees who identify with groups that are historically underrepresented and/or federally protected.

Roles & Responsibilities

All Haverford College employees who are involved in hiring, supervising, promoting, or terminating any College employee are responsible for upholding and promoting the College’s Affirmative Action Policy. They are also responsible for ensuring a respectful and productive work environment, with attention to working conditions, compensation, retention, and opportunities for advancement.

Oversight responsibilities for ensuring complete adherence to affirmative action procedures, and for handling perceived violations of the Affirmative Action Policy, are delegated to the Provost for all faculty concerns, or the Office of Human Resources for all staff concerns.

The President of the College and additional members of senior staff will be involved, as necessary, in an adjudication process for any perceived violation.

Employment of Relatives

The College policy to avoid nepotism or a perception of nepotism applies to staff employees and applicants for regular, temporary, and part-time staff employment. The policy is intended to avoid actual, potential or perceived conflicts of interest. As such, this policy specifically prohibits the hiring, transfer, or promotion of relatives of staff employees into situations where the possibility of favoritism or conflicts of interest might arise.

No staff employee may work in a position where a relative has the authority to influence, directly or indirectly, the conditions of employment, the requirements of the job, the assessment of the staff employee’s performance, or the staff employee’s compensation or other remuneration.

Therefore, applicants will not be hired or staff employees may not be promoted or transferred into a position where a relative occupies a position within a direct supervisory chain under which the applicant or the staff employee would work.

For purposes of this policy, relatives are defined as any of the following: parent or parent-in-law, child or child-in-law, spouse or partner, sibling, grandparent or grandchild, uncle or aunt, niece or nephew, or any unrelated person residing in the household of the employee.

If a situation develops that would have been prohibited by this policy due to marriage, a change in a relationship, or due to a promotion or a change in an employee’s responsibilities, the employee should immediately notify the senior vice president for administration and finance and, in each case, the Office of Human Resources. The College will work with the staff employee and the supervisor in order to resolve the matter.

Consensual Relations

The general aims of an educational institution and the particular values of Haverford College as a residential educational community of full-time undergraduate students can be compromised by sexual or romantic relationships between employees of the College and students.

Educational Mission

Sexual or romantic relationships between faculty and / or staff and students can have a negative effect upon students’ free pursuit of their academic courses of study.

Power

Faculty, administrators, and other employees possess an authority over students, which, if inappropriately wielded, may be detrimental to the atmosphere of trust upon which the community and classroom rely. The asymmetry in power is not absolute or invariable, but it always exists.

Consent

Given this power differential, sexual or romantic relationships between students and employees of the College are likely to put claims of consent in question. It is often difficult for a student to be certain of the motives of the faculty or staff. It is also difficult for a person in a position of authority to be certain that the student’s consent is genuine, rather than motivated by an unspoken fear of the consequences of not consenting.

In the case of instructors, coaches, and some administrators, the respect and trust accorded by the students, as well as the power exercised by the employee in giving grades, academic advice, evaluations, recommendations, or a prominent position in an organization or on a team, greatly diminish the student’s actual freedom of choice concerning a sexual or romantic relationship.

Conflicts of Interest and Third-Party Consequences

The possible harm can extend beyond the involved student to other students. Whether or not there is true consent (which may not be clear to others), knowledge of an intimate relationship may interfere with the ability of other students to work comfortably and effectively. Sexual or romantic relations often create or appear to create conflicts of interest and the fear from third parties of unfair treatment.

Sexual or romantic relationships between College employees and students can be detrimental to the ideals of a community based on trust and to the creation of an environment where favoritism and the appearance of favoritism are absent.

Faculty and Staff Protection

Students also have formal and informal powers that may affect the careers of College employees. Because of the power differential, persons in positions of authority such as members of the faculty or staff may find it difficult (should the relationship end in acrimony) to prove that the relationship was fully consensual.

Therefore

Sexual or romantic relationships between employees of Haverford College and undergraduate students who are connected to the Haverford community are prohibited because they interfere with the educational mission of the College and threaten the climate of trust, concern, and respect to which the Haverford College community has always been committed.

The “undergraduate students” covered by this policy include any student who is enrolled at Haverford, Bryn Mawr, or Swarthmore Colleges; any student who is taking a class at Haverford or is otherwise participating in a College-sponsored program; and any student who lives in a Haverford dormitory or other College housing.

Students and employees are expected to maintain professional, non-sexual, non-romantic relations. If it becomes known that an employee has violated this policy, the employee’s accountability is not reduced even if the relationship was begun consensually or was not initiated by the employee. It is the employee’s institutional responsibility to deal in a professional manner with such situations when they arise. A violation of this policy may lead to disciplinary action, up to and including termination.

Faculty and staff employees who have reason to believe a sexual or romantic relationship exists between a faculty or staff employee of the College and an undergraduate student are required to refer the matter to the director of human resources, Title IX coordinator, the dean, the provost, or any associate provost.

When a complaint is referred to or received by one of the above-listed individuals, the College will conduct an adequate, reliable, and impartial investigation. The College will select the investigator. Once the investigation is completed, the results will be reported to the director of human resources, the Title IX coordinator, and the vice president, dean, or provost who is responsible for the department in which the employee is employed. After reviewing the results, those individuals will determine the appropriate action to be taken, and all involved parties will be informed of the results of the investigation and the action to be taken. 

Such actions may include:

1. taking action designed to discontinue the relationship or to otherwise address the situation;
2. taking disciplinary action against the employee or imposing sanctions against a faculty member consistent with the Faculty Handbook; and/or
3. referring the matter to the President for possible appointment of a Presidential Committee. View the Presidential Committee section of this Handbook regarding sexual harassment and discrimination.

Exceptions and Classifications

At present, recent graduates who are employed by the College are counseled about their interaction with students in a number of areas. While they will not be required to terminate an existing relationship with a student, they will be made aware of this policy, advised to observe its spirit in their conduct, and be expected not to initiate any new relationship.

Student workers, including TAs, are in positions of unequal power over other students, and this asymmetry may render sexual or romantic relationships problematical for the students involved and for other students in the class. While the College does not attempt to regulate dating among its students, student workers, including TAs, are strongly encouraged to take these implications into account and to recuse themselves from particular assignments (including any participation in grading) when necessary.

An exception to this policy is made (i.e., consensual romantic relationships are not prohibited) when the student is an employee enrolled through the Employee Tuition Benefit (see below), or is enrolled through the Courses for Faculty Spouses and Domestic Partners benefit described in the Faculty Handbook.

Conflict of Interest Policy

Employees have a duty to carry out their responsibilities in good faith and with due regard for the best interests of the College. A conflict of interest or possible conflict of interest may arise between the personal/business interests of an employee and the responsibilities they have to the College. A conflict may exist, for example, if an employee’s judgment is adversely influenced with respect to their job responsibilities, or if a decision they make leads to their personal financial gain, or potential financial gain, or to that of a member of their family.

Employees are encouraged to avoid any conflict between their personal/business interests, and the interests of the College, even the appearance of such. However, when a possible conflict of interest exists, the employee shall promptly make full disclosure to their department head and/or the appropriate senior staff member. Faculty members shall report to the Provost.

With any conflict of interest, the employee shall not initiate any related contract or transaction to which the College is a party, and shall otherwise refrain from acting until written approval is received from the appropriate senior staff member.

Employees may not accept gifts or any payments from vendors or potential vendors to the College, except for the occasional nominal gift, such as a meal, ticket to a sporting event, or a book. Unauthorized use of College resources or property is also unacceptable.

For further details, refer to the College Business Standards. 

Travel on College Business

The College strongly supports ongoing employee professional development. Staff who wish to pursue professional development, including travel, should request authorization from their supervisor. The Provost’s Office has a variety of mechanisms for reimbursing travel and other expenses that support faculty scholarship; these are outlined in section IV.B and IV.C of the Faculty Handbook with additional details on the provost’s website.  

All employees who travel off campus on behalf of the College will be paid for all reasonable lodging, meals, and transportation expenses. Employees who use their own automobile for traveling will be reimbursed per mile of usage. If using their own automobile, or renting an automobile for College business, the employee must sign the Fleet Policy Consent Form, provide a copy of their driver’s license to the Fleet Management Office, and fill out a form for the College’s Motor Vehicle Record (MVR) Vendor to obtain an MVR.  Please refer to the Fleet Management Website for more information as additional steps may be required. Contact the Controller’s Office for information about the current reimbursement rate per mile and required documentation for reimbursement of expenses.

Those traveling on College business are also provided with Travel Accident insurance coverage. The coverage insures against accidental death and provides five times the annual base salary up to a maximum of $500,000. The coverage applies to all accidents, and includes riding as a passenger on any form of public transportation or driving a personal car. Further details are available from the Office of Human Resources.

Outside Employment

The College expects that full-time staff will commit full-time efforts to their assigned responsibilities during the months of scheduled employment (e.g., annual work period).  Any arrangements for outside consulting or other employment during the annual work period must not interfere with the employee’s full-time responsibilities.

Faculty members are subject to policies on outside employment and consulting that are found in section IV.D (Outside Earnings) and IV.F (Intellectual Property Rights) of the Faculty Handbook.