By Charlie Lynn and Ethan Lyne
For over a month since Haverford’s Honor Code failed ratification at the end of February, the campus has been abuzz with conversations about expectations for Special Plenary and uncertainty about the future of the Honor Code. The time has now come, as Haverford will host a Special Plenary on Sunday, April 8 starting at 5pm in the GIAC to determine whether the Honor Code will continue to be part of the Haverford community.
Back in February, participation in the online Spring Plenary Honor Code ratification poll was just four students shy of the required quorum of receiving votes from ⅔ of the student body in the poll. Although opposition to the Code reached its highest level on record, according to the Honor Council’s “Summary of the 2018 Honor Code Ratification”, almost half of the student body did vote for the Code’s ratification.
A Special Plenary Committee of ten students from all classes has worked hard over the past month to put together resolutions to amend the Honor Code and the Student’s Constitution based on feedback they heard from students. The committee was created by the Student Council Co-Presidents and Honor Council Co-Chairs.
Few members, if any, of Haverford’s student body have experienced a Special Plenary before, with the last one taking place in 2013, causing lots of questions and anxiety. One specific concern is the requirement that 75 percent of the student body must be present to reach quorum, unlike the typical 50 percent at a standard Plenary.
In an effort to address students concerns about the need to create a more accessible space that will allow more students to participate, there will be two alternative options available to students that still allow them to count towards quorum and vote without be present in the physical gym space. One is the livestreaming of Special Plenary to the multipurpose room in the GIAC. The second is a separate live stream to students who cannot be physically present in any Plenary space.
The ratification of the Honor Code as a part of Spring Plenary typically occurs in an online poll over the week after Plenary. However, according to Honor Council Librarian and Special Plenary Committee Member Riley Wheaton, ’20, the Code be ratified in the moment at Special Plenary.
There will be a total of eight proposed resolutions at Special Plenary, with four resolutions to amend the Honor Code, three resolutions to change the Students’ Constitution, and one resolution to create a values statement. Many of these resolutions will be brought forward by Special Plenary Committee members.
Here are the eight resolutions which will be presented at the Plenary:
Resolution #1. Amending the Students’ Constitution to better schedule all future Plenaries around cultural and religious holidays so that more students can attend without conflicts.
Resolution #2. Reconsidering the process of confrontation, an integral practice of the Honor Code here at Haverford. This resolution, according to the proposal, “will redefine confrontation as a process of self-healing for harmed parties and allow for the introduction of active bystanders as confronting parties.” Harmed parties in social cases will not be required to confront their peers.
Resolution #3. Changes to the Social Code that, as stated in the proposal, seek “to be more inclusive towards marginalized students, as well as re-defining the role of the Social Code in the engagement process.” These revisions look to explicitly outline the goals of this section of the Honor Code and who is meant to be protected by the aims of the Social Code.
Resolution #4. Similarly updating the Academic Code by recognizing the power imbalances that may exist in interactions between faculty and students, or even between students themselves. The proposed changes also emphasize the importance of respect and honesty within the classroom among all members of the community.
Resolution #5. Raising the quorum requirements for any future Plenary from half of the student body to two-thirds. If passed, it would also require the Students’ Council to continue with its effort to offer accommodation to students uncomfortable being in the larger Plenary space. A targeted goal to raise quorum to three-fourths of the student body within three years is also included.
Resolution #6. The creation of a Day of Community Reflection, or DCR, in the Honor Code, beginning in the 2018-19 school year on Martin Luther King Jr. Day at the start of the second semester. It is similar in approach to the Community Day of Engagement, or CDE, passed by the student body at Fall Plenary, that was rejected by Haverford President Kim Benston for a various reasons.
The proposed DCR would provide a similar opportunity for the student body, faculty and staff “to think through how their identities and backgrounds influence their relationship to the Honor Code and the Haverford community”, according to the resolution. However, unlike the CDE, the DCR would not replace a day of classes and would incorporate some form of community service in the afternoon in lieu of Plenary, as proposed with the CDE.
Resolution #7. A value statement to support the President’s Office initiative to increase gender neutral bathrooms across campus.
Resolution #8. A proposed change to the Students’ Constitution that expands the ways in which the President of the College can respond to resolutions approved by the student body. It would eliminate the current system in which resolutions are either approved or rejected and instead allow the president to approve a resolution with “a stipulation for changes”.
If Fords hope to keep the Honor Code as a defining part of Haverford next year and beyond, at least 941 people will have to be present on Sunday, April 5th, for Special Plenary. Only time will tell what will happen.
We encourage you to check out the Bi-Co News on Facebook and Twitter starting at 5PM tonight for periodic updates on everything happening at Special Plenary!
