Student Affairs
At Goucher College, learning happens everywhere. Goucher students apply their talents and leadership skills in clubs and organizations, in student government, on athletic teams, in internships and community service projects, and in performing-arts productions. Through collaborations with faculty, staff and students, members of the student affairs division provide our students engaging, supportive and challenging experiences that promote student learning and holistic development. Our commitment to Goucher’s community principles of respect, inclusion, communication, community service/social justice, and responsibility is at the core of all our endeavors. By participating in intercultural, international, service opportunities and other co-curricular experiences, students are able to actualize their leadership and citizenship potential both locally and globally.
Residential Life
The living-learning environment is an integral part of the educational experience at Goucher. The residential life program stresses individual and community responsibility, respect, and cooperation. The professional staff members within the Office of Residential Life with student resident assistants (RAs) educate students and help them adjust to and become involved in the community. Four of Goucher’s residence halls are divided into 15 houses and have a traditional residence hall set up (student rooms with common bathrooms on each floor). A fifth residence hall, with a focus on healthy lifestyles, is divided into suites. Our sixth residence hall is a combination of suites and apartments. The seventh residence hall, with a focus on first-year students, offers a traditional residence hall setup and is the first of three new buildings that will comprise the first-year village. First-year students are typically assigned to double occupancy rooms. As space permits, a limited number of single rooms are available for upper class students and those with documented medical needs. The small size and intimacy of each living unit encourages the involvement of all members in the design of the residential community. Within the framework of all college policies, each house determines its own social regulations and plans and sponsors social activities and educational programs.
Goucher offers a variety of housing options, including the language house, substance-free housing, student led special interest houses, as well as single-sex, coed, and gender-neutral floors. A nonsmoking environment is maintained in all residence halls. Students must maintain full-time academic status to live on campus. If a student drops or withdraws from classes such that the student is actively enrolled in fewer than 12 credits at any point during a semester already in progress, the student will be required to move off-campus unless the student is approved to remain on campus by the office of residential life.
Because residential living is fundamental to the mission of the college and the experience of a Goucher student, all full-time undergraduate students are required to live on campus and participate in one of the college meal plans. Exceptions may be made for students who meet any of the following criteria, and provide supporting documentation.
1. Students who choose to commute from their permanent home address within 30 miles of Goucher’s campus, and are residing with an immediate family member. The Office of Residential Life defines “immediate family member” as a parent, legal guardian, or sibling. Exceptions will also be considered for students residing with an individual who has stood “in loco parentis” to the student for one year or more, immediately prior to a student’s date of first matriculating at the College. In loco parentis is commonly understood to refer to a relationship in which a person has put himself or herself in the situation of a parent, by assuming and discharging the obligations of a parent to a child with whom he or she has no legal or biological connection. It exists when an individual intends to take on the role of a parent. Persons who are standing in loco parentis include those with day-to-day responsibilities to care for or financially support a child.
2. Students who are at least 23 years old.
3. Students who are married.
4. Students who are legal guardians of minors who reside with them on a permanent basis. (The college does not provide housing for non-matriculated minor children.)
5. Based on projected space availability by the Office of Residential Life, a limited number of junior and senior students may apply to live off-campus. Applications to live off-campus must be submitted to the Office of Residential Life before March 31 of the spring semester proceeding the academic year in which the student desires to reside off campus. Decisions to approve such requests are made based upon projected space availability, class standing (as determined by earned academic credit hours), and the order in which applications are received. Submission of an application does not guarantee an exception from the residency requirement. The Office of Residential Life will review all applications and communicate whether or not an application has been approved; thus, students should not secure off-campus housing until being informed of the decision regarding their application, as this alone will not exempt them from the residency requirement, and may result in financial obligations to both the college and an off-campus landlord/agency.
Students who reside off-campus without meeting one or more of the aforementioned criteria and receiving the appropriate approval will be held responsible for all room and board costs for the semesters in which they are enrolled without such an approval.
The vice president and dean of students may authorize exceptions to this policy, based upon space availability needs.
For more detailed information concerning residential living, refer to the Campus Handbook, Goucher College Residence Hall Contract, and the Residential Life website.
Center for Race, Equity, and Identity
The Center for Race, Equity, and Identity is dedicated to educational excellence within the Goucher community. The center engages all students in social justice through educational and co-curricular opportunities through social justice, intersectionality and Critical Race Theory (CRT). The Center seeks to foster an environment in which marginalized and oppressed community members feel affirmed and comfortable exploring and expressing their identities.
Goals
- We strive to improve the institutional advancement of all marginalized students, specifically students of color (Black, Latinx, Asian, Native, Indigenous, and multiracial); first generation and/or socioeconomically disadvantaged students; LGBTQIA (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual) students and international students.
- We affirm various marginalized communities while promoting equity, cultural pluralism through exploring notions of power, privilege, and oppression.
- We seek to improve understanding within and between all student through dialogue and other intergroup experiences.
Advising and Counseling
Goucher College offers several programs designed to encourage student success. First-year students are assigned a faculty member who serves as their first-year adviser to assist them with curricular and academic planning. Once students declare a major, they are advised by a faculty member in their major.
The Academic Center for Excellence (ACE) assist all Goucher students in developing study and learning strategies necessary for college success, including content support, as well as provide accommodation support for students with documented disabilities.
The Writing Center offers one-on-one free consultations to Goucher College students on any issue related to writing and at any stage of the writing process.
Members of the student affairs staff are available to provide professional advice in their own field of expertise. For example, issues regarding residence life are addressed by the staff of residential life; career planning by the career development staff; religious or spiritual concerns by the chaplain; and so on. Students may seek confidential short-term mental health counseling from licensed psychologists and licensed clinical professional counselors at the Student Counseling Center; the college chaplain is also a confidential source.
Health and Counseling Services
Student Health Services and Student Counseling Services are housed jointly on the ground floor of Heubeck Hall. Both health and counseling services are offered with a holistic approach that encourage students to participate fully in their academic experience while maintaining their physical and emotional wellness.
Comprehensive outpatient medical services are provided on a confidential basis by licensed, certified nurse practitioners including a part-time physician, and psychiatrist. Services include injury and illness visits, preventative medicine, alternative medicine, sexual health care, and health education events. There is a small onsite laboratory for routine procedures and pharmacy for commonly prescribed medications, which incur nominal charges.
Student Counseling Services is staffed by licensed psychologists and licensed clinical professional counselors legally bound to maintain patient confidentiality. Services are offered at no cost to students and include short-term psychotherapy, crisis support, and psychoeducational community outreach and programming. Staff and resources are available to facilitate the process of finding community referrals if long-term psychotherapy is needed.
Religious and Spiritual Life
Religious and spiritual life at Goucher is rich and varied, individually and within communities. We seek to:
- Meet needs of students for individual religious/spiritual practice
- Provide opportunities for students to go deeper, within their own traditions and through engagement with other traditions
- Promote interaction and engagement across religious, spiritual, and non-religious traditions
- Develop skills for genuine understanding and engagement
- Connect students to the rich resources in the greater Baltimore community
- Support students, staff, and faculty facing difficult times
The Chaplain supports and oversees all aspects of religious and spiritual life at Goucher. The Chaplain is available to help students make connections with one another, students at other colleges, and with religious groups in the community. There are opportunities for interfaith and multifaith conversation as well as on-going ways for students who are Jewish, Christian, Quaker, Muslim, or interested in meditation to connect. Cynthia Terry, college Chaplain, has her office in the chapel basement. Often in collaboration with the Student Health and Counseling Center, the Chaplain meets with students individually and in groups, to deal with issues of grief, addiction, illness; to learn how to help a friend; to think through academic or personal decisions; to process family issues; to explore the complexities of an experience abroad and returning home.
Sacred Spaces: Haebler Memorial Chapel, the Harry and Jeannette Weinberg Jewish Student Center, the Multifaith Prayer and Meditation Space (Stimson Conner 153), and our outdoor labyrinth are the primary locations for spiritual and religious life at Goucher. The chapel is open daily (and often in the evenings or on weekends) for silence, solitude, and prayer. The Multifaith Prayer and Meditation Space is available for all members of the Goucher community via OneCard access; email Cynthia.terry@goucher.edu to be granted access.
Groups:
The Goucher Christian Fellowship (GCF), affiliated with InterVarsity, meets in small and large groups for Bible Study, worship, and fellowship. GCF is a diverse community of real people - messy, vulnerable, full of curiosity, fears, doubts and questions - who explore, investigate, question, seek, and follow Jesus. We actively engage and participate in God’s movement towards real change in our lives, on campus, in our city, and around the world.
“Hillel”, the Jewish student organization on campus, provides social, educational, religious, spiritual, and community service programming to Goucher students. The full-time Hillel staff, including a rabbi/director and an engagement (outreach) director, helps students plan events and provides for meaningful experiences, as well as for mentorship and counseling. Many of Hillel’s events take place in the Harry and Jeanette Weinberg Jewish Student Center, which includes a full kosher dining hall, as well as a lounge space, a computing center, and a small library. Hillel provides programs open to all students, regardless of faith or background, including weekly Shabbat dinners and services, classes and discussion groups, cultural programs, opportunities to explore spirituality, Israel-related programming, and holiday observances and celebrations. Regular social justice and community service programming are hallmarks of Hillel and Goucher’s Jewish community.
The Interfaith Club, meets weekly for discussion and engagement, sometimes learning about a particular religion in depth, other times comparing and contrasting, and other times choosing a topic and exploring it in a variety of traditions. The club also takes the lead on a campus-wide cooking project connected to Our Daily Bread in Baltimore.
Student-led religious groups provide a host of activities and initiatives for spiritual and religious engagement at Goucher, including Goucher Christian Fellowship, Goucher Hillel, the Meditation group, and the Interfaith Club. In addition, there are students of other traditions who seek to find ways to connect with one another, including Muslims, Unitarian-Universalists. Goucher Quakers, an informal group of studdents, faculty and staff meet regularly for Meeting for Worship on campus. Students are encouraged to explore and seek out local religious congregations in addition to campus offerings. The Office of the Chaplain has information on local institutions recommended by Goucher students.
Co-Curricular Activities
The Office of Student Engagement (OSE) is the hub for students’ co-curricular life at Goucher. We believe that a major component of the Goucher College experience is social: the after-class interaction with friends, classmates, faculty, and staff. Students who engage in co-curricular offerings are more likely to experience academic and personal success. Students are encouraged to continue the dialogue begun in class or simply get to know someone over a cup of coffee. There are a variety of spaces on campus that encourage this type of informal interaction, such as the Athenaeum, the dining halls, and students’ residential spaces, and OSE sponsors and supports a wide range of activities and events that aspire to strengthen the bond among Goucher community members. Working with our student-led Programming Board, OSE sponsors events such as open mic nights, dances (including the annual Gala semi-formal dance), Winter Carnival, Get into Goucher (GIG), trivia nights, off-campus trips, students performances, and more.
Goucher Student Government
The Goucher Student Government (GSG) serves both as a forum for debate on issues affecting the community and as an organizing body for students to act collectively to achieve positive change at Goucher. GSG facilitates dialogue and communication among the student body, faculty, staff, and administration, and works to foster a sense of inclusion, equality, and fairness on campus. The GSG legislative body (the Senate) consists of elected representatives from various facets of the student body, and serves multiple purposes. The Senate works to represent Goucher students in all school affairs, facilitates communication among campus groups, and strives to create the best possible environment for students. Meetings of the Senate are open to the entire Goucher community. GSG’s Club Council allocates funds collected through the Student Activities fee to clubs and organizations to support a vibrant and involved campus. Club Council also charters new and supports existing campus clubs. GSG’s Student Empowerment Association (SEA) supports campus traditions and sponsors a range of community-building activities. Students can get involved in GSG either through elected positions or by informally volunteering their time to any of the branches.
Clubs and Organizations
Clubs and organizations reflect student interests in special areas and offer all students a vehicle for becoming more involved in college life. The information, experiences, and opportunities for leadership associated with club membership are different from those available in the classroom; therefore, students are strongly encouraged to participate in one or more groups.
Goucher has more than 60 student organizations, in the following umbrella categories:
Class and campus governance
- Creative Alliance (Performing Arts/Publications and Media)
- Social Justice Coalition
- Faith and Identity
- Political and Academic
- Club Sports
- Special Interest
All clubs are organized and run by students, with a member of the staff or faculty serving as adviser to individual clubs as well as each umbrella category of organizations. Office of Student Engagement Staff members are always willing to meet with students who want to activate (or reactivate) a club or organization, or who want advice and support in sponsoring a campus-wide event.
Student Publications
The college yearbook, Donnybrook Fair, is published by students in honor of the senior class. Preface, Goucher’s art and literary magazine, is published once a year. Students are invited to submit poems, stories, plays, essays, photography, and art work. The Quindecim, the official college newspaper, is produced by students and offers an outlet for creative talent as well as training and experience for aspiring journalists, photographers, and graphic designers.
Performing Arts
Goucher students are encouraged to engage in the performing arts as both participants and observers. The Dance program presents six to eight annual on-campus formal and informal dance concerts for enthusiastic audiences drawn from the Goucher and Baltimore communities. Chorégraphie Antique, the dance history ensemble, and the Goucher Dancers in Action perform locally and regionally. The Theatre program stages four to six productions a year, as well as public showcases and workshops directed and designed by faculty, guest artists, and advanced students. Students are encouraged to work as actors, designers, and technicians. The student-run Open Circle Theatre and Pizzazz groups offer further production opportunities. The Music program produces 40 to 60 public events each year. Student vocalists are invited to audition for the Goucher Chorus, Chamber Singers, and Opera Workshop or to join the Reverend’s Rebels or Red Hot Blue, informal student-directed singing groups that entertain both on and off campus. Instrumentalists are encouraged to audition for the Goucher Chamber Symphony, the Goucher Chamber Music Group, the Goucher Jazz Ensemble, and the Goucher African Drum and Dance Ensemble. Computer enthusiasts are invited to participate in the Music program’s two computer music studios. Numerous artists and companies perform at the college during the academic year. Many events are free, and students may attend others at reduced rates. The Office of Student Engagement plans several off-campus trips each year to cultural and performing arts events. While opportunities for performance and exhibition are available to all students at all levels, public performance and exhibition are granted through audition and selection only. Adjudicators for such audition and selection are members of the Arts faculty. Because adjudication is a fundamental aspect of the arts professions, the entire Arts faculty considers the process of evaluation, through audition or portfolio review, to be an important aspect of professional training and education in the arts.
Physical Education and Athletics
Physical Education
Students are required to take one activity course in physical education. Some of the more popular activity courses are strength training, jujitsu, yoga, ballroom dance, soccer, and Tai Chi Chuan. The Equestrian Program offers small, personalized riding classes for novice through advanced levels using a contemporary approach to hunt-seat riding. Throughout the year, students participate in horse shows and clinics both on and off campus. For a more detailed description, see the Physical Education and Athletics Department section of this catalogue.
Athletics
Goucher sponsors 18 varsity intercollegiate athletic teams that compete in Division III of the NCAA, as members of the Landmark Conference. The 10 intercollegiate sports for women are basketball, cross country, field hockey, lacrosse, soccer, swimming, tennis, indoor track and field, outdoor track and field, and volleyball. The eight men’s sports are basketball, cross country, lacrosse, soccer, swimming, indoor track and field, outdoor track and field, and tennis. The equestrian team, the college’s 19th intercollegiate varsity sport, is available for both men and women and competes in Region I of the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association.
Recreation, Intramurals, and Sports Clubs
A variety of non-competitive recreational activities are sponsored throughout the year. Recent activities have included bowling, break dancing, hip hop, indoor soccer, and weightlifting. The outdoor equipment center allows students to check out camping equipment and hybrid and mountain bikes at no charge with a valid Goucher ID.
All students are encouraged to participate in intramurals or as members of sport clubs. Both programs are flexible and seek to create opportunities for those in the Goucher community to participate in team, dual, and individual sports or activities for men and women. Intramural activities are planned and directed by the Department of Physical Education and Athletics and may include the following activities: soccer, flag football, racquetball, volleyball, floor hockey, basketball, indoor soccer, and softball. Club sports are administered and operated by students based on current interest in competition in a given activity. The key to the success of sports clubs is student leadership and participation. Each club is formed, developed, governed, and administered by the club’s student members working with an adviser. Some of the most recent clubs have been ultimate frisbee, fencing, frisbee golf, and jujitsu. The Riding Club provides a variety of riding and non-riding events for those interested in equestrian activities.
Facilities
The Department of Physical Education and Athletics is housed in the Decker Sports and Recreation Center, which includes a large gymnasium, a cardio-fitness center, a strength and conditioning center, one racquetball and one squash court, a multipurpose room, a classroom, an athletic training room, locker rooms, and staff offices. A recreation gym and the von Borries pool are located in the adjacent Welsh Gymnasium.
Outdoor facilities include a synthetic turf field with lights, three natural-grass athletic fields, eight tennis courts, an eight-lane synthetic-surface track, a natural-grass stadium field, five miles of wooded trails, and a nine-hole Frisbee golf course. Indoor and outdoor riding rings, trails with cross-country jumps, hunt course areas, and stables are part of the equestrian facility. The college owns horses that students may use for classes. Students who wish to board privately owned horses may contact the director of the Equestrian Program for more information.
Equity in Athletics Disclosure Act
Goucher is required to prepare an annual report that includes information on participation in and expenditures for men’s and women’s athletic teams. This report is available for inspection by students, prospective students, and the public. A copy of the report is available in the office of the Physical Education and Athletics Department and can be accessed on the athletics website at http://athletics.goucher.edu/information/EADA_Report
Office of Public Safety
The Goucher College Office of Public Safety (GCOPS) is committed to providing quality, community-oriented public safety services. GCOPS strives to improve and maintain a high quality of residential life; protect the rights and safety of our campus community; and utilize problem solving strategies to address the security concerns of students, staff, faculty, and guests. GCOPS firmly believes in the concept of “Learning Everywhere” and offers crime prevention and safety awareness tips to community members through daily interactions, as well as safety and security related training to individuals, groups, clubs, and classes. The public safety staff is on duty 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. GCOPS responds to campus emergencies, conducts investigations, issues OneCard identification cards, and maintains the vehicle registration and parking enforcement programs. GCOPS also provides safety escorts, assists in the instruction of a Self-Defense program, provides security services for special events on campus, and administers emergency management functions for the college. All GCOPS officers are trained in CPR/AED and First Aid, and initially respond to medical calls on campus. Any and all on-campus emergencies, criminal activity, suspicious conditions, subjects, or vehicles should be reported immediately. The office is located in the lower level of Heubeck Hall, across from the Office of Residential Life. (See Goucher’s Campus Handbook for information published in compliance with the Clery Act.)
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