Student Life and Engagement

Until a group is officially recognized as a Mount Holyoke College student organization, it cannot represent itself as an official Mount Holyoke constituent, meaning that the group cannot advertise itself with the Mount Holyoke name attached to the group, develop logos or material that do so, etc. To request use of the Mount Holyoke College logo, students should email communications@mtholyoke.edu.

Flyers, posters and other physical materials are a means of publicizing events and raising awareness at Mount Holyoke. This policy applies to all students, student groups, and recognized student groups.

Posting

Designated posting bulletin boards may be found in numerous buildings on campus, including the Community Center, Kendade Atrium and the Library. The guidelines listed here must be followed for all designated posting spaces on-campus. Departments or offices who are responsible for managing a particular designated posting space may also have other guidelines that should be followed – such as:

Residence Hall Posting Policy and the Williston Library.

For the purposes of this policy, a “posting” includes all methods of mass-distributing information in physical or hardcopy form, including, but not limited to: posters, fliers, table tents, signs, banners, and any other methods that the College determines are subject to this policy. For additional chalking specific guidelines see the further down.

For all postings:

• Do not remove prematurely or alter other people’s postings, as this is a breach of the Mount Holyoke College Honor Code.
• Be careful to not cover other postings or spam/post multiple pages of the same announcement on a single board.
• Abide by posting guidelines and/or ask permission when flyering on neighboring campuses or at area businesses.
• Remember that bulletin board postings are for temporary, short-term announcements. In most areas, postings are removed immediately after an event has concluded, and/or they have lingered for more than two weeks.
• When posting and designing publicity material, consider how various members of the College community might respond to the content and appearance of the advertisement. Think inclusivity.
• Advertise the accessibility information, and list a contact in the sponsor group that folks can contact to ask questions and advance accessibility requests.
• Post only on tackable, designated surfaces intended for this purpose.
• Do not post on lampposts, glass doors or windows (inside or outside of windows), banisters, wooden panels, walls, painted surfaces, etc.

Postings materials should:

• Include the identifying name/affiliation of the sponsor of the materials, and a contact for more information.
  • If the posting promotes a specific event, the event must be identified by the title/subject, date, time, location, and sponsoring individual, group and/or organization.
  • If the posting does not promote a specific event, but is in the nature of an awareness-raising campaign, it must include an expiration date that is no later than two weeks from the date the posting occurs.
• Not exceed 11"x17".
• Be free from the misuse of copyrighted materials.
• Not promote the abuse of alcohol and/or illegal substances. A party can advertise “beer and wine available, w/21+ID” but should not advertise “buck-a-beer” or “kegs,” etc.
• During campus elections, be compliant with the regulations of ACE.
• Never block fire equipment or be posted on fire doors.
• Must respect the Mount Holyoke College Code of Conduct.

Removal of Postings:

• The College retains the discretion to remove any posting that does not comply with this policy.
• The student, student group, or recognized student organization identified in the posting should be responsible for the removal of the posting on the earlier of: 1) two weeks from the date the posting first occurred; or 2) the day after the date of the specific event (if any) listed in the posting.
• The removal by any student of any posting that otherwise complies with this policy prior to the dates specified above is prohibited.

Questions about posting options can be discussed with the Office of Student Involvement in Blanchard room 327 or by calling 413-538-2478.

Handbills

Students, student groups, and recognized student organizations may reserve tabling spaces and distribute literature from those areas by reserving space through Event Services and or working with the Office of Student Involvement. No group or individual may set up a table for purposes of distributing literature or similar activities without prior reservation.

Those distributing materials must remain within three feet of their tabling space at all times and not obstruct walkways or other tables.

Chalking Policy

Mount Holyoke College allows chalking on campus under the following guidelines. Individuals will be held responsible for any damage and/or cleanup if these guidelines are not followed.

• Only erasable chalk may be used — grease-based chalk is not permitted.
• Chalking may be done only on asphalt roads and walkways.
• Chalkings should be signed with the full name of the person or group responsible.
• Groups or individuals may be asked to remove chalking when necessary.
• Absolutely no chalking is permitted on any brick or building surface.
• No chalking is permitted in any area that is protected from rain.
• All chalking must be appropriate for the general public, including children and any campus guests.

Individuals, student groups, registered student organizations will be held responsible for any damage and/or cleanup if these guidelines are not followed.

Violations

Failure to comply with this policy may result in the loss of all posting privileges. Additionally, any student who violates this policy or applicable law may be subject to the College’s community standards process and sanctions.

Nothing in this policy restricts the discretion of the College to separately address and/or remove postings that are not otherwise within the scope of this policy.

Please note: This policy is only valid when guests are allowed in the residence halls.

This policy is for student organization conferences, performances or events hosting more than 15 guests on any given night.

Occasionally, a recognized student organization on campus will want to host a conference, performance or event that includes inviting similar organizations from other campuses to the Mount Holyoke campus. If the event will require an overnight stay and the organization would like to offer guests housing with current organization members, the Office of Residential Life has enacted a specific policy that must be followed.

For the residential/overnight component of a student organization program, the Office of Residential Life has a duty to maintain the guest policies for the campus and to ensure that student organizations are not abusing this policy through inappropriate practices. These factors necessarily must be considered in the planning phase of proposed events.

Student organizations hosting overnight guests must follow these guidelines:

• Any organization must make an appointment to meet with the director or associate director of Residential Life for approval. This meeting must take place during the semester prior to the event (i.e., meet in fall 2022 for a spring 2023 event).
• An event is limited to a maximum of 100 overnight guests. This number might be smaller depending on the student organization’s ability to comply with the formula for determining how many guests are allowed. Under no circumstances will this number exceed 100 people. Guests falling under this policy may not stay more than two nights on campus.
• Student organizations sponsoring conferences, performances or other events may not solicit hosts from the general student body to accommodate overnight guests for the event. Only pre-enrolled, active members of the sponsoring organization may host such guests and must do so within the established parameters of the Mount Holyoke College Guest Policy (https://embark.mtholyoke.edu/residentiallife/res-life-policies/). Member solicitation to host must be free of coercion and provide members clear communications on opting out of hosting. Members who choose to host are obligated to gain permission from their roommate prior to agreeing to host. A host (an active organization member) may only house one delegate/guest and will need to sign a host agreement form before the event takes place. Under no circumstances will a Mount Holyoke student be allowed to host more than one guest for the event, regardless of whether they believe their room has the space to do so.
• The representatives responsible for the housing and registration portions of the event will need to provide a full list of hosts and assigned guests to the Office of Residential Life a minimum of one week prior to the event.
• If the event has more overnight needs than can be accommodated on campus in compliance with campus guidelines and state laws, advertising and registration details must be designed and written to encourage delegates or guests to pursue off-campus housing options at area hotels.
• The option for on-campus hosting of guests must be advertised as limited. The College recommends stating that it is available with priority given to those guests who have financial or travel hardships.
• Before registration materials are made public (on a website, in printed materials, on social media, etc.), the plan and materials to register/recruit institutions and guests for this event must be reviewed for compliance with these parameters by the Office of Student Involvement and/or the Office of Residential Life.

Failure to follow this policy can result in the student organization being prohibited from hosting an event on campus that provides overnight housing, an honor code violation or disciplinary action. Students should contact the Office of Student Involvement and/or the Office of Residential Life with questions.

Event Relocation: offices.mtholyoke.edu/risk/event-relocation