Bard College Catalogue 2009-2010
2009-2010

Student Activities and Services

Dean of Students Office

http://inside.bard.edu/doso

The Dean of Students Office (DOSO) is concerned with the quality of college life. The office serves as an information resource for nonacademic matters and tries to accommodate individual circumstances that ensure students’ success in their adjustment to college life. DOSO supervises the student services staff in creating long-range plans to enhance student life and develop co-curricular opportunities. Four assistant/associate deans oversee different components of student life while helping the dean of students follow up on individual student concerns. The associate dean of students/director of the first-year experience and assistant dean of students/director of the sophomore-year experience address the needs of students within the Lower College, helping with the adjustment to college life and succeeding in academic study. The associate dean of students/director of multicultural affairs acts as the primary contact for students, staff, and faculty in promoting an inclusive campus climate. The assistant dean of students/director of residence life oversees area coordinators and a staff of student peer counselors who support and coordinate student life in residence halls.

Academic Resources Center

http://inside.bard.edu/academicresources

The Bard Academic Resources Center (BARC) offers credit-bearing courses in writing and provides one-on-one peer tutoring in all academic subjects. Writing tutors are available for drop-in consultation five nights per week. Students may also meet with staff members for more focused assistance on writing, study skills, and time management. Special programs on writing the Senior Project are offered as part of the Senior Salon Series. Individualized review sessions in quantitative skills assist students in passing the Q exam, which is required of all students before they can enroll in courses that satisfy the mathematics and computing distribution requirement. Services for students with disabilities (see page 263) include academic coaching and study skills, and time management training. A variety of assistive technology equipment is also available for student use.

Athletics and Recreation

http://athletics.bard.edu

The Department of Athletics and Recreation offers a wide range of programs to meet the needs of a variety of lifestyles and sporting interests, from traditional intercollegiate competition to intramural sports and recreational pursuits. The College sponsors intercollegiate programs for men and women in soccer, cross-country, volleyball, tennis, lacrosse, track and field, and basketball. Men also compete in squash. Athletic teams compete under the auspices of the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA Division III). Bard is also a member of various sports conferences, including the Skyline Conference, Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference, North East Collegiate Volleyball Association, and College Squash Association.

The Stevenson Gymnasium and playing fields provide the setting for a range of intramural and recreational offerings. Intramural programs include soccer, basketball, floor hockey, bowling, tennis, volleyball, softball, kickball, badminton, and squash. At the club level Bard offers swimming, cycling, lacrosse, rugby, fencing, equestrian events, and ultimate Frisbee. There are also tournaments and other events in squash, basketball, fitness, table tennis, running, and aquatics.

Classes are offered in such lifetime pursuits as yoga, Pilates, fitness, kickboxing, karate, belly dancing, swimming, and Scottish country dancing. Various aerobics classes include step, Zumba, cardio kickboxing, low impact, and tae bo. Certification courses in CPR/AED and lifeguarding are also available. In addition, the College’s rural setting makes it easy to engage in many outdoor activities, such as running, cross-country and downhill skiing, snowboarding, hiking, cycling, mountain biking, rock climbing, and ice skating. There are also facilities for golf, bowling, and horseback riding nearby.

BRAVE

Bard’s Response to Rape and Associated Violence Education (BRAVE) is a professionally directed student-service organization whose members provide anonymous and confidential crisis intervention, supportive counseling, advocacy, and ongoing education to the Bard community. Although BRAVE staff members receive particular training in issues relating to sexual assault, sexual harassment, relationship violence, and sexuality, BRAVE counselors also receive training in eating disorders, depression and suicide, sexual orientation, loneliness, isolation, anxiety, and social and academic issues. BRAVE services are available on a 24-hour basis; call campus extension 7777 to be put in touch with a BRAVE counselor.

Career Development Office

http://inside.bard.edu/career

The mission of the Bard College Career Development Office (CDO) is to help students find a professional purpose and to offer a clear understanding of jobs in the 21st century. In addition to career counseling, job and internship guidance, and career events, CDO resources include job and internship website subscriptions and a career reference library. Informal talks, career-specific panels, and formal symposia are held throughout the year to help students learn about various professions and connect with alumni/ae and employers. The CDO hosts a website at www.collegecentral.com/bard that enables students, alumni/ae, and employers to connect electronically. This online board lists jobs, internships, volunteer opportunities, and announcements of career events. The Career Development Office website, http://inside.bard.edu/career, presents the gamut of CDO services and offers the Bard Basic Job Guide, which includes sample résumés and tips for the job search. Students and alumni/ae are always welcome to use the CDO to seek assistance at any point in exploring their career options and life’s work.

Chaplaincy

http://inside.bard.edu/chaplaincy

The chaplaincy at Bard is committed to helping students, staff, and faculty explore and develop their spiritual identities. The College belongs to the Colleges and Universities of the Anglican Communion, but that membership does not limit the scope of religious interests. At Bard, the diverse perspectives of Buddhism, Christianity, Hinduism, Islam, and Judaism are not only studied, but practiced.

The chaplaincy has on staff two Episcopal priests, a Catholic priest, an imam, and a rabbi. All are available for pastoral care with students, staff, and faculty. The clergy offer study on a formal and informal basis. The chaplaincy supports and advises the Jewish Students Organization, Muslim Students Organization, Christian Fellowship, Buddhist Meditation group, Sanskrit group, and Catholic community. It helps these students organize and celebrate regular holy observances and develops programming for the campus at large. Worship services for the various faith traditions take place weekly. The chaplaincy also coordinates and participates in a series of ecumenical events during the school year.

Institute of Advanced Theology (IAT) Founded in 1996, the Institute is designed to create the kind of critical understanding that makes pluralism and mutual understanding possible. Through an interdisciplinary program of research, education, and outreach, IAT faculty and fellows seek to achieve a deeper understanding of biblical history, the New Testament, and other important religious documents.

Events

Events on campus reflect academic, social, artistic, athletic, recreational, and purely casual pursuits. Distinguished scholars, artists, and performers visit Bard each year as featured guests in the John Bard Lecture Series, and The Bard Center’s Distinguished Scientist Lecture Series and Lecture and Performance Series. The conferences and lectures sponsored by the Levy Economics Institute and Center for Curatorial Studies are open to undergraduates, as are the concerts of the Bard Music Festival.

Staff, faculty, and students also bring to the campus a variety of speakers and artists, arrange showings of movies nearly every night of the week, and present their own work in drama and dance concerts, recitals, musical theater, art shows, poetry and fiction readings, lectures, and films. Working with the Office of Student Activities, staff and students also organize hikes, concerts, dances, parties, comedy nights, substance-free entertainment alternatives, and athletic events.

Miscellaneous Services

College Bookstore The bookstore carries texts and other books, newspapers, magazines, art supplies, stationery, toilet articles, food items, and novelties. Students may put money into a “bookstore account” via Student Accounts to make purchases with their student ID card. Regular charge cards and Barnes & Noble gift cards in any denomination may also be used for purchases.

E-mail and Internet Services The College issues to all students computer network user accounts that provide access to Internet, e-mail, web, library, and file services. Software, installation assistance, and general support are provided free of charge through the Henderson Computer Resources Center’s Help Desk. A high-speed (100Mb) Ethernet connection to the campus computing network and, through that, to the Internet, is provided free of charge to all students living in Bard residence halls.

Mail Service Each student has a mailbox at the Annandale-on-Hudson Post Office, located in the Bertelsmann Campus Center. The post office provides all the usual postal services and accepts UPS and private express-mail deliveries. UPS shipments can be sent through the Buildings and Grounds Office on campus. The general mailing address for the College is Bard College, PO Box 5000, Annandale-on-Hudson, NY 12504-5000.

Telephone Service The switchboard number for all calls to students, faculty, and administrative offices is 845-758-6822. Emergency calls should be made to the Office of the Dean of Students (845-758-7454) during the day on weekdays and to the Safety and Security Office (845-758-7460) at night and on weekends. Each student room is provided a phone number, reachable through the main switchboard.

Services for Students with Disabilities

In compliance with Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, Bard College is committed to providing otherwise qualified individuals with disabilities equal access to the College’s academic courses, programs, and activities. In support of this mission, the College provides services and reasonable accommodations to self-identified students who present the appropriate documentation. Students who claim physical, learning, or psychological disabilities should register with the disability support coordinator in the Academic Resources Center at the start of the semester or as soon as the diagnosis of disability is made. The student will be asked to present documentation supporting the disability claim and suggested accommodations. For forms, go to www.bard.edu/ admission/forms/pdfs/disability.pdf.

Students who have a properly documented disability are entitled to reasonable accommodations or modifications to help them meet academic standards and maintain normal social relationships at the College. “Reasonable” is understood to exclude any accommodation that places an undue burden on the College or would require a fundamental alteration of programs or services. Accommodations include, but are not limited to: exam modifications (extended time, alternative formats, private rooms); alternative ways of completing assignments; housing policy exemptions; and auxiliary aids and services. Particular accommodations afforded a student will be determined jointly by the student and disability support coordinator, in consultation with the College’s ADA coordinator and, as appropriate, other members of the faculty and student services staff. Accommodations will be based on an individualized assessment of the student’s needs; what is considered appropriate for one student may not be considered appropriate for another. The College reserves the right to refuse particular accommodations if other accommodations will serve the student’s needs equally as well and place less of a burden on the College.

Students who think they have been discriminated against on the basis of disability should file a detailed written complaint with the disability support coordinator as soon as possible after the alleged discrimination. The disability support coordinator will investigate the complaint and issue a report, normally within 30 days. Unsatisfactory resolutions should be taken up with the dean of studies, David Shein, who serves as the College’s ADA coordinator (shein@bard.edu; x7045). Further appeals may be addressed directly to the president. Students who file a complaint are protected aganst retaliation in any form. If a student suspects that such retaliation has occurred, s/he should file a written complaint, as per the above.

Student Counseling Service

http://inside.bard.edu/counseling

The Student Counseling Service is staffed by clinical social workers, a psychologist, two consulting psychiatrists, and a consulting nutritionist. Staff members provide short-term, problem-focused treatment; crisis intervention; and referrals to local physicians, psychiatrists, and psychotherapists. Appointments with the counseling service are on a first-come, first-served basis. The staff may make off-campus referrals for any students who cannot be accommodated during the course of the semester. Incoming students who are currently taking medications for an emotional condition, mood stabilization, or attention deficit disorder should make arrangements to have the medication monitored by the prescribing physician at home or should transfer their care to an off-campus physician in the Bard area. Likewise, students who have been in psychotherapy and anticipate continuing long-term therapy while at college should seek such care off campus; the counseling service can provide a list of psychiatrists and/or psychotherapists in the area. A student who is seeing an off-campus therapist is responsible for all arrangements, including appointments, transportation, and fees. The College health insurance policy provides limited coverage for psychotherapy with some private, off-campus clinicians.

Student Government and Clubs

All students are members of the Bard College Student Association, a democratic forum with three main functions: to raise issues and take action on those issues or recommend action by the College, to provide student representation on administrative and faculty committees in all matters of concern to the College community, and to administer allocated funds for student-run organizations.

The Educational Policies Committee of the Student Association makes recommendations to appropriate faculty committees and to the dean of the college. The association’s Student Judiciary Board deals with violations of the College’s regulations regarding behavior. The Student Life Committee meets with the staff of the Dean of Students Office, College administrators, health services personnel, and other student services offices to obtain information and represent the Student Association in all policies that concern student life. Two major administrative and faculty committees on which student representatives serve are the College Grievance Committee and the Committee on Vacancies. Students are also represented at the Board of Trustees and Board of Governors meetings by two elected students.

The Student Association Planning Committee is directly responsible for the allocation and disbursement of student activity fees. A large portion of the funds goes to the Entertainment Committee, which provides extracurricular campus events such as concerts and other musical activities. The Planning Committee also allocates funds to about 70 clubs and organizations, such as the Art Co-op, WXBC radio station, International Students Organization, Queer Straight Alliance, Black Students Organization, Latin American Students Organization, Asian American Students Organization, Bard Free Press, and several magazines of literature and criticism. Students form new clubs every semester, depending on interest.

Student Health Service

http://inside.bard.edu/healthservices

The College maintains an on-campus outpatient health center. The Student Health Service is staffed by four nurse practitioners, a registered nurse, and a part-time physician, under the supervision of the director of health services. The center is located in Robbins House, on the North Campus. While the College is in session, the center is open Monday through Friday from 9:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. There is an evening clinic on Thursdays. For illness requiring emergency care, the services of Northern Dutchess Hospital in nearby Rhinebeck are available.

All new students must submit a medical report, including health history; record of an examination by a physician, physician’s assistant, or nurse practitioner; and an immunization record. New York State law requires that all students born after January 1, 1957, provide proof of immunization against measles, mumps, and rubella. Students must also provide proof of meningitis vaccination or a written statement declining vaccination. The student’s health service fee covers most care provided by the health center. Medications prescribed by the College physician or nurse practitioners and dispensed at the health center are billed monthly to the student’s account. An Accident and Sickness Insurance Program is included in the health service fee. Details of the insurance program are sent to parents annually.