Haverford CollegeDrug Safety Summary

Written by Kira E. Jones

Kira E. Jones

Hometown

Moorestown, NJ

Major

Undecided

View all previous student authors

The drug scene at Haverford is small and not very serious. There is certainly some recreational pot use, but it's actually less prevalent than at your average suburban high school. In fact, most of the people who smoke pot bring it back from their home town after breaks. Sure, students here are aware that it exists and know that pot is easy to obtain, but the pot-smoking scene is so small and low-key that some students aren't even concerned by it. More controversial, hardcore drugs exist on campus, too, but these more potent drugs are virtually nonexistent. About half of all Haverford students choose to drink, and only about a quarter do any serious drinking. Overall, it's a pretty low-key college and free from many of the pressures found at other schools.

On the Haverford College Students' Council homepage (www.students.haverford.edu/sc), there are links to several different policies and guidelines for acceptable behavior of Haverford students. According to Haverford's Alcohol Policy, the College expects all students "to make clear that they are speaking and acting as individuals and not for the College or its student body" in the things that they choose to do. All of this goes to say that yes, while the drug and alcohol scenes (however small) exist on campus, the College trusts its students to be responsible enough to handle themselves. In other words, it's on you. Perhaps that's why the drug scene is how it is. With an administration that trusts students to be adults and refrains from constant policing, there's no real desire to be a rebel.