Curfews & Dormitory Policies

School Curfews

All students must be accounted for–in person–on their corridors at the school curfew hours. After checking in with the faculty member in charge, you must remain within the dormitory. Being out of the dormitory after curfew or leaving the dormitory after checking in without faculty permission will be considered a breach of trust and thus a major rule violation. Repeated instances of checking in significantly after established curfew may, at the faculty resident’s discretion, be considered a major disciplinary infraction. All violations of curfew will be reported to the Dean of Students Office.

Curfew times are as follows:

Sunday–Thursday
Freshmen/Sophomores: 7:45PM
Juniors/Seniors: 9:45PM

Friday
Freshmen/Sophomores: 10:30PM
Juniors/Seniors: 11:00PM

Saturday
Freshmen/Sophomores: 11:00PM
Juniors/Seniors: 11:30PM

Freshmen and sophomores must return to the dorm and check-in by 7:45PM on school nights. If a freshman or sophomore needs to leave the dorm for extra help after eight, he or she must first obtain the permission of the faculty member administering extra help. These students must return to the dormitory by 8:45PM with a note from the teacher they visited. There should be no freshmen or sophomores out of their dormitories past 8:45PM on school nights. Freshmen and sophomores must remain in their respective rooms after 10:15PM; juniors and seniors (except proctors) must remain in their rooms after 10:45PM. Freshmen lights and computers must be turned off at 10:45PM sharp.

Being out of the dormitory after curfew or leaving the dormitory after checking-in will be considered a breach of trust and thus a major rule violation. This includes situations where a student checks in to the dorm with a faculty member prior to the school curfew. What is critical is the implied message to the faculty member that the student is in the dorm for the remainder of the evening and night.

Dormitory Visitation

This visitation policy reinforces our Sexual Intimacy policy and acknowledges the possibility of same gender relationships that are more than a simple friendship, implicitly placing a certain degree of trust in students. Students should be aware that within the context of this community, sexual intimacy is inappropriate and will be grounds for disciplinary action.

The following policies apply to both opposite-sex and same-sex couples visiting each other in dormitories:

• Visitation privileges are granted or denied at the sole discretion of the on-duty faculty member.
• Visitation is allowed after October 1 on Friday and Saturday nights, from 8:00PM until 15 minutes before the earliest curfew of the dormitory.
• The door must be open as wide as the room’s trash can and a light source must be visible.
• Visiting students must check in and check out with an on-duty faculty member in the dorm.
• Visitation during study hours must adhere to study hall guidelines.

Common Room Visitation

Common room visitation is only allowed during the following times, and it does not require faculty permission:

• Common room visitation is allowed on school nights beginning 15 minutes after dinner until 7:30PM.
• On weekends, common room visitation is from 12:45PM until 5:15PM, and 6:30PM until 15 minutes before the earliest curfew of the dormitory.
• No faculty approval is required for common room visitation. Unsupervised common room vistation is allowed in Crow Commons, but not in other Johnson-Doubleday common rooms.

Quiet Hours

Quiet Hours begin each school-night at 7:45PM and last until the start of classes on the following day; during this time, students should be respectful of others and foster an environment conducive to study. During Quiet Hours, the lower-level, playing fields, track, and riverbank are off-limits to Deerfield students.

Study Hours

Study Hours begin each school-night at 7:45PM and last until 9:45PM. During this time, underclassmen should be in their rooms–or they may seek extra help from faculty (at the library, a faculty apartment, or in an academic classroom) until 8:45PM; all underclassmen should be in their dormitories after 8:45PM. During Study Hours, upperclassmen should be in a place of study: dormitory rooms, the library, or academic buildings. “Study Parietals” follow dorm visitation policies, and are available only from 8:00PM until 9:00PM.

Room Maintenance

• For health and fire safety reasons, as well as respect towards others, rooms must be kept reasonably neat, clean and free of clutter. Recycling and trash removal must be frequent to prevent any buildup in rooms. Faculty residents or associates will inspect rooms on a daily basis to insure that standards are being met. Unacceptable living conditions will be grounds for early check-in or restrictions.
• At the beginning of the year your room is inspected and inventoried. Upon leaving that room permanently, the process is repeated to see that you have maintained the room and its furnishings in the proper manner. You are responsible for any damage to your room and will be accountable for needed repairs or replacements.
• Any wall decorations must be hung using molding hooks or adhesive putty. NO TACKS, NAILS or TAPE.
• The following items are NOT permitted in student rooms: monitors larger than 21 inches, refrigerators, DVD players, television and/or projectors, offensive posters, slogans or pictures, empty liquor bottles and/or beer cans, pets (except fish).
• Furniture provided by the Academy in students’ rooms may be removed only by the Academy’s Physical Plant Staff. Beds may not be dismantled nor may they be elevated on desks and bureaus. Lofts are prohibited.
• When rooms are unoccupied, all lights must be turned off.

Recycling

In accordance with a bylaw of the Town of Deerfield, the Academy recycles writing paper, cans, glass, cardboard, magazines and newspapers. Deposit bins can be found in each dormitory and many of the other buildings on campus. The cooperation of every member of the DA community is necessary for the success of this program.

Refrigerators

There is at least one refrigerator located in every dorm for communal use by the students. Refrigerators are not permitted in dorm rooms unless a student has special medical needs and a doctor’s note approved by the Health Center. Proctors are allowed to have refrigerators in their rooms.

Dormitory Sleepovers

• Sleepovers may occur only on a Friday or a Saturday evening.
• Students should contact the faculty member on duty at least one hour before the curfew of the student host.
• If an underclassman is asking permission to be in an upper-class dormitory, the underclassmen must be in their host’s dorm by the underclass curfew.
• The student spending the night must fill out a Weekend Overnight Pass, which requires signatures of faculty on duty in both the visitor’s and the host’s dorm. Copies of the pass must be posted on both the visitor’s and the host’s door. Day student parents may give prior permission to the faculty member on duty or a Dean of Students, who in turn would notify the faculty. The faculty member on duty also must call security to register the names of any extra students in the dormitory. Security can be reached through the answering service after 9:00 p.m. at 9-773-8174.
• While the Deans of Students support the notion that boarding students should be able to have friends of the same sex spending an overnight in their dormitory room, the faculty member on duty has the ultimate authority whether or not to allow students the privilege of sleepovers.

Fire Code

Nothing is more important than the health and safety of our students while they are here at Deerfield. Though the following fire regulations may seem extremely detailed, their observance is vital for your health and safety and that of those with whom you live. Faculty members (and fellow students) have the obligation and right to ask you to remove from a room or corridor any decoration, furnishing or other possession that appears to compromise the health or safety of anyone. This can include furniture that blocks a faculty member’s vision or is arranged in such a way that it hinders direct and rapid egress.

Each student may have:

1. One bulletin board no larger than 2 feet x 3 feet.
2. Four “uncovered” paper decorations (maximum size 2 feet x 3 feet). All other flammable materials (posters, prints, etc.) must be framed under Plexiglas or glass that is at least 1/16 of an inch thick.
3. One piece of stuffed, upholstered furniture (not including a padded desk chair) per room and all upholstered furniture, including desk chairs, must be in compliance with Commonwealth of Massachusetts fire regulations for dormitories as provided in Board of Fire Prevention Regulation 527 CMR 29.03(4) which states that all upholstered furniture must meet the test criteria set forth in the State of California Bureau of Home Furnishings and Thermal Insulation Technical Bulletin Number 133. When shopping, be sure that the following label is affixed to any upholstered furniture that you buy for use in your child’s dorm: NOTICE: THIS ARTICLE IS MANUFACTURED FOR USE IN PUBLIC OCCUPANCIES AND MEETS THE FLAMMABILITY REQUIREMENTS OF CALIFORNIA BUREAU OF HOME FURNISHINGS TECHNICAL BULLETIN 133. Note: Furniture without this tag will be removed and disposed of immediately by the Physical Plant and students will be charged for removal and disposal. In addition, students found to be in violation of furniture limit restrictions will be charged for the removal and disposal of the extra furniture. The purchase of Fire Code Compliant desk chairs can be facilitated through special arrangements with Hitchcock House.

Other Guidelines:

• All nylon, plastic, and cloth wall hangings are prohibited unless framed and under glass or Plexiglas.
• Decorations in rooms may only be hung from vertical surfaces (i.e., no ceilings) and may not be hung over windows or doorways. Flammable materials, even if fire treated or framed, are not permitted within two feet of any doorway.
• Polystyrene (bean-bag) chairs are prohibited.
• Electrical appliances for cooking or heating (for example, irons, “sunlamps,” “hotpots,” coffee makers, or space heaters) are not permitted in student rooms. They are prohibited on corridor hallways or in common rooms, unless approved by the school Safety Officer and Dean of Students.
• No electrical string lights (i.e. holiday, decorative) of any kind are allowed in student rooms.
• No Lava Lamps
• The use of light duty extension cords is prohibited. Cords must be of heavy-gauge wire with a three-prong (grounded) plug and carry only one outlet. If additional outlets are needed, the use of a pre-wired multiple outlet strip with a circuit breaker is required. Surge protection may be added and is suggested, for it will provide additional protection for computers and other electronic equipment.
• Halogen lamps and other high intensity lamps in excess of 100 watts will not be permitted in student rooms. While we recognize the need for proper lighting in a study setting, we feel that this need can be met with incandescent bulbs of 100 watts or less. The heat generated by a halogen bulb is a serious fire hazard.
• Bicycles and other personal belongings may not be stored in corridors or stairwells.
• Inappropriate use of fire extinguishers, emergency lights, smoke or heat detectors or fire alarms will be considered a disciplinary matter.
• You are not permitted to lock your dormitory room door when you (or others) are in the room.

Procedures for Fire Code Inspections:

In order to maintain a high standard of safety, designated fire code inspectors will come around to the dorms on a regular basis to inspect student rooms as well as the dormitory area in general. This process may take some of the burden off of the residential faculty; however, residents will play an essential role in the process and are still principally responsible for ensuring adherence to the fire code. The procedure for reporting and following up on a violation is as follows:

Reporting a violation:

1. When an inspector (or faculty member) observes a violation of the fire code, the student will receive a written warning notification of the violation.
2. Upon notification, the student must correct the problem immediately. This is not negotiable. The resident (or advisor or associate) should see that this has been done, and then both resident and student should initial the student form indicating that the violation has been corrected. This initialed form should be turned in to the Dean of Students Office right away.
3. For a repeat violation, the student will receive a written citation, which is also given to the resident, and to the Deans Office. The school safety officer also keeps a copy on file.

Sanctions:

1. A student will receive 1 accountability point (AP) per repeat violation cited.
2. If the student does not correct the violation immediately, then all wall furnishings come down for a period of ten weeks.
3. If the room is found to be in violation of the fire code a second time, by an inspector or faculty member, the student is liable to be put on disciplinary probation.

Keys

Room keys are issued at the beginning of the school year and each student is responsible for returning the same room key at the end of the year. If the key is lost at any time, Physical Plant will issue a new one for a fee of ten dollars.

Abandoned Student Property

All student property not stored in designated summer storage that remains in campus buildings or on campus grounds after the end of the academic year will be considered abandoned and will become Academy property. This includes property left by students in dormitories, the Dining Hall, the Athletic Complex, on athletic fields, or any other campus building or area.

Collectively, abandoned student property will be organized and available for purchase at the annual Deerfield Bazaar as advertised by Facilities. This effort requires the community’s cooperation and will benefit local charities.

After students leave campus, Facilities will ensure there are appropriate receptacles around campus to collect these items. Employees and their family members who find abandoned student property should place it in the designated receptacles or notify the Facilities Office to arrange for pick up. This includes clothing, furniture, refrigerators, electronics, sports equipment, and bicycles. There will be separate receptacles for books, including textbooks. Employees may also contact the Library to arrange for book pick up.