Self-Governance & the Honor Code

About the SGA

Under the Bryn Mawr College Honor Code and 
Self-Government Association (SGA) Constitution, Bryn Mawr College undergraduates take responsibility for governing themselves in academic and social matters, as well as playing an active and fundamental role in the life of the College. The oldest self-governing association in the nation, the SGA is composed of all candidates for a Bryn Mawr A.B. degree. As members of the association, undergraduates are entitled to attend weekly assembly meetings and voice their opinions, ; participate in a variety of SGA-sponsored events, groups, film series, magazines, newspapers, and traditions, ; as well as and vote in elections that send student representatives to various committees, the Board of Trustees, and the SGA Assembly. It is the hope and expectation of self-governance at Bryn Mawr College that all students will be able to find a place, group, or activity, and raise concerns in the most effective, responsible, and satisfying way possible. SGA represents the concerns and needs of the undergraduate body to the administration.

The SGA’s organization includes the Executive Board, Representative Council, Honor Board, Appointments Committee, and many appointed committees, boards, and representatives.

The Self-Government Association will make available meeting minutes available to all students. Brief announcements are also tweeted via the 
username @bmcsga and/or posted through Instagram @bmcsga.

College Traditions

The purpose of Traditions is to promote, encourage, and preserve the spirit of Traditions on campus.

At Bryn Mawr, the passage of the seasons is marked by a cycle of rituals that celebrate the College community with symbolic pageantry. Observers have described these traditions—which include Maypole dancing, a parade in Elizabethan costume, and a hymn to wisdom sung in Ancient Greek—as both “beautiful” and “quirkily anachronistic.” To many Bryn Mawr students, the College’s Traditions are more than entertaining, colorful spectacles that divert participants from the intensity of study; they are ceremonial enactments of common values that help create a sense of community. The major Traditions are:

Parade Night

Parade Night celebrates the completion of the first week of classes. The first Step Sing of the year is held the Friday night at the end of the first week.

Lantern Night

First-years receive their lanterns (in their class color) and the second Step Sing of the year follows the ceremony.

WTF (Welcome The First-Years) Week

WTF Week takes place in the middle of February, but is preceded by first-years asking upperclassmen to be their Roses (and for them to be their Buds, respectively) and to provide them with a humorous schedule for the events. The most individualized Tradition of all, WTF Week is where Bryn Mawr students are free to be silly, have fun, and strengthen the bond between classes.

May Day

This all-day celebration takes place on the Sunday after the last week of classes. The last Step Sing of the year is held that night.

The major Traditions are joined by countless minor traditions, such as presenting gift offerings to a sculpture of Athena and ringing the Taylor Hall bell when seniors’ final exams are finished. 


Contact: traditions@brynmawr.edu

Dean's Panel

A Dean’s Panel is conducted in the spirit of the values affirmed in the Bryn Mawr Honor Code: a belief in the integrity of each individual, a concern for others, and a commitment to dialogue. A Panel may be convened to investigate and resolve certain concerns about a student’s behavior raised by students, faculty or professional staff. Being called before a Dean’s Panel in no way implies a presumption of guilt.

A.    Purpose

In general, a Dean’s Panel will be convened to deal with (a) disciplinary issues inappropriate to the Honor Board; (b) circumstances in which the well-being or safety of undergraduate students is in jeopardy; or (c) circumstances in which College resources, policies or property have been abused. In determining whether or not a Dean’s Panel is appropriate, the Dean (or their designee) will consult with the Head of the Honor Board and such members of the professional staff of the College as circumstances indicate. The Panel should be convened in a timely manner, soon after a concern about a student’s behavior has become known. Should an event that requires a Dean’s Panel take place during a summer or winter break, it may be necessary to schedule the Panel at the start of the following term.

B.    Composition of the Dean’s Panel

The Dean’s Panel shall be appointed by the Dean (or their designee) and composed of at least three members. Generally, the panel will include up to three members of the Dean’s staff and/or other College administrators and up to two undergraduate members of the Honor Board. If the Dean believes that particular circumstances make the inclusion of student representatives inappropriate, they will consult the head of the Honor Board to decide whether student representation may be waived. If the Dean is to be a member of the panel, they will be the chair. Otherwise, they will appoint an Associate or Assistant Dean as chair.

C.    Notification

Each student brought before a Dean’s Panel will be notified by letter or email from the chair that a Dean’s Panel is being convened. This letter will specify the behavior or issue that gave rise to the concern and direct the student to schedule a meeting prior to the hearing with the chair or their designee. This meeting shall be for the purpose of (a) reviewing the Dean’s Panel procedures with the student; (b) obtaining from the student the name of a support person from the Bryn Mawr community to be present at the hearing; and (c) obtaining from the student the names of people that they would like the Dean’s Panel to consider including in the slate of witnesses.

D.    Scheduling

The hearing will be convened as soon as practicable after the student’s initial meeting with the chair or their designee. In the event that the student does not schedule this meeting, the Dean’s Panel process will be obliged to proceed without them. Any student notified of a Dean’s Panel hearing is required to appear when instructed. The Dean’s Panel will make reasonable efforts to take into consideration the scheduling preferences of any student being brought before it; however, if these preferences cannot reasonably be honored, the student or students will nevertheless be expected to appear for the hearing. Should a student fail to appear, the Panel will be convened as announced and proceed without them, and they will be bound by any of its resolutions.

E.    Fact-Finding Procedures

The members of the Panel will determine whether or not to solicit a written statement from any student brought before it.

The members of the Panel will determine a slate of witnesses; these will ordinarily be members of the Bryn Mawr College community. The Panel will obtain statements from witnesses either through submission of written statements in advance of the Panel or through fact-finding interviews at the Panel itself.

A student brought before the Panel will have access to any written statements submitted by witnesses. A student called before the Panel has the right to be present, with a support person, during fact-finding presentations which take place at the hearing.

Witnesses will be interviewed individually at the hearing. Members of the Dean’s Panel will first question each witness. The student brought before the panel will then also have the opportunity to question each witness. Any harassing, intimidating, or irrelevant question will be disallowed by the Chair. If a student persists with such questions, the Chair may judge that they have forfeited the right to question the witness. Ordinarily, a witness will not question the student brought before the Panel but may suggest to the Panel questions that should be addressed to the student.

The student brought before the Panel will be questioned after all other witnesses (if any) have appeared.

The support person of any student called before a Dean’s Panel will ordinarily not be allowed to address the Panel or to serve as a witness.

If the Panel chooses to interview witnesses in private, separate from the hearing, the student brought before the Panel will have the opportunity to submit questions for the witnesses to the Dean’s Panel members. A summary statement of private interviews will be given to the student at the hearing.

F.     Dean’s Panel Deliberations

After gathering information, the Panel will meet in private to deliberate and formulate its resolutions. A student brought before the Panel will be informed of the Dean’s Panel’s resolutions orally at the first opportunity. In addition, soon after the Panel’s deliberations, the chair will send the student a written summary of the Panel’s resolutions. The Panel will determine which others should also be informed of the resolutions.

G.    Finality of the Decision

The resolution of the Dean’s Panel is final and binding on the student brought before the Panel unless (1) the student submits a valid written appeal to the President within ten calendar days after having received the formal letter setting forth the Panel’s resolutions; or (2) the Panel’s resolution was that the student brought before the Panel is to be separated or excluded from the College, in which case the Panel itself shall automatically submit the matter to the President of the College for review. The decision of the President on appeal is final and binding.

H.    Valid Grounds for Appeal; Scope of Decision on Appeal

A student’s appeal may be made only (a) on procedural grounds, which the student shall specifically identify in their appeal; or (b) when relevant new evidence not reasonably available at the time of the hearing becomes known to the student who had been called before the Panel. The student’s appeal shall identify the new evidence and its relevancy as well as explain when it became available. In making a decision on a student’s written appeal, the President will review all materials from the hearing, the Dean’s Panel’s resolution, and the written appeal submitted by the student. The President may uphold the Panel’s determination, reverse its determination, or require a new Dean’s Panel hearing.

I.      Record

There will be no record of an appearance before a Dean’s Panel in a student’s file unless the Panel creates such a record as part of its resolutions. The materials from the hearing before the Dean’s Panel and the Dean’s Panel resolutions will be kept separately and confidentially by the Dean. A summary of the resolutions of a Dean’s Panel will be made available to the community in the semester following the investigation.

J.     Confidentiality

All witnesses and all parties to the Dean’s Panel proceedings are required to keep all proceedings strictly confidential.