Residential Life is committed to creating safe, caring, and inclusive communities that balance the rights and responsibilities of the individual with those of the greater community. Students are required to adhere to all policies and regulations outlined in this Policy Manual and in any publications designed for specific residence halls.
1. Alcohol Policy – The College adheres to all New York State laws regarding the distribution, possession, and consumption of alcoholic beverages. Persons under the age of 21 are prohibited from purchasing, possessing or consuming any type of alcoholic beverage anywhere on campus at any time, including all residence hall rooms, common areas, and apartments.
- Persons who are under the age of 21 may not possess empty alcohol containers, including but not limited to beer bottles/cans, wine bottles/boxes, and liquor bottles.
- Students age 21 or older may possess and consume alcohol in any residence hall room or apartment, but they are prohibited from purchasing alcohol for or providing alcohol to minors.
- Alcohol may not be possessed, consumed, or stored in residence hall common areas.
- The following are prohibited in residence halls and apartments, for all persons, regardless of age: high-risk drinking paraphernalia, including but not limited to beer pong tables and beer bongs/funnels; and all drinking games, with or without alcohol.
2. Drug Policy – The College adheres to federal, New York State, and local laws regarding drugs. The possession, use, manufacture, purchase, distribution, or sale of prohibited and controlled substances—including, without limitation, illegal drugs or drug paraphernalia, or prescription drugs without a prescription—is prohibited. Although New York State law now permits the use of recreational and medical marijuana under certain conditions, federal law prohibits all use, possession, and/or cultivation of marijuana at U.S. educational institutions. Federal law also requires any institution of higher education which receives federal funding to have policies in place which prohibit possession and use of marijuana on campus. Therefore, the use, possession, and/or cultivation of marijuana for any purpose is not allowed in any Ithaca College residence hall or on any other Ithaca College property. No exceptions can be made for any student based on their possession of a medical marijuana certification, registry ID card, or any other proof of medical marijuana eligibility.
3. Community Responsibility – Students are members of a residence hall or apartment community and are expected to act responsibly and not interfere with the rights, comfort, health, or safety of their roommate(s), other students, and building personnel.
- Guests – Residents are responsible for the behavior of their guests. Overnight guests may not stay more than three consecutive nights. The invitation of a guest to a room or apartment must meet with the consent of all roommates. Guests generally need to be accompanied by their host at all times within residence hall spaces. Guests are expected to provide identification when requested and comply with all college policies.
- Visitation – The College allows 24-hour visitation (not to exceed three consecutive nights) but does not permit cohabitation. Each residence hall has the option to further restrict visitation guidelines.
- Use of Room – Residence hall rooms, apartments, or common areas may not be used for illegal purposes. Residents are responsible for ensuring that their personal conduct and the conduct of their guests is not in violation of College policies or local, state, or federal laws. Ithaca College reserves the right for personnel acting in the performance of their duties to enter student rooms and apartments in order to ensure that all health, safety, and fire codes are being followed, provide maintenance and repairs, respond to emergencies, and to locate missing property and/or prohibited articles. Such entries may reveal violations of the Ithaca College Student Conduct Code or the Residential Life Rules and Regulations, which may result in fines and/or disciplinary action being taken against the student(s).
4. Quiet and Courtesy Hours – Students have the right to study or sleep in their rooms without being disturbed by excessive noise. The minimum established residence hall quiet hours are Sunday through Thursday, 10:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.; Friday and Saturday, 1:00 a.m. to 9:00 a.m. Residence Halls may identify additional quiet hours as agreed upon by the community. Every residence hall observes "courtesy hours" 24 hours a day as a way to set activity and noise standards. Residents should always comply with reasonable requests from their neighbors to cease bothersome noise or activity. Quiet Hours are extended during exam periods to 24 hours a day as posted.
5. Solicitation and Advertising – Solicitation, sales, and advertising are not permitted in residence halls without authorization from the appropriate College office or staff member. No door-to-door solicitation is permitted. Residents are not permitted to run private businesses from their campus residence. See the Ithaca College Solicitation and Advertising Policy in section 2.12 of Volume II of the Ithaca College Policy Manual for specific information, or contact the Office of Residential Life.
6. Residency Requirements and Room Changes – The specific room or apartment to which a student is assigned must be that student's primary place of residence. All room changes must be made through the Office of Residential Life. Students must follow all proper procedures for room check-in and checkout. They may not at any time move off campus without specific written approval from the Office of Residential Life.
7. Prohibited Activities and Articles in Residential Life Facilities - The following are prohibited in or around residence halls and apartments and are subject to immediate action and/or removal by College personnel:
- Pets of any kind, except for fish and approved guiding eye dogs. Please note: Fish tanks must be ten(10) gallons or less. Fish must be taken home during college breaks because electric appliances must be unplugged during these periods.
- Weight-lifting equipment (weighing more than a total of 25 pounds) in rooms or apartments.
- Bicycles, except when stored in students' rooms or in designated areas where they do not block fire exit routes.
- Motorcycles, mopeds, motor scooters, or any internal combustion engine vehicles.
- Smoking: Smoking is defined as inhaling, exhaling, burning, or carrying any lighted or heated cigar, cigarette, pipe or other device designed to accomplish, enable, or imitate the act of smoking, including but not limited to, electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes), hookahs, and all vapor/vaping devices. Smoking outside must occur at least 20 feet from the building.
- Water beds, lofts (except those provided and installed by Ithaca College), and illegal elevation or stacking of furniture.
- Unauthorized decoration of room or apartment surfaces or doors with paint or adhesive-backed wall coverings such as wallpaper or contact paper.
- Possession or use of firearms, ammunition, fireworks, and/or other dangerous substances, weapons, or materials that are used as or could be used as weapons unless previously approved by permit through the Office of Public Safety. Ithaca College adheres to all New York State laws regarding firearms, ammunition, fireworks, and other dangerous substances or weapons.
- Storage or use of flammable or explosive liquids or gases including lighter fluid.
- Possession and/or use of prohibited electrical equipment, appliances or other items as listed in the Room/Apartment Guide.
- Tampering with or misuse of elevators or fire and safety equipment (e.g., fire alarms, door alarms, fire extinguishers, exit signs, emergency phones, fire doors, sprinklers, or smoke or heat sensors) and/or failure to respond to fire alarms.
- Propping open residence hall fire or exit doors.
- Engaging in any other activity determined to be in violation of health, fire, safety, and/or maintenance codes.
- Possession or use of candles, incense, potpourri burners, charcoal or gas grills, space heaters, or anything that uses an open flame. However, apartment residents may store charcoal grills for outdoor (non balcony) use only.
- Damaging or misusing residence hall property, property that belongs to an individual or group, and/or furniture (e.g., moving furniture from public areas into individual rooms, relocating or removing College property from a room or building, or nailing hooks into College furniture, walls, ceilings, or doors).
- Removing room screens or safety bars, suspending articles from windows and/or ledges, throwing objects from buildings, or climbing or jumping from internal or external balconies.
- Presence on building roof areas and window ledges or in other unauthorized areas.
- Playing ball, Frisbee, or any other sports in residence hall rooms, apartments, or other indoor areas.
- Disruptive behavior or excessive noise of any kind.
- Physical, verbal, or mental harassment of any individual.
- Duplicating College keys or changing or adding locks to room or apartment doors or any other residence hall property.
- Use of amplifiers or PA systems in the residence halls is prohibited. Musical instruments may only be played in designated practice areas or practice rooms. Electronic instruments are only permitted with the use of headphones.
- Theft or unauthorized possession of College property or property that belongs to an individual or group.
- Unauthorized entry into, tampering with, or use of facilities, property, services, or resources belonging to the College, its community members, guests, or licensees.
- Hover boards will not be allowed to be charged, operated, or stored in any residence hall or apartment.
- Failure to comply with directions of any residential life staff member or College official performing duties, including refusing to accept a roommate or impeding the Office of Residential Life's efforts to make an assignment to a vacant space; failure to comply with residential learning community housing agreement; failing to provide proper identification to a staff member upon request; giving false or misleading information; and breaking agreements reached at a roommate mediation meeting with a residential life staff member.
7.5.2.1 Procedure for Handling Violations of Residence Hall Regulations
If in the residence hall living environment an individual's behavior interferes with or infringes on the rights of others, the residential life staff must intervene. Administrative or conduct action will be taken to ensure that the living environment is not disrupted by the individuals involved. Administrative actions are outlined below in sections 7.5.2.2 and 7.5.2.3. Inappropriate behavior will be dealt with in a constructive and educational manner with the intent of helping students understand the impact they have on others in the community.
Violations of residence hall regulations are handled through the Ithaca College Student Conduct Code, section 7.1.2.
7.5.2.2 Administrative Reassignments
The director of the Office of Residential Life and Student Conduct & Community Standards (or designee) may, subject to prompt review, administratively reassign a student from his or her present room to an alternative room pending the outcome of a conduct hearing. The action may be taken to protect the health, safety, or welfare of campus residents or to prevent excessive damages to the residence hall or apartment facilities. Persons administratively reassigned from their housing assignment may be restricted from another person or building until the conclusion of the conduct hearing. If, as a result of the conduct hearing, it is concluded that the student's behavior warrants reassignment, the student may be permanently reassigned to a different space. If not responsible, the student may be allowed to return to his or her original assignment.
7.5.2.3 INTERIM Removal from the College Housing System
The director of the Office of Residential Life and Student Conduct & Community Standards (or designee) may remove a student from any facility owned, leased, or operated by the College and require the student to live off campus when, in the judgment of the director of the Office of Residential Life and Student Conduct & Community Standards, such steps must be taken to protect the health, safety, and welfare of campus residents or property. Persons removed from the College housing system shall not be allowed in any Ithaca College residence hall or other College-owned or -leased housing facility unless given permission by the director of the Office of Residential Life and Student Conduct & Community Standards (or designee).
The review procedure for an interim removal decision may be reviewed in the Student Conduct Code, section 7.1.2.7.2: Interim Removal From College Housing.
For additional residence hall regulations, see here.
Last Updated: August 23, 2021