Respect – One of Tarleton’s core values is respect. Residents are responsible for complying with instructions and directions of University officials (including RLs) or law enforcement officers acting in the performance of their duties. Residents adhere to the policies and community standards as a form of respect for the members within the community.

Common Spaces – Common spaces are for the use of all community members and all residents will maintain the cleanliness and sanitation of common spaces, maintain the safety and security of the residential facility, and remain fully clothed within the common spaces.

Hall/Building/Apartment Meetings – A general meeting of all residents is held during the first week of classes in the Fall and Spring semesters, as well as throughout the academic year. Residents are expected to attend hall/building/apartment meetings. Meetings are conducted by Residence Life staff to distribute information, answer questions, and handle various issues. Students are responsible for all information distributed and discussed during these meetings.

Courtesy and Quiet Hours – Courtesy and Quiet Hours have been established to provide periods during which noise and other disturbing activities are kept to a minimum to allow residents a peaceful time to sleep and study. All residents are expected to be mature and considerate of their neighbors’ right to a peaceful living environment

Final Exam Periods – Quiet Hours are in effect 24 hours a day throughout all University Housing during final examination periods each semester. The final exam quiet hours begin at 6 p.m. on the last official class day and continue through the close-down of all residence halls and apartments. Realizing that individual academic demands and personal schedules vary, students should always honor requests by others to minimize noise. Residents who do not comply with courtesy or quiet hour policies will be subject to disciplinary action by the Residence Life staff or Student Conduct.

Visitation – Visitation times apply to all guests and all areas of each residential facility (rooms, units, lobbies, common spaces). Visitation hours, in common spaces, may be extended beyond visitation hours for university sponsored events.

All guests must be escorted into and out of the residence halls by the assigned resident (host). Any unaccompanied guest must enter and exit the residence hall/apartment through the main entrance and wait in the lobby for the assigned resident (host) to escort them further in to the residence hall. All visitors must have the approval of the room/suite mate(s) to be present in the residence hall rooms. Some events or time periods might require a sign-in procedure for guests. If a sign-in procedure is established, all residents and guests must comply with the established procedure.

The visitation schedule in all residence halls and apartments is as follows:
Sunday – Thursday 10:00 a.m.-1:00 a.m.
Friday – Saturday 24 Hour Visitation

Overnight visitors will not be allowed to stay more than 3 nights within a month.

Room Occupancy – Residence hall rooms or units can not exceed the occupancy deemed safe by the Fire Marshall. Assigned residents (hosts) must control their room/unit to ensure that the community is a safe and comfortable space for residents while guests are present. Hosting a large quantity of guests, within a room or unit is not conducive to fire safety or to courtesy /quiet hour policies and is subject to referral to Student Conduct.

Guest Policy – A guest is defined as any person visiting a campus housing facility who is not assigned to live in the facility or room they are visiting. Each guest must have a host and be escorted into and out of the residence hall they are visiting. A guest without a host will be escorted from the residence hall. Guests are expected to comply with the policies, rules, and regulations governing Residence Life and Student Conduct. The host resident is responsible for his/her guest’s behavior. Hosts are responsible for guest disruptions or behaviors that cause discomfort, annoyance or nuisance to any other resident of the hall. Guests must be accompanied by the host resident in all community facilities/amenities being utilized by the guest. Tarleton students attending hall events are guests of event hosts during the community event.

Any guest must have the approval of all residents of the room. All guests must be out of the building at the end of designated visitation hours. All guests under the age of seventeen must be preapproved by the Residence Hall Director. Guests are not permitted to stay in the residence halls or University apartments more than three nights a month. Violation of the guest policy may result in referral to Student Conduct.

Alcohol, Drug, Smoking and Tobacco Policies – Tarleton State University is committed to providing a safe, healthy, work and educational environment for all students, staff, and visitors on campus. Tarleton State University is a smoking, tobacco and drug-free campus.

Alcohol and other Drugs – It is a violation of university policy for students or guests to possess or consume alcohol, tobacco or illegal drugs within the residential facilities housing primarily first year students: Hunewell, Hunewell Annex, Heritage, Legends, Legacy, Centennial and Honors Hall. Residents in all first-year residence halls, regardless of age, may not possess any alcohol products.

Empty alcoholic beverage containers, including shot glasses, may not be displayed in residence hall rooms or apartments, even as a decoration. Violation of this policy will result in administrative or disciplinary action.

Ferguson, Texan Village, Traditions North & South, Integrity, and Texan Hall residents, of legal drinking age, may store and consume alcohol in their residential space under the following conditions:

• The student must have a copy of their valid state-issued ID on file with the front office of their Residence Hall or Apartment complex.
• Students may only consume alcohol inside their apartment or room common area; alcohol consumption outside, on the balcony and around the community common areas is strictly prohibited.
• Alcohol MUST NOT be made accessible to minors in the apartment at any time. Alcohol can not be stored in the common space if any roommates or suitemates are under the legal drinking age.
• Residents are responsible for their guests’ behavior and all guests are subject to university guidelines and policies. Guests who are 21 years of age and older can consume alcohol in the resident’s room or apartment as long as the resident is also 21 years of age.

Drugs, Smoking, E-Cigarettes, and Smokeless Tobacco – Tarleton is a smoke and tobacco-free campus

• Tobacco and any tobacco products, including vapes, are prohibited in the residence halls.
• Possession or use of any illegal drugs is prohibited on the University campus.
• Taking or having possession of prescription medication, without a prescription, is prohibited on the University campus.

Pet Policy – Pets are strictly prohibited in University Housing with the exception of fish in a properly maintained aquarium (no larger than 10 gallons). Students considering having an aquarium with fish should be aware that ALL electrical items must be disconnected during break periods. Aquariums containing anything other than fish are prohibited. Violators of the pet policy are subject to a $60.00 per day fine and restitution for damages.

Tarleton State University recognizes the importance of Service Animals as defined by the Americans with Disabilities Act Amendments Act (ADAAA), and of Emotional Support Animals (ESAs), supported by the Fair Housing Act. The university is committed to allowing individuals with disabilities the use of a Service Animal on campus to facilitate their full participation and equal access to the University’s programs and activities. Tarleton State University is also committed to allowing ESAs, necessary to provide individuals with mental health disabilities a fair opportunity to use and enjoy University housing. Following are the specific requirements applicable to an individual’s use of an ESA in University housing; it does not apply to “service animals” as defined by the ADAAA.

The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)/Fair Housing regulations provide that emotional support animals be considered a reasonable accommodation in campus housing.  Since HUD/Fair Housing regulations only apply to housing facilities, the animals are not allowed in other areas of campus such as but not limited to: all university buildings with exception of residence halls, classrooms, classroom labs, community/shared bathrooms, lounges, dining halls, dining rooms, indoor recreational rooms, computer labs, and study rooms.

Tarleton State University is aware of its responsibility to provide safe living environment to all students who wish to live on campus.  In keeping with this obligation, emotional support animals will be permitted in housing facilities provided that established requirements are met, including determination of the animal as a reasonable accommodation by the Office of Student Accessibility Services and Department of Residence Life.   

Some websites sell ESA certificates, registrations, and licensing documents to anyone who answers certain questions or participates in a short interview and pays a fee.  As of November 2019, The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been asked to investigate websites that purport to provide documentation from a health care provider in support of requests for an ESA.  The websites in question offer documentation that is not reliable for purposes of determining whether an individual has a disability or disability-related need for an ESA because the website operators and health care professionals who consult with them lack the personal knowledge that is necessary to make such determinations. In HUD’s experience, such documentation from the internet is not, by itself, sufficient to reliably establish the need for an ESA.  Under the Fair Housing Act, a housing provider may request reliable documentation when an individual requesting a reasonable accommodation has a disability and disability accommodation that are not obvious or otherwise known. Also, please be aware that the Office of Student Accessibility Services and Department of Residence Life neither requires nor recognizes an ESA “license”, “certificate” or “vest” as the basis for establishing the legitimacy of an ESA.

An ESA may be a dog, cat, small bird, rabbit, hamster, gerbil, fish, turtle, or other small, domesticated animal that is traditionally kept in the home for pleasure.  Under guidelines from HUD, reptiles (other than turtles), barnyard animals, monkeys, and other non-domesticated animals are not considered common household animals.

The ESA is not allowed on campus property until official approval is granted and no ESA may be kept in University housing at any time prior to the individual receiving approval as a reasonable accommodation.

An emotional support animal, or ESA, is a protected accommodation under the Fair Housing Act. At Tarleton State University, all students with disabilities who are seeking an ESA as an accommodation must complete the outlined steps below: 

Step 1: Complete the Office of Student Accessibility Services’ Request for Accommodations

 Step 2: Meet with the Office of Student Accessibility Services staff to discuss ESA process

Step 3: Supply requested documents

• Disability Verification Form
• Completion of ESA Documents
  • Animal Owner Responsibilities in Campus Housing
  • Animal Owner Responsibilities in Campus Housing Confirmation
  • Animal Registration Form
• Letter from therapeutic provider containing:
  • Nature of the diagnosis, severity of diagnosis and what methodology was used to arrive at the diagnosis
  • If the provider can provide existing and continuing diagnostic and therapeutic relation with the student
  • If the student requires ongoing treatment
  • Is the animal specifically prescribed as part of treatment for student and how does the therapeutic provider believe the ESA will have a beneficial effect for the student
  • What are the functional limitations resulting from the diagnosis and how the animal will mitigate the functional limitations
  • What observations, evaluations or other means has the provider used to determine that an ESA would be a reasonable housing accommodation
  • In detail, how important for the student’s well-being that the ESA be in residence on campus
  • What consequences, in terms of disability symptomology, may result if the accommodation is not approved
  • Has there been a discussion of the responsibility associated with properly caring for an animal while engaged in typical college activities and residing in campus housing
  • In their professional opinion, would the responsibilities of an ESA exacerbate they student’s symptoms in anyway
• Animal Health
  • Proof of Vaccinations- vaccination and vet records to show proof of absence of fleas, tick or other parasites
  • Proof of spay/neuter
  • Follow up with animal’s veterinarian to verify animal does not exhibit aggressive or protective behaviors

Step 4: Once information from A-D have been submitted, the ESA Committee, made up of the Office of Student Accessibility Services and Department of Residence Life staff, meet on a weekly basis to review ESA applications.  The ESA application will be approved or declined by the ESA committee.  If an ESA application is approved, the student will be notified of approval.  If an ESA application is declined, the student will be notified and suggestions may be made by the ESA committee about the application.

Phone: tel:+12549689400 or Email: mailto:drt@tarleton.edu mailto:disability@tarleton.edu

Standard Administrative Procedure – Animals on Campus https://www.tarleton.edu/policy/wp-content/uploads/sites/142/2022/06/08_01_02_t0_01.pdf