E3.54A Chosen Name Policy

Effective Date: December 19, 2023
Last Reviewed: December 19, 2023


I. Purpose and Scope

Stonehill College has a strong commitment to a diverse and inclusive environment where the dignity of each person within our community is respected and affirmed. To uphold this commitment, the College has developed a policy that provides information about how the College captures and uses the legal and chosen names of employees and students.

II. Definitions

A. Legal Name: a name that appears on official records of identification, such as a person’s birth certificate, passport, driver’s license or government-issued identification card, court documents, or U.S. issued social security card.

B. Chosen Name: a name that one may wish to use other than their legal first name to identify oneself. Such examples include but are not limited to the following: names used to affirm one’s gender identity, middle names used instead of first names, anglicized names, and names by which a person is more commonly known (e.g. Betsy, instead of Elizabeth).

III. Policy

A. Use of Names

  1. Legal Name. Certain types of documents and records maintained by the College require the use of one’s legal name and thus cannot be altered without the completion of a legal name change that has been reported to the Registrar’s Office or Human Resources. Legal names currently appear on the following records: 
    1. Academic transcripts
    2. Campus Police reports
    3. Dean’s List and any listings in public newspapers
    4. Enrollment verifications
    5. Health Services/Medical records
    6. Financial aid documents
    7. Human Resources forms and documents
    8. NCAA documents
    9. Payroll/Work-Study forms (including paychecks and direct deposits)
    10. Room and Board Contract
    11. SEVIS/Immigration Records and non-resident visas
    12. Student Accounts documents
    13. Study Abroad forms and documents (Christina to ask Hillary)
    14. Tax forms (i.e. W-2, W-4, I-9, etc.)
    15. External reporting (to loan companies, military, government agencies, etc.)
  2. Chosen Name. The Registrar’s Office maintains a current list of the records on which an individual’s chosen name will appear, as well as a list of records on which a legal name is typically used, but individuals may elect to use their chosen name in place of their legal name.

B. Use of Chosen Names

Current students and employees at Stonehill College are entitled to use a chosen name to identify themselves, with certain exceptions outlined in Section III.A.1 of this Policy. The College will strive to use one’s chosen name wherever possible across the College in the course of education, business affairs, and communication.

Stonehill also endeavors to educate campus community members about chosen name use as fully as possible and expects all community members to respect chosen names.

While Stonehill seeks to make requested name changes in all appropriate places, it is a multi-step project, and there may be instances where the change is not made or does not integrate into certain systems.

C. Improper Use of Chosen Names

A person wishing to use a chosen name may not do so for purposes of misrepresentation, misidentification, fraud, identity theft, or violation of Community Standards or local, federal, and state laws and regulations. The College also reserves the right to deny or remove a chosen name in such instances or if it in any way contradicts the College’s mission of preserving the inherent dignity of individuals or Holy Cross values.

D. Requests for Chosen Names

New, incoming students may indicate their chosen name through the enrollment verification process.

Current students wishing to indicate or update a chosen name may do so through the Chosen Name Request Form located on the Registrar’s Office MyHill page.

Employees wishing to indicate a chosen name must initiate this request with the Office of Human Resources.

Once the college has received a chosen name request, the chosen name will show up on all systems as outlined on the Registrar’s Office MyHill page, unless modification of the system is not possible or reasonably feasible. Because the chosen name has to be updated manually, the process for a chosen name change may take up to ten (10) business days.

Students may, under the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA), opt not to permit disclosure of their name to the public as “directory information,” including their chosen first name.