By Hope Hart

What do strawberries, chicken noodle soup, mint and chocolate and all have in common?

They’re all edible, but they also have one less obvious similarity: they’re all available flavors of condoms.

Using the chicken noodle soup condom may not cure the common cold, but it will grant protection against STDs and prevent pregnancy when used correctly. Condoms are the second most popular form of birth control after the Pill, which is why many national colleges and universities have them readily available on their campuses. Except, it seems, for Haverford.

For the past few years, plastic bins filled with condoms were located in every dorm bathroom and every apartment hallway. But the bins currently sit empty.

While it is true that condoms have disappeared from the bathrooms, they should be back in the dorms before Thanksgiving Break, according to Jamie DeNizio HC ’11, President of Student Health Advisory Committee.

Gabe Schwartz ’10 said that he originally started the free condoms program a couple of years ago, when he was a member of SHAC. His mom gave him the idea, and Heath Services funded the total cost: for the condoms, the plastic containers, and a new Campus Health position, originally given to Leonel Oliveros-Rosen ’10, who made sure these bins were stocked sufficiently throughout the year.

Due to budget cuts, Health Services was not able to fund the program this year, said DeNizio in an e-mail, forcing SHAC to find money elsewhere. The committee approached Students’ Council for help, and the request for funding was granted.

Many students have lamented the condoms’ absence, but others, like Emma Iun ’10, never noticed they were missing. She said it was a good idea to have them, but cautioned against providing an unlimited supply.

“Sometimes in the past, I felt that people would take more than they needed,” she said.

Anna Schall HC ’12 noted that when condoms were in the bathroom, their usage depended on the hall: “My hall wasn’t too promiscuous [last year], but I know they were used more in other halls.”  

Jon Lima ’10 thought it was important to have the condoms. Otherwise, he said, “more people will have unprotected sex.”

SHAC is currently in contact with representatives at Planned Parenthood to purchase reliable condoms at low prices. Free condoms are always available in the Women’s Center during open office hours.