Middlebury Handbook

The following requirements apply to all Middlebury locations, with the College and the Institute having separate meetings of their weekly review teams. The individual or organization requesting to schedule an event affirms that the event is open to all students (or students, faculty & staff, as applicable) and complies with Middlebury’s Non-Discrimination Policy. 

1. Middlebury students, student organizations, individual faculty and staff who wish to request space for an Event are required to submit a request to reserve space at least three (3) weeks prior to the proposed date. An “Event” is any organized activity occurring on College-owned, leased, or controlled property, or conducted in the name of the College, where participants are invited, registered, or expected to attend and for which the College bears operational, reputational, legal, or safety responsibilities.

• The distribution of leaflets, pamphlets, and flyers does not require submission of an Event Scheduling Request unless the individual or group doing the distribution would like to reserve specific space and/or requires specific resources. Event Management staff collaborates closely with individuals planning events, including protests or demonstrations, and always seek to support events that are timely or need to be organized on short notice. Therefore, event organizers are always encouraged to work with Event Management as soon as they begin planning an event, even if it is less than 3 weeks away. 
• Exceptions may be made for event requests for activities that present no unusual considerations or security concerns and/or are difficult to schedule more than 3 weeks in advance. Exceptions are made at the initial daily review. 
• Requests for protests and demonstrations should be submitted at least 2 business days in advance of the anticipated date of the protest or demonstration.
• For more information please consult the Demonstration and Protest Regulations and the Policy on Open Expression.

2. The reservation request must identify a named individual who is responsible for the activity or event and will be present throughout the entire event, known as the “Event Host”. If the person completing the reservation request is someone other than the Event Host, the named Event Host must still be present at the event.

3. Event Hosts are asked at the time of making a space reservation request whether there are any security concerns or unusual support requirements. Event Hosts are ordinarily responsible for the costs of their events. Event Hosts must make themselves available to Event Management and applicable campus stakeholders prior to the event.

4. Student organizations are required to discuss their events with their faculty or staff advisor and will have to affirm that they have done so during the space reservation process. Events hosted by Student Organizations must be open to all members or all students (or students, faculty and staff, as applicable) in accordance with our Non-Discrimination Policy.

5. Priority will be given by Events Management to timely requests for appropriate spaces, as well as to key events being organized by Middlebury’s senior leadership.

6. All requests for space are reviewed daily by Event Management. Exceptions are made for space requests for activities that present no unusual considerations or security concerns and/or are difficult to schedule more than 3 weeks in advance.7. Event Management will flag space requests for which there is a reasonable concern that they will draw unusually large crowds, be subject to threats, violence, acts of intimidation, or otherwise indicate that additional planning is necessary to protect the safety and security of the Middlebury community.8. Space may be held but not be finally confirmed for requests that have been flagged for safety review until the review is completed.

7. Requests flagged by the initial Event Management review are discussed weekly by staff from Student Activities, Event Management, and Public Safety/Campus Security. The goal of the group review is to ensure that events can move forward safely. The group is not responsible for determining the value or appropriateness of any event.

8. The Event Protocol Committee may require changes to the location, timing, entry practices, etc. to reduce risks to physical safety as well as to minimize the risk of disruption of essential operations. This review will include consideration of Middlebury’s Emergency Preparedness Plan and the Emergency Operations Plan. The EPC may recommend or require the use of additional resources to adequately manage risks of the activity, including activating the Crisis Management Team (CMT).

9. In an exceptional case where the review, after application of risk mitigation strategies, indicates that the activity presents an imminent and credible threat to the physical safety of individuals that cannot be adequately mitigated, the president and the senior administration reserve the right to reschedule or, if necessary, to cancel an event. Event Management and the Event Protocol Committee are not authorized to decide whether to cancel an event for safety concerns.