Space Use Protocol, Process and Request Form

University Housing deems the entire residence hall as home to those who live there. For this reason, space use requests are monitored to insure that the entire residential community remains conducive and available to the residents to study, relax and socialize.

Keeping in mind the safety of all residents, access to the residence halls is limited to those who live and work in that community. In residence halls that have dining facilities; students with meal access may enter specific doors during meal serving hours. Non-housing guests must be escorted by a resident.

Quiet hours, size, and the type of a prescheduled event are taken into consideration.

General Space Usage

Individual residents, resident groups, and those departments with a living/learning affiliation with housing may host functions in many spaces in the residence halls for the students who live in that community and/or for those students participating in that particular living/learning program. Groups or departments can speak with the Leadership Team (LT) of the building to discuss, among other things, the usage, timing of the event, means of promotion and appropriate building access for other University Housing residents.

Open meetings or events with mass, public invitation are not permitted due to resident safety.

An online space use request form is found in the "Reservations" section of this page. Once the request has been submitted, that community's LT will review the request and either respond with questions or respond with a confirmation or denial. Requests are typically responded to within 5 business days.

It is very rare that individuals or organizations not affiliated with housing are permitted to use space in a residential building. For those individuals or organizations not affiliated with Housing, and who feel they have an extenuating circumstance which warrants use of residential space, see Space Use by Individuals or Organizations Not Affiliated with Housing.

University Housing reserves the right to bar groups that practice or promote harassment on the basis of race, sex, color, sexual orientation, national origin or ancestry, religion, age, marital status, gender identity, gender expression, disability, or veteran status.

All requests are considered on a first come, first served basis.

Dining Space Usage

If the space being requested is a dining hall, retail, or cafe space; upon receipt of a request the LT of the building will forward the request to the applicable Dining Services Manager for review and response.

Community Learning Center Usage

If the space being requested is a Community Learning Center, upon receipt of a request the LT of the building will forward the request to the CLC Reservations team for review and response.

Minority-cultural and Multicultural Theme Lounges

If the space being requested is a Minority-Cultural or Multicultural Lounge; upon receipt of a request the LT of the building will discuss the request with the Diversity Peer Educator(s) (DPE). The LT member or the DPE will respond to the requestor with confirmation and expectations of use. Note that minority-cultural lounges are locked physically but are accessible after the pre-scheduled orientation meeting with the DPE occurs. The Community Center Manager (CCM) or another LT member will then initiate access to the space.

Minority-cultural Lounges are a designated space in a residence hall that is a cultural representation of students living in the community and on campus. The minority-cultural lounges are locked physically but are accessible to a resident after the pre-scheduled orientation meeting with the DPE. These spaces are the Abeng lounge in East Quad, Asubuhi lounge in West Quad, Afro American/Ambatana lounge in South Quad, Gandhi lounge in Oxford, Audre Lorde lounge in Barbour/Newberry, Rosa Parks lounge in Stockwell, Nikki Giovanni in Mosher Jordan, Umoja in Alice Lloyd, Angela Davis in Mary Markley, Martin Luther King lounge in Bursley, and the Grace Lee Boggs lounge in Baits. North Quad has a space with no designated name, and Northwood does not have a minority lounge.

Multicultural Theme lounges are designed to share a bit of the culture and to provide a space for all residents to gather and study, and where all students will have the opportunity to observe and participate in appreciating ethnic cultures. These spaces are the Vicky Barner lounge in Alice Lloyd, the Cesar Chavez lounge in Mosher Jordan, the Sharangpani Lounge in Mary Markley and the Yuri Kochiyama in South Quad.

While the multicultural theme lounges are typically open and available for use by individual residents, resident groups, and departments with a living/learning affiliation, there are student legacy groups that may request use of the space. These legacy groups are the Native American Student Association, Latino/a Student Association, and Asian American Student Association. Each space use request by a legacy group is reviewed by Residence Education LT and DPE staff.

We invite everyone to learn more about the purpose and histories of the Minority-cultural and Multicultural Theme Lounges.

Policies and Guidelines of all Residential Space Use

• Most requests will be received and responded to within 5 business days prior to the proposed date of the event. For events with anticipated attendance of 75 or greater and/or the event will have amplified sound, the request must be submitted at least 10 business days prior to the proposed date of the event and the large-event protocol will be followed. (see Large Events and/or Events with Amplified Sound).
• Regularly scheduled events (i.e. weekly or bi-weekly meetings) are discouraged in order that all members of the community have use of the space. A collaborative discussion with the LT, Residence Staff and/or Council can be very useful in these situations. Evening hours are more in demand and therefore more impacted by the need to schedule in multiple locations.
• Food and beverage products from any vendor other than Residential Dining Services (RDS) are not permitted in the residence halls. Note that RDS availability may be limited pending the availability of the requested items, staffing levels and timing of the event.
• Non-resident, personally invited guests are to be escorted by a resident at all times.
• The collection of money at an event is prohibited. Only charitable, item donations (coats, toys, non-perishable food, etc.) may be collected as a condition of entry to an event.
• Housing personnel will remove any materials that promote the use of alcohol or other drugs or that discriminate on the basis of race, sex, color, religion, creed, national origin or ancestry, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity/expression, disability, or veteran status.

Who May Attend An Event

• Residents of the building in which the event is held and their personally invited, escorted guests may attend. Residents of the building must be able to show a valid Mcard.
• Where an event may be planned that residents of another University Housing community are asked to participate, it is expected that the organizer discuss with LT an appropriate model for access to the building.
• All participants and guests are expected to adhere to the Community Living Standards as noted in the Community Living at Michigan Handbook and/or The Student Code of Conduct.

Timing of Events

• Quiet hours and study times are taken into consideration. The Community Living at Michigan (CLAM) handbook addresses these hours.
• For events larger than 75 and for those rare occasions when a group not affiliated with Housing is approved to use the space, the activity/event hours may be restricted to begin and end between the hours of 10:00am and 8:00pm, Sunday through Thursday.
• Regularly scheduled events (e.g., weekly meetings) are discouraged in order to meet the needs of all residents in a community. A collaborative discussion with the LT, Residence Staff and/or Council can be very useful in these situations. Evening hours are more in demand and therefore more impacted by the need to schedule in multiple locations.

Large Events and/or Events with Amplified Sound

For an event in a residence hall that is larger than 75 in attendance and/or for gatherings where the event will employ amplified sound, regardless of anticipated attendance, the following guidelines are in place:

Host Responsibilities

• Submit an on-line request for the space.
• Contact Housing Security and the Leadership Team of the community to schedule a pre-event meeting at least ten days prior to the proposed date of the event.
• Determine the maximum attendance, appropriate promotional material including the means of distribution, and adequate staffing levels in consultation and in agreement with Housing Security and/or the Leadership Team of the community
• Designate a coordinator who will be present at the event.
  • The coordinator is expected to meet with Housing Security 15 minutes prior to the scheduled start time of the event. At this meeting, responsibilities and expectations for the event will be reviewed.

The host/coordinator will be expected to:

• Monitor and maintain orderly lines for the guests waiting to be admitted to the event.
• Ensure that the number of people admitted to the event, including guests and group members, does not exceed the agreed upon capacity for the event.
• Ensure that any guest is personally escorted in the community.
• Ensure that the event does not disrupt other activities in the building due to noise levels, guest behavior, crowds, etc.
• At the end of the event, clear the area of all attendees.
• Clean the area and put all furnishings back in place. Report to security any problems to include broken furniture, etc.
• Assume responsibility for all costs related to the event.
• Housing Security is the final arbiter of all problems during an event. Decisions to remove patrons, close down an event, control noise, etc. will rest with Housing Security.

Security Responsibilities

• Attend the pre-event meeting with members of the sponsoring group if one is scheduled per the above requirements.
• Notify the Leadership Team of the specific community of an event cancellation or the sponsoring group's failure to attend a pre-event meeting.
• Provide Security staff for the event, if deemed necessary.
• Attend a post-event meeting with the Leadership Team and representatives of the sponsoring group if one is requested.

Violations

Any individual or organization found violating these guidelines or any other applicable University policy, including policies prohibiting solicitation in a residence hall without permission, may be escorted from the applicable building by University Security and/or public safety personnel. Housing staff may also revoke lounge use privileges to students and/or groups who incur damage to the lounge property and/or fail to comply with the rules as stated here.

Reservations

The process of submitting an online request informs the LT staff of the community of the need and informs the Community Center Manager (CCM) to reserve the space. Typically the CCM, but possibly another LT member will respond back with status of the request. Again; the Dining, CLC and Multicultural and Minority-cultural space requests will be forwarded to the respective staff for review and response as noted above.

By completion and submission of the online request form, it is assumed that all guidelines stated here are understood and will be followed.

Space Use by Individuals or Organizations Not Affiliated with Housing

Residential space use for individuals, departments and organizations not affiliated with University Housing is considered on a very limited exception basis rather than an application basis. There are many other, more public, on-campus spaces available and we encourage groups not affiliated with Housing to explore the following for availability and scheduling:

• Office of Student Activities & Leadership Guidebook
• Division of Student Affair's Urooms database

Those who feel they have an extenuating circumstance which warrants use of residential spaces must contact University Housing Administration at the email address noted below. University Housing Administrators will review the request and respond with a written response within 5 days. The individual or organization must have received written, pre-approval prior to entering any residence hall. Inquires can be made to hsg-solicitation@umich.edu or by calling 734-615-2147.