In This Issue Current Issue Archives

April, 2007

New Products Showcase
Several new products for the event planner have come across our desks. Some notable food products and event management products include:

Campus Events Professional - April, 2007 - Full issue PDF
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Legal Liability Primer for Special Events Professionals
Every event, no matter how well planned, brings with it the potential for injury, accident, and legal liability. Whether the event is large or small, whether it is on campus or off-site, whether it is a stately inaugural or a raucous rally, liability is a constant concern for those who plan university events.

Editor’s Letter
Laws, policies, and plans. A firm understanding of these types of guidelines can make or break the success of an event.For example, consider the next event you host at a large arena or auditorium. The presence of outdated or unsafe railings and steps could expose the university to legal liability and your guests to the risk of injury. Preventing problems that can arise from such circumstances starts with understanding a university’s legal responsibility. This month our cover story is “A Legal Liability Primer for Special Events Professionals.”

Preventing Riots in Campus Communities
One of the things that keeps university personnel up nights is the possibility of a riot on or near campus. Suddenly, a well-planned campus event can morph into an uncontrolled disturbance, potentially endangering students, members of the campus community, and people in the surrounding town. Linda Langford of the Center for College Health & Safety of the Education Development Center, Inc., in Newton, Massachusetts, and Cynthia Buettner of the College of Education and Human Ecology at The Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio, are experts in campus disturbance and riot prevention. They shared their experiences with Magna readers in a recent online seminar. Some of the key take-aways for event planners include:

Policy Primer: Understanding Food Exclusivity
“Come on, Dave. Who in their right mind tells a group of campers that they can’t bring a birthday cake into a campus building? Doesn’t that cross the line from ‘mean’ into ‘cruel and unusual’?”

Responding to Sport Problems
In the wake of continuing problems at home football games, the University of Mississippi is cracking down on alcohol. Perhaps the death of a campus police officer, hit by a vehicle on campus, pushed Ole Miss by serving as a “wake-up call.” Whatever the reason, the result is a new “two strikes” policy.

Of Difficult Coworkers and Illegal Cake
By David Treber
Surviving a summer of camps is tough enough. Some years, an additional challenge gets thrown at us. One person on our campus once decided that his best approach to personal advancement is to declare war on summer conferences. The difficult coworker is one that we all have to learn to deal with.