Camping on campus: What’s the policy?

Buried deep in Miami University’s Use of University Property policies is Section 9, which outlines something few students likely know: camping on Miami property is strictly prohibited.

However, there’s an important exception: approved student organization activities are allowed in designated areas. This means student organizations can camp in specific locations if they receive approval.

The process runs through the Event Space Reservation System and the Hub, and also goes through the Office of Student Activities.

At the end of last school year, a small group of students protesting as members of Students for Justice in Palestine and the Young Democratic Socialists of America set up tents as part of their demonstration. After this, the policies in Miami’s student handbook were reviewed, something that occurs every year. Dean of Students BaShaun Smith explained that it had been a while since the policy had been updated.

“I think it’s smart for folks to renew and re-look at policies,” Smith said. “At different institutions I’ve been at, the gap for updating has been anywhere from seven to eight years.”

The Miami policy had previously not been updated since at least 2014.

Jayne Brownell, the senior vice president of Student Life and the chair of the Student Life Council, made the updates and ultimately voted on them. These updates were finalized over the summer and approved at the beginning of the semester. Brownell said the original policy was written before she arrived at Miami.

“I have been told it was written in mind of people camping out for tickets for hockey and that kind of stuff,” Brownell said. “[Which] was an issue at one point.”

The updates to Section 9 altered a few things, with the most important being camping locations. Previously, these included the Phi Delt gates, Armstrong Student Center and behind the Shriver Center.

The Phi Delt gates remain the same, but the update clarified where students near Armstrong could camp. Brownell explained that camping would now be allowed on the terraces facing Spring Street, but not on the west side of Jocelyn Terrace.

“It would be too easy to block doors, and the ones on the west side are covered,” Brownell said.

The Shriver location changed entirely. Now, the third designated camping space is on the northern side of Central Quad, just south of the sundial.

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“At the time that the policy was written, [Shriver Center] is where the box office was,” Brownell said, “whereas now that's where the admissions visitor center is.”

Another update was about bathroom arrangements. The update requires making suitable bathroom access arrangements approved by the Physical Facilities Department. Previously, this included a plan for portable toilets, but Brownell said that was fully taken out.

“We really don’t want anybody having porta potties on campus as part of camping out,” Brownell said.

The final change clarified that any organization with an activity can be held responsible for its members’ actions. This policy, specifically about organizational responsibility, is already included in the Code of Student Conduct.However, Student Life said it wanted to add the policy explicitly so that students didn’t have to search in other policies to find it.

Smith said he believes the new updates will have no negative effects on students.

“Our students are smart at Miami, and it’s been a privilege of working with them,” Smith said. “They look at policies, and they ask questions on, what can we do?”

childssb@miamioh.edu