The 2016 election cycle is in full swing and both Republican and Democratic candidates are traveling the country speaking to voters ahead of caucuses and primaries. Often, colleges and universities are the host venues for candidates reaching out to young voters and those in their local communities. These high-profile candidates can add additional layers of complexities to plans that colleges and universities already have in place for large-scale events such as:
- The introduction of secret service
- A higher than expected turnout rate for an event
- An influx of national media on top of local and regional media
- First amendment issues such as protestors
Former Ohio State University (OSU) Deputy Chief of Police Richard Morman has written and presented on the topic of presidential candidates on campus. In 2012, OSU hosted four visits from President Obama, one of which included the First Lady. In addition, others such as the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Florida State University and the Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation have hosted presidential and vice presidential candidates in the past.
In a presentation to the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA) in 2013, Richard Morman explained that the US Secret Service "subscribes to the counterpart philosophy and will rely on assistance from local law enforcement in planning and carrying out their protection detail." They are instrumental in the planning process and work closely with the campaign staff and local law enforcement.
It is important to remember that a candidate's campaign will want a full venue, and working with your fire marshal to ensure proper capacity and safety for your event site is critical. This leads to a point made by Evansville Vanderburgh School Corporation's Director of Safety and Security, Gerald Eugene Summers, when he spoke with
Campus Safety Magazine. Summers stated, "What happens is anybody and everybody will show up to your school. People who you don't want in your buildings will be in your buildings because they are open to the public. The Secret Service does a good job of screening everyone, but still, there were a lot of people in the building that I wouldn't have let in if I had my way."
First amendment issues are not unfamiliar territory for colleges and universities. In order to be better prepared for the increased media attention at these events, Richard Morman advises schools to develop, in advance, a strategy with their legal counsel and "local laws and ordinances, and even recent Supreme Court rulings on free speech issues should be reviewed."
Some universities have developed specific protocols for candidate visits, including diverse working groups dedicated to addressing issues specific to these types of visits. Winthrop University's
2014-2016 Election Cycles Candidate Visits Protocol document (PDF) is an example of how an institution addresses issues such as maintaining institutional neutrality with the media, information on facilities and set up, security and parking, and cost sharing.
As with any large-scale campus event, it's imperative to hold a debrief after the event to discuss the things that went well and those things that did not go as planned. Updating event plans based on these lessons learned is important for the future.
