Alcohol at University Events

Background & Scope

Indiana Tech believes the choice to use alcohol legally is a personal and educational issue. The use of alcohol by students raises issues regarding personal responsibility and accountability. The university, through its employees, has a commitment to treat its own use of alcohol at university events with these core values in mind. This approach is consistent with the educational philosophy of the university which holds that students should be encouraged and helped to develop responsible attitudes and behavior as they prepare to enter a world in which alcohol is used. Guidelines and policy related to student use of alcohol can be found in the student code of conduct.

There are university sponsored events where the presence of alcoholic beverages, when consumed in a healthy and responsible manner, may be appropriate. However, in order to stay in balance with the primary, educational nature of the university, it is imperative that departments that sponsor events with alcohol do so in a manner which meets the below guidelines and requirements.

Policy

Alcoholic beverages may be served at university social functions defined as “closed events” – invitational events where the majority of the guests are over 21 years old. Examples include faculty socials, Board of Trustee events, and alumni events. Events which are included in this policy can be either on or off campus. The policy applies to any university-sponsored event. Closed events must adhere to the following guidelines:

A sponsoring department is defined as the university unit who is responsible for the event taking place where alcohol is offered to attendees. The sponsoring department is required to identify an employee who will have the oversight of ensuring alcohol will be presented and used responsibly. The identified employee should be over the age of 21 years. Their responsibilities include but are not limited to ensuring a) logistics related to alcohol are observed, b) communication with the alcohol vendor and university officials are clear, c) and that risk management practices are met.
The sponsoring department is responsible for the behavior of event attendees, and should work with the alcohol vendor and university staff to ensure behavior of event attendees remains appropriate. The sponsoring individual has the responsibility to see that all legal requirements are observed, that all university regulations are upheld, that all guests act responsibly, that the premises are left in good order, and that any special regulations for the area where the function is held are observed. It is not the sole purview of Security to monitor university guests, however, they are available for support if an issue arises and they are asked to assist. The sponsoring department has primary responsibility for ensuring that behavior at their event is appropriate to the attendees and university. If the sponsoring department would like a Security officer present for the duration of their event, they must arrange this with Security at least 4 weeks prior to the event and at the cost to the sponsoring department. Depending on when and where an event is held, there is not always Security scheduled to be present. All Security staffing for on-campus events must go through the University Security department.
1. Best Practice is to have 1 security person per 50 guests. Please consider this ratio while planning events.
Any event where alcohol is served must also provide substantive food to event attendees. Non-alcoholic beverages must be offered at any time alcoholic beverages are offered.
The serving of alcohol should be discontinued at least 30 minutes before the end of the event. Food and non-alcoholic beverages must be made available for at least 30 minutes after alcohol service is discontinued.
The university does not hold its own alcohol permit and neither university employees nor the university food service provider has the authority to provide/serve alcohol on behalf of the university at any Indiana Tech location or off campus.
1. If alcohol is to be served at a university event, it must be provided by an approved alcohol vendor. Each vendor must provide the university risk management committee with a copy of their liability insurance with at least one million dollars coverage and Indiana Tech named as an additional insured. They also must provide the sponsoring department with a copy of the temporary excise license by the date of the event. The sponsoring department must forward that license to the university’s Risk Management Committee at RiskManagement@indianatech.edu. Failure on the part of the sponsoring department to forward the license jeopardizes that department’s ability to host events with alcohol in the future. The currently approved alcohol vendors are Licensed Bartender Services, Club Soda, and Cap n Cork.
2. If a sponsoring department wishes to use another alcohol provider, they must obtain permission from the Risk Management Committee and provide a copy of the liability insurance with at least one million dollars coverage and Indiana Tech named as an additional insured. The alcohol vendor will need to provide a copy of the temporary alcohol license to the sponsoring department by the date of the event, and that must also be forwarded to the Risk Management Committee at RiskManagement@indianatech.edu. Sponsoring departments are advised to plan ahead and send the request as early as possible if alternate alcohol providers are being considered for an event.

Locations

No event should interfere with the primary educational focus of the institution. All efforts must be made by the sponsoring department to mitigate any impact of the event on classes in session. This is especially important when events with alcohol are being held in or near spaces where classes may be taking place or students who are not attending the event have access. Following are some general parameters regarding locations for university events which have alcohol.

It is preferred that alcohol service take place in spaces which are closed or have a door to exterior open lobbies, halls, atriums, etc. Open areas are more difficult to supervise. It is important to ensure that event attendees do not take their alcohol outside the event venue. Having alcohol in locations that are closed off from open areas also helps prevent non-event attendees from accessing alcohol.
Events which serve alcohol should not take place in academic spaces, i.e. classrooms.
The Athletic Director’s approval is needed before planning any events which serve alcohol in any athletic facilities.
There may be specific restrictions to serving alcohol at outdoor locations due to state laws. Sponsoring departments are responsible for working with the alcohol provider to determine whether any special accommodations are required in order to serve alcohol outside, such as temporary fencing around the designated drinking area.
Locations which have been designated as appropriate to host events with alcohol include the following*:
- Andorfer Commons: Seitz Conference Center, Joyce Schlatter Board Room, Recreation Center, and the Dining Hall when there are not classes in session or university business which allows for minors to have open access to the Dining Hall. Sponsoring departments are required to check with the event schedulers in the Office of Student Engagement to obtain approval to have alcohol in the Dining Hall at the time of initial scheduling.
- Snyder Academic Center: Multi-Flex Theater, Center for Creative Collaboration
  *It is best practice to post “No Alcohol Beyond This Point” signs if an event takes place in multiple locations, such as Seitz Conference Center and the connected alcoves or the Multi-Flex Theater and the Snyder Academic Center atrium. The sponsoring department is responsible for the posting of these signs. They can be requested from the Office of Student Engagement with at least 48 hours advance notice.
Sponsoring departments who wish to host events with alcohol in locations other than the above must obtain permission from the Risk Management Committee.