Recent violent incidents on campuses, including the fatal shooting of a controversial speaker, have underscored the urgent need for colleges and universities to assess their approaches to campus safety and free speech ahead of and during high-profile events.

This client alert is the first in a series designed to provide practice tools for colleges and universities to manage safety and legal risks associated with high-profile or controversial events on campus. Over the next several weeks, the Hunton team will address a range of critical topics, including campus free speech, guidance for campus police managing events, and strategies for campus leaders to facilitate difficult dialogues and debates. Our goal is to provide higher education leaders with actionable tips, legal insights, and best practices to ensure campus events remain safe, accessible, and consistent with institutional values and legal obligations. We are providing this advice assuming that institutions will continue to be the sites – whether with the agreement of institutional leadership or not – of controversial events and speakers, discussing a variety of topics and viewpoints.

Risk management in campus event planning is about anticipating, preventing, and minimizing potential problems before they arise. For campus events, this means robust planning, stakeholder engagement, and layered security protocols. Key risk management strategies include:

• Event Registration & Assessment
  
  Colleges and universities should have a policy that require all large, high-profile, or potentially controversial events hosted on campus to be registered and approved. A registration form or centralized registration system should include questions about the event such as: estimated number of attendees, speaker and topic of the event, location, date and time, marketing and media. This registration process should be used to flag any events for additional review and approvals, consistent with the campus’s free speech policies. Assess the risk level for registered events using a standardized tool to ensure consistency in approach to events – consider using a committee to review all large, high-profile, or potentially controversial events.
  
  Any committee or administrator who evaluates the risk level of events should be trained to do so in a way that is viewpoint neutral. While content of speech may be considered to the extent that it is likely to inflame or cause public reactions or outcry, the assessment should also focus on safety considerations outside of the content, such as the size of the crowd anticipated and experiences across institutions that have hosted the speaker or similar speakers. Restrictions imposed by the institution should reflect an equitable approach that is not determined by the speaker’s political positions.

• Advance and Centralized Event Safety Planning
  
  Once an event is registered and approved by the institution, advance institutional planning can begin. This includes looping in relevant university offices, including not only the Events Office, but also public safety and campus police, PR and communications, student affairs, and even local police as necessary. See our future client alert on the work that public safety, campus police, and local police can engage in to develop event-specific safety and security plans.

• Contractual Risk Allocation Through Speaker Contracts
  
  Institutions should consider using standardized contracts or contractual provisions for outside speakers or performers that require the individuals to abide by campus rules, provide appropriate insurance, and accept indemnification clauses. Campuses should consult counsel about requiring speakers and performers to adhere to specific safety protocol, and requiring the speakers or group hosting them to bear costs for security measures.

• Physical and Infrastructure Event Controls
  
  Colleges and universities have a variety of event locations – from outside quads to indoor auditoriums and arenas. Consider holding high-risk events in controlled, indoor venues where access and egress can be managed for attendees. Remember to restrict dangerous items, remove objects that could be weaponized, and use physical barriers to separate opposing groups. Enforce campus policies on signs, amplified noise, and chalking consistently.

• Crowd and Access Management
  
  Consider whether your event will be open to the public or whether access will be limited only to students and employees of the university. Use ticketing to limit attendance and require IDs for entry. For events with a Q&A or debate-style, assign a moderator and provide for live audience feedback in controlled formats.

• Ongoing Threat Monitoring
  
  Remember to leverage campus and local law enforcement, campus threat assessment teams, and campus media and communications teams to monitor social media and other channels for signs of planned disruptions or violence. If disruptions are expected, offer support for counter-events, providing clear guidance and maintaining separation of the event and the counter-event to reduce conflict.

Crisis management in campus event planning is the suite of activities activated if and when an incident does occur, with the goal of protecting people, property, and institutional reputation, while restoring order and learning from the event. Key crisis management strategies include:

• Crisis Team Activation
  
  Before the event, make sure your crisis team is aware of the event and any potential concerns. When a crisis occurs, activate your crisis team, including campus safety, legal, PR and communications, student affairs, and administration.

• Emergency Protocols
  
  Run tabletops of your emergency protocols before the event occurs, including clear procedures for lockdown, evacuation, emergency alerts, and medical events. When a crisis occurs, activate your emergency protocols.

• Crisis Communications
  
  Develop messaging templates for various scenarios and various audiences – including board/university leadership; students, faculty, and staff; parents; local community; and media. During a crisis, remember to communicate clearly and accurately. Issue rapid, coordinated communications to campus, families, and media. Don’t forget your Clery obligations for timely warnings and emergency notifications. 

• Compliance Considerations During a Crisis
  
  Consult legal counsel on First Amendment obligations (for public universities) and university policies and procedures, especially before restricting speech or imposing post-event discipline.

• After-Action Review
  
  Make time to conduct a structured debrief with all involved departments, adjust protocols as needed, and provide support to affected students, staff, and faculty. Even if everything goes well before and during and event, debrief with the event organizers on what went well and what could be improved.

How Hunton’s Higher Education Team Can Help

Our Higher Education Practice Group delivers comprehensive, practical support for colleges and universities, focusing on proactive strategies that address the complex realities of campus event safety planning. Our services include drafting and reviewing sample policies, such as event management, protest, and time, place, and manner policies, developing customized risk assessment tools, and providing training and tabletop exercises for campus stakeholders. We regularly advise campus law enforcement on best practices and emerging issues, and offer thorough legal review of institutional obligations under the First Amendment, civil rights laws, and the Clery Act. Our approach is designed to ensure that your institution is prepared for both prevention and effective response to challenging campus events.

For advice on your institution’s campus event safety policy and processes, please contact your Hunton lawyer.