TO:              Academic Professionals, Civil Service & Faculty

FROM:         Office of the Vice Chancellor for Academic Affairs and Provost

                   Office of the Vice Chancellor for Student Affairs

DATE:          Thursday, February 26, 2015

SUBJECT:   “Unofficial St. Patrick's Day” Friday, March 6

On Friday, March 6, 2015, many students and visitors will participate in an event known as Unofficial St. Patrick's Day. While the University does not support or condone this event, steps are being taken to ensure safety and to minimize disruption to classes and campus operations.

The Champaign, Urbana, and University of Illinois police departments, assisted by other local and state agencies, will patrol the campus district on March 6. They will enforce all applicable ordinances in commercial and residential areas, and have authority to intervene if private parties threaten to disturb the peace. In addition, Champaign and Urbana officials will enact restrictions on liquor sales intended to curb overconsumption. Emergency medical personnel will be available to provide care.

University police will continue to focus on protecting students, staff, faculty, and University property. Should you need to report an incident, call METCAD at 911 for emergencies, 333-8911 for non-emergencies.

As in years past, we have made clear to students that academic business will continue as usual on Unofficial St. Patrick's Day. That has helped to minimize disruptions. Instructors should not need to alter instructional plans.

The Student Code http://www.admin.illinois.edu/policy/code/ addresses student responsibilities on campus. Sections 1-102(d) and 1-302(f) concern classroom conduct expectations, and section 1-307 focuses on alcohol consumption. The Code empowers instructors to ask disruptive students to leave class; after class, names of disruptive students should be reported to the Office of Student Conflict Resolution at 333-3680.

If asking a disruptive student to leave class could escalate into a confrontation, you may seek assistance. From 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on March 6, teams of Student Affairs and Academic Affairs professionals will walk through and around buildings with classrooms and lecture halls where disruptions were experienced in the past. Team members, wearing University IDs, may be summoned to help. Teams will be prepared to document apparent Code violations and to call University police, if necessary.

Students will be asked not to bring any liquids into Foellinger Auditorium and Lincoln Hall Theatre. Longstanding policy prohibits liquids and food in these spaces.

Students who interfere with the academic mission of the University will face serious consequences. Thank you for reinforcing this message before and on March 6.