Student-Sponsored Events

The Campus Life Office supports student-sponsored events that are hosted by the Pitzer College Events Board as well as Pitzer clubs and affinity groups. We are here to help you plan your next event for the Pitzer community!

Student-sponsored and -initiated events contribute to vibrant social opportunities through inclusive and accessible events for all members of the Pitzer community. The following guidelines are intended to facilitate such events safely and in accordance with Pitzer policies.

Event Registration

All student clubs and organizations (Pitzer and 5C) must submit their event for approval on Engage. From there, the Campus Life team will review the event and reach out to discuss logistics and other opportunities for support.

Note: In addition to Campus Life approvals, all events taking place in a residence hall will need to be approved by the Residence Life office, and all events taking place in/around the Grove House will need to be approved by the Grove House Committee.

Pitzer College Events Board

The Pitzer College Events Board is tasked by the Student Senate to fund, coordinate, and support student events on Pitzer's campus, and help facilitate student events across the consortium. These events include, but are not limited to: events, parties, speakers, and artists. 

All Event Registrants seeking funding for an event must submit a request at least three weeks prior to the proposed event date. From there, event registrants will attend the weekly Events Board meeting to review the planned event, discuss policies and risk management issues, determine the approved funding, as well as assess the need for event staff, security, and alcohol and servers (if applicable).

Pitzer Events Board Funding Request Form

Student-Sponsored Events Policies

The institutional resources provided by Campus Life to support events are exclusively for event registrants working in collaboration with one or more Pitzer clubs/organizations. Individuals wishing to start a new event need to connect with the Events Board before proceeding. 

All events must have an event registrant who is responsible for meeting with the Pitzer Events Board and Campus Life staff, registering the event, and must be present at the event. The event registrant must also have a co-registrant that is present at the event. If the primary event registrant desires to serve alcohol, they must have a co-registrant that is 21-years of age for the request for alcohol to be considered. Hosting an event is a privilege and significant responsibility. Only students in good academic and social standing with the College are permitted to register and host events. Students who have made poor decisions regarding their behavior on campus are encouraged to address these issues before requesting to register and host an event.

Event Registrants are expected to:

  • Be present for vendor deliveries, event set-up, the duration of the event, and for the clean-up of the event.
  • Not be intoxicated at or consume alcohol during the event.
  • Ensure that the event and guests comply with Pitzer policy and local, state, and federal laws. If violations are found, the event registrants will be expected to address the situation immediately.
  • Seek help from Campus Safety if unable to safely manage or oversee the event. This includes ending an event early if, in consultation with Campus Safety or Campus Life staff, it is determined to be necessary to ensure the safety of guests.
  • Ensure that noise stays within a reasonable level. If a noise complaint is received by Campus Safety, the event registrants will be notified and will be expected to have the volume lowered. If a second complaint is received, Campus Safety may require the event be ended. Note: If a local law enforcement agency receives a noise complaint, they may respond to campus and issue a citation. If a citation is issued it will be given to the event registrants who will then be responsible.
  • Clean up the event location immediately following the event and return it to its pre-event condition. This includes removing all decorations and returning all furniture to its original location. If it is determined that additional custodial service is required following an event, the event registrants will be billed for that service.
  • Ensure that all borrowed equipment or supplies are returned in a timely manner and in the same condition in which they were borrowed.

Event Types

Events that need to be registered with Events Board fall into at least one of the following categories and must be registered at least three weeks in advance.

  • Events in the evening: Events that occur in the evening hours that are anticipated to occur between 8 p.m. and 11 p.m. (weekdays) or 8 p.m. and 1 a.m. (weekends).
  • Events with 100+ people anticipated: Events that the registrant anticipates having over 100 people or is publicized widely enough to likely draw over 100 people.
    Note: Unless otherwise stated, all registered events are open to Pitzer students, their guests, and 5C students.
  • Events with amplified sound: Events that utilize the Event Staff sound equipment or outside sound engineering equipment.
  • Events at which alcohol is served: Events at which alcohol has been requested to be served and have been approved by Campus Life staff.
  • Events that desire to seek event funding from the Pitzer Events Board: Student Senate has allocated a sum of funding for the Events Board to distribute for on-campus (Pitzer and 5C) social events.

There are many ways to publicize your event in addition to student emails and flyers. You can use word-of-mouth, table tents, sidewalk chalk, message boards, social media, etc. Be creative, but please be sure to observe the posting publicity guidelines, which were developed to provide effective publicity, while using a minimum of natural resources.

Some posting reminders for fliers, posters, and banners:

  • Need to be approved with a stamp by Campus Life prior to posting. Email your poster to campuslife@pitzer.edu for digital approval prior to printing.
  • Need to have the following information: name(s) of the sponsoring organizations/people, title of the event, date/time/location of the event, and contact information of event host.
  • Postings for events cannot include pictures or references to alcohol, nor can they promote the availability or consumption of alcohol.
  • The full posting policy can be found here: posting publicity guidelines

During the Pitzer Events Board meeting in which your event proposal is being reviewed, Campus Life staff will review the event management issues and needs, including: Event Staff, Campus Safety, restroom facilities, fencing, etc. An event walkthrough meeting with Campus Life staff and the event registrant may also be required to review safety and overall event management plans.

  • Event Staff: Event Staff is a group of Pitzer students committed to helping their peers host successful on-campus events, some of their roles at events include: sound mixing, set up, take down, crowd control, helping with fencing, etc. Depending on the nature of the student-sponsored event, Event Staff will be present to assist. Events held Sunday through Thursday must end by 11 p.m. and events held on Friday or Saturday must end by 1 a.m. unless otherwise restricted. 
  • Campus Safety: Campus Safety will likely be required at student-sponsored events that are classified in two or more of the following ways: evening events, 100+ people anticipated, using amplified sound, or alcohol is being served. The amount of officers required will be determined by the Campus Life staff based on the type and nature of the event being registered. If a recurring event has had a successful pattern of management, an exception may be made to the requirement to hire officer(s). Payment for Campus Safety is the responsibility of the event registrant’s sponsoring organization.
  • Fencing: Fencing may be required for events held outside with a significant expected attendance. The type of fencing and the fencing plan will be reviewed and approved during the registration meeting, if applicable. Payment for fencing is the responsibility of the event registrant’s sponsoring organization.
  • Restroom Facilities: Public restrooms must be available for all registered events without the need for key card access. Public restrooms are those which are available to all attendees regardless of gender identity and do not require attendees to select a restroom based on traditional limitations imposed by gender and/or sex definitions. If appropriate public restrooms are not available for the nature of the event being registered, portable restrooms may be required. Payment for portable restrooms is the responsibility of the event registrant’s sponsoring organization.

Student-sponsored events with alcohol may only be approved for Friday and Saturday. The decision to serve alcohol at a student-sponsored event will be based on staffing, availability of security, the nature of the event, the location of the event, and event scheduling. Individuals may not bring their own alcohol to any student-sponsored events.

Amount:

  • Beer and wine are the only alcohol that Campus Life staff will register. No hard alcohol is allowed to be served.
  • All registered alcohol must be served in cups.
  • Only students and guests 21 years of age or older with valid forms of identification may consume registered alcohol.
  • The determination of the amount of alcohol that will be approved for a student-sponsored event will be based on the number of expected guests 21-years of age or older, the length of the event, and the venue/location. The approved amount will be the equivalent of one drink per hour per guest 21 years of age or older, for the duration of the event.
  • If alcohol is approved to be served at a student-sponsored event, no more than one keg or equivalent servings of wine will be approved for the event.
  • The number of student-sponsored events with alcohol cannot exceed more than one per weekend.
  • All student-sponsored events approved to serve alcohol must also provide high-quality non-alcoholic beverages (e.g. water, juice, soda, etc.) and high-quality food (e.g. veggies and dip, fruit platters, cheese and crackers, etc.) throughout the duration of the event.
  • Alcohol provided at the event is not allowed to leave that event.

Servers:

  • If alcohol is approved to be served at a student-sponsored event, a server must be hired through Bon Appetit.
  • Servers may not be intoxicated at or consume alcohol during an event.
  • The servers must follow the guidelines of the Pitzer College Alcohol Policy when working at events. If it is found the servers are not following policy, the service of alcohol will cease for the duration of the event.
  • Servers do not check IDs. A Campus Safety officer must be employed to check forms of identification for students wishing to consume alcohol.

Funding:

  • If approved to serve alcohol at a student-sponsored event, the club/organization collaborating on the event is responsible for the cost of hiring the appropriate number of Campus Safety Officers, Event Staff, and servers for the entire duration of the event. If the event runs late or officers are needed to disperse attendees at the end, the club/organization will incur the cost of the additional time.
    • The cost of Campus Safety officers is dictated by the Campus Safety department and changes annually. 
    • The cost of the servers is 2 times the hourly state minimum wage
    • The cost of Event Staff is the CA state minimum wage per hour.
  • Student activity funds (i.e. clubs or similar funding) cannot be used to purchase alcohol.

Contact Us

Campus Life Office

Gold Student Center 200

Events Board Chair