Speakers Policy
I. Guest Speakers
Franciscan University of Steubenville encourages non-academic departments and recognized student organizations within the University to extend invitations to speakers whose appearance and presentation will advance and support the University’s mission as a Catholic Franciscan institution of higher education. The University reserves the right to deny approval for any speaker to make a presentation on campus whose appearance or presentation, in the judgment of the President or his designee, would compromise the University’s Mission or “promote propositions and values contrary to Catholic teaching” (Franciscan University Mission III.A.3.).
Sponsoring departments and student organizations must comply with the procedures outlined below.
Speakers sponsored by academic departments or academic student organizations are covered under a separate Faculty Sponsored Speaker Policy.
II. Internal Speakers
Faculty and staff speakers (not including academic speakers) that are advertised and/or open to the University community must be sponsored by a department or a recognized student organization and are subject to the procedures below.
Students giving a presentation that is advertised and/or open to the University community must be sponsored by a Student Life department, and are also subject to the procedures below.
The following exceptions are not required to complete a Speaker Request Form or to obtain prior approval:
- Faculty, staff, and students who give presentations that are not advertised and/or are not open to the University community (e.g., student organization business meeting or a household retreat)
- Speakers who have been approved by the Student Life Speaker’s Bureau
However, these speakers and sponsoring student organization(s) are still subject to the overall policy (i.e., must support the mission of the University) and are still required to submit any paperwork necessary for master calendar or facility purposes.
III. Procedure
- Sponsorship. The department or student organization that wishes to sponsor a speaker must complete the Speaker Request Form, which includes the name and background of the speaker, the proposed date/time/location of the presentation and the topic of the presentation. This form can be obtained from the J. C. Williams Center Information Desk, Student Life Office , or at MyFranciscan.edu. The sponsoring department or student organization is responsible for all arrangements and costs related to the speaker, and a member of the sponsoring department or student organization must attend the speaker’s presentation.
- Speaker Approval. All non-academic University departments and recognized student organizations must submit their Speaker Request Form to, and receive prior written approval from, the vice president of Student Life or his designee. This approval may require certain conditions to be met, e.g., the presence of the student organization’s advisor or another appropriate faculty or staff member at the presentation.
- Master Calendar/Room Reservations. Once approval has been granted by the vice president of Student Life or his designee, the written approval will be copied to the director of Student Activities and Programming for the purpose of master calendar approval. Approval of a speaker by the appropriate administrator does not guarantee availability on the master calendar or the availability of a specific room on campus.
- Advertisement. Sponsoring groups may not advertise a speaker until prior written approval has been obtained from the appropriate administrator. All advertisements must comply with the University’s Sign and Advertisement Policy.
- Vending. Speakers who wish to sell merchandise on campus must comply with the Policy on Campus Fundraising, Solicitation, and Vending.