Basic Event Information/First Steps

Define the Purpose and Audience

• • What is the purpose of your event? 
  • Who is your target audience? 

Initial Planning Questions

• • Where should the event take place? 
  • What time/day? 
  • Wirtual or In-person? 
  • How am I going to market the Event?

Adding to Maxwell Events Outlook Calendar

• • The Outlook calendar is used for all events, including public and private events, department meetings, department or institute speaker series, and named lectures. The main purpose of this calendar is to plan and avoid overlap between departments.
  • If you do not have access to the Outlook Event Calendar, please email Bethany Walawender at bdwalawe@syr.edu to request access.

 Calendar Name: Max Events (maxevents@syr.edu) 

• • Event Details to include on the calendar: 
  • Event Title 
  • Brief Description of Event
  • Intended Audience
  • Contact Person

Location and Time 

Non-academic vs. Academic Events and Programs

• • Academic events: Submit to the Syracuse University Space Reservation System.

    • An academic event directly relates to formal education and typically involves activities contributing to a student's academic progress or faculty research. Examples include:

      • Classes and lectures
      • Academic conferences and symposiums
      • Thesis reviews and defenses
      • Study sessions and tutoring
      • Research presentations and workshops
  • Non-academic events: Reserve Maxwell Captive Spaces.

    • A non-academic event is not directly related to formal education or academic credit. These events often focus on social, cultural, or extracurricular activities. Examples include:

      • Department meetings and staff gatherings
      • Public lectures and speaker series
      • Social events and celebrations
      • Club meetings and fraternity/sorority functions
      • Community outreach and public workshops

If you have questions about whether your event is an academic or non-academic event, please get in touch with us at maxwellroomrequest@syr.edu.

Reserve Maxwell Captive Spaces

Check Room Availability

• • • Desktop Version: Click "Add Calendar" > "From Room List" > Type in the calendar name

.

• • • Web-based Version: Select "Add Calendar" > "Add from directory" > Select your account > Type in the calendar name.

Form: Maxwell School Room Reservation Form (PDF)

Contact: maxwellroomrequest@syr.edu 

Guidelines: Review Room Reservation Guidelines and Available Facilities Outline.

 Maintenance and Furniture Request

• • Complete a Billed Services request form (required NetID and password).
    • Maintenance Type: Billed Services
    • Type of Issues/ Request: Event Support
    • Attributes
      • For Trash Collection and Clean up, select YES for Custodial Support
      • For Room Set up/ Reset, select YES for Move Crew 
    • Summary of Problme must include: Example: Black Women Taught Us, 2/12/25, 6-8 pm 
      • Event Title
      • Event Date
      • Set up or Reset the window
    • Optional Additional Information: Example: Please vacuum floors, mop tiles, and wet wipe tables in Eggers 220 on February 12, between 6-8 pm.  
      • Description of Set up or clean up request 
      • Location
      • Date and Time of Clean-up
    • Include Stephanie Williams (sdwillia@syr.edu) as the affected user for captive space maintenance requests.
• Additional Information
  • You can explore additional information about service requests on the BFAS website.
  • Keep in mind set-up and clean-up time. If your event is being recorded or live-streamed, you should reserve at least two (2) hours of set-up time and one (1) hour of clean-up time, so your Event Support will have enough time to set up and tear down the equipment. 
  • For more information on reserving a space, please visit Reserving Space for an Event.

Catering and Equipment Requests

Catering Requests/Alcohol Permits:

• • Compliance: Follow Syracuse University alcohol policy.
    • Permits: Submit a request at least 30 days in advance. 
  • Catering Orders: Use the Catering Event Order Form.
  • Menu: Syracuse University Food Services website

For more details or additional needs, please reach out to Catering:

• • Email: campuscatering@syr.edu
  • Phone: 315.443.3605

Please note that SU Campus Catering will handle the linens for your tables. The cost of the linens will be added to your catering contract. Ensure you communicate with Catering about the number of tables ordered through Century so they know how many linens to provide..

Century Party Rentals

For event equipment rentals, please contact Century Party Rental, as SU Catering is no longer responsible for providing tables and chairs.

1. 1. 1. Contact: Jackie, jdcenturydec@cnymail.com or Glen 
         • Phone Number: (315-452-1240)
      2. Required Details: 

Details: 

Contact Information

Name:  Stephanie Williams
Phone:  315.443.3272
Email:  sdwillia@syr.edu

Event Information

Event Date:
Event time:
Set-up time:
Pick-up time:
Event Location:
Item needed:
Attach Diagram of Space and Set-up

Important Note: Century will likely schedule a next-day pick-up for the tents, tables, and chairs if you are hosting your event outside after business hours. Therefore, you must contact the Department of Public Safety (DPS) to assign a DPS officer to patrol the event area overnight. This is required by Century! To reach out to DPS, please submit the Special Events Request Form.  

For questions or concerns with ordering tables, chairs, and/or tents from Century, please contact maxwellroomrequest@syr.edu.  

Marketing

Advertising Your Event

• • Upload event information to the Maxwell Events Outlook Calendar and Sitefinity.

Sitefinity: Sitefinity is used to transfer event information to various calendars on our website, including the SU Calendar, the Maxwell Events Calendar, and each department/institute calendar.

• • For specific instructions on how to add your event to the Sitefinity Calendar, please visit our, Adding Maxwell Calendar Events answers page. 
  • To appear in this week's Event Digest, submit by Monday COB.

Email Generator: Create event emails using templates.

• • Sample email from the Email Generator

Posters and Flyers: Syracuse University Branding Guidelines.

Posters (11x17)

Design 1 - Poster Template

Design 2 - Poster Template

Design 3 - Poster Template

Flyers (8 1/2 x 11)

Design 1 - Flyer Template

Design 2 - Flyer Template 

Design 3 - Flyer Template

Save the Date Template

Accessibility Statement: Include at the bottom right of each poster.

• • Large Events (>100): "American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation and Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) will be available. Please contact (enter contact and email address) for additional accommodations."
  • Small Events (<100): "Please contact (enter contact and email address) for accommodations."
  • For more questions on marketing your event, please contact Bethany Walawender directly. 

Technology Needs

Captive vs. Registrar’s Room Support 

• • Captive Spaces: Supported by Maxwell ICT.
  • Registrar’s Classrooms: Supported by SU’s Learning Environments and Media Production (LEMP).

If you are unfamiliar with the technology in a specific location, you should begin by connecting with the room’s named contact to verify the specific capabilities of that space. 

Captive Space Training and Assistance 

• • Contact: MaxwellAV@syr.edu For technology in captive spaces.

Live Web Streaming and Multi-Camera Recording 

• • Live Streaming and Recording: Contact Brian Simons at Sensational Events (info@sensational.events).
  • Please note that Brian is an external vendor, and there will be a cost for his event assistance. For recorded events with live streaming and CART, we recommend reserving the space 2 hours before and after your event’s advertised start and end times. This will allow ample time for set-up and take-down.

Inclusive Events

• Use Syracuse University's inclusive events website to make sure that your event is inclusive.
• On that resource page, you will find resources like:
  • Guide to Planning an Inclusive Event
  • ASL Interpreting Services (t
  • CART providers 
    • If you are expecting more than 100 guests at your event, then you MUST include CART. 
    • Please contact maxwellav@syr.edu to secure your CART.
      • They will need a chart string and budget approver information to process the $125/per hour fee. (Minimum charge is 1 hour, then 1/4 hour increments.)

VIP Invites

• Maxwell Dean: Notify Morgan Hipkens (mahipken@syr.edu).
• Campus VIPs: Notify Morgan Hipkens (mahipken@syr.edu) and she will complete the Meeting and Event Request Form (MERF) to request the Chancellor's attendance. 

Other Important Event Information

Student Events: Must have a faculty or staff sponsor.

Off-Hour Building Access: Coordinate with Morgan Hipkens (mahipken@syr.edu).

Swag Requests: Submit to Morgan Hipkens (mahipken@syr.edu).

Parking: Complete the Parking Request Form.