By Payton Carns
Students and professors alike are questioning the timing and purpose of a proposed new policy that would ban yard signs and chalking on campus.
The University of Louisville Planning Design and Construction Department introduced significant signage policy changes on July 2, as seen on the University Integrity and Compliance Website.
The proposal, which details specific procedures for circulating information on campus via signage, prohibits chalking — the act of writing a message with sidewalk chalk — and any form of yard signage, “except for directional Signage to help people locate a university event.”
Per the policy draft, the university is taking community feedback about these changes until this Friday, July 12. Implementation of the policy was not specified in the document.
A history of chalking and signage
Chalking on campus sidewalks has been a popular method for students and organizations to spread awareness of timely issues; most recently, it was the preferred medium for many activists to express their outrage of multiple transphobic incidents within campus organizations.
Under the current chalking policy, the use of the method is already limited, and reads as followed:
Chalking is permitted only on sidewalks using light colored chalk in open, horizontal areas to allow for eventual removal by rainfall. Do not chalk under an overhang on the buildings, the side of a building or under ramps. Chalking is not permitted directly in front of doorways or on stairs to the building. Chalking is also not permitted on the sidewalks around the Speed Art Museum and within 50 feet of any of the Residence Halls. The use of industrial chalk, spray chalk or paint on sidewalks or buildings is prohibited.
Based on this policy, during the chalking incidents surrounding the transphobic incidents, the Dean of Students ordered that the chalk be removed from surfaces that do not adhere to the chalking rules. This, however, came with student pushback, as some of the chalk that was removed did adhere to the policy.
While signage has a less controversial past, yard signs have been a way for university departments to introduce new and upcoming courses, RSOs to advertise upcoming events, and SGA candidates to spread their campaign messages.
University and community response
Since news of the policy draft, students and staff members alike have expressed their opposition to the additions.
While Communication professor Calvin Coker recognizes this policy comes from a place of protecting the university community, he believes it hinders the ability of U of L to be a space of debates and multiple viewpoints.
“Student chalk signage is an integral form of expression that allows members of our community to not only posit ideals, but also organize events and draw attention to problems,” Coker wrote. “As currently presented, this policy would prevent that expression outright by banning many common forms of signage used by students.”
Siobhan Smith-Jones, another communication professor, echoed this sentiment, citing that these forms of sharing information are how she keeps up with timely student issues.
“A lot of times, I don’t know what’s going with students or how they feel about issues until I see the chalk,” Smith-Jones wrote. “If it’s hate speech, that’s not acceptable. But I’ve never seen that before.”
Additionally, Smith-Jones brought up another point of concern around the policy — the timeline. Despite the proposal not including the date it will take effect, the university has chosen to roll out community feedback during the summer, a time in which students and staff are disconnected, both geographically and socially, from campus. In turn, meaningful feedback to the proposal could be limited.
Coker agreed with this, writing that “a narrow comment window risks excluding important voices in the debate.”
The Cardinal reached out the university for official comment on both the policy and its summer timeline, but have not received a response.
Next Steps
Students and staff are encouraged to submit feedback on this proposal until this Friday. This feedback can be sent to policies@louisville.edu.
“Students and faculty alike look to the University of Louisville as a place for robust debates about ideas within a caring and thoughtful community,” Coker wrote.
File Photos // The Louisville Cardinal //