Large Scale Permissions?

[DiverDann]

Has anyone ever detected on an active college campus before? If you have, any advice as to how to go about securing permission, what to mention, and who to talk to would be greatly appreciated.

There is a current student at my alma mater that approached me with the interest of doing some detecting on campus. He has experience in detecting but doesn't have any equipment with him at school. I have 2 of everything, including detectors, so I have us covered on that aspect. We're currently working on drawing up a proposal for permission to detect and exhibit our finds on campus. I think it would be a great way to generate interest in the school and the hobby at the same time. The school could use the finds we exhibit in fundraisers and I think staff, students, and visitors to the campus would find it exciting to watch us recover pieces of the school's history. When I was a student there I exhibited an art piece that featured a ton of metal detecting finds (recovered at another site off campus) and people were very receptive and interested in the piece. I want to talk to the buildings and grounds department, maintenance, and also get some faculty interested and on board. That should help us secure permission.

The campus has been in continuous operation since the land was purchased and converted in 1922. It was exclusively a girls' school until the 60s. Prior to that it was a large dairy farm that possibly was operated from the late 1700s on.

Does anyone have any experience in securing large permissions at public or private institutions like this?

 

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[vpnavy]

Until a member (s) pipe in - here are a few threads (more available) talking about MD'ng a Campus...Metal Detecting Schools (Jan 21, 2012) and Old College Campuses (Oct 17, 2012)...

 

[whammy]

I worked at a large Upstate N.Y. campus for 37 years. Summers I would see an individual , on weekends, detecting the campus. He was the one that got me started. He detected summers when most of the students were gone, and on weekends when things were really quiet. I don't believe he ever told me that he asked for permission. I have since detected the campus summers and on the weekends with no problems. I tried the quad area once, and was visited by the Public Safety Officers, which was where I worked, because someone was concerned about my digging on the quad. Since then I stayed on the edges and never had a problem. Look for hills on the campus and detect them. On my campus, the kids would get drunk, steal dinning hall trays, and head for the hill. Many surprises await you there. If in doubt, I would ask one of the Campus Police about detecting. Good luck and happy hunting.

 

[Tom_in_CA]

.... He detected summers when most of the students were gone, and on weekends when things were really quiet. I don't believe he ever told me that he asked for permission. I have since detected the campus summers and on the weekends with no problems......

My sentiments would be the same as whammy's: If the college/university is a public university (and/or the public is not dis-allowed from being/standing/walking there), then I have always simply just helped myself.

Oh sure, like ANY park or school you ... uh .... "use due discretion". Because of course md'ing has connotations (that you might be about to leave a hole). I have worked multiple college campuses, and presuming I've got the presence of mind not to be a sore-thumb , they're like any other school, IMHO.

You can certainly try to "get permission" first, but you may run into the same psychology that persons have run into elsewhere (at innocuous parks and schools): They get told "no", at a place where, quite frankly, it was never a problem before. Ie.: a "safe answer" from a person who never gave the matter a moment's thought prior to that "pressing call".