Rule #1: All first year students must symbolically enter campus through Alumni Gate on welcome weekend. Similarly, all graduates must symbolically exit campus through Alumni Gate to signify their departure from higher education. 

Alumni Gate was originally a gift to the university from the class of 1915. Traditionally, each incoming freshmen class is escorted through Alumni Gate on the Sunday of Welcome Weekend. This tradition signifies their entrance and acceptance into the Ohio University community. Though arbitrary, this is a tradition upheld by the community which helps to establish the university’s culture.

The inscription on the front of the archway reads: “So enter that daily thou mayest grow in knowledge, wisdom and love.” This statement compels those, specifically incoming students, to enter the university, engrain themselves in the culture, and grow into the best version of themselves. 

Similarly, Alumni Gate serves as a symbolic departure from Ohio University for those that have graduated. Just as it is a tradition for the freshmen class to enter the gate, many graduates take it upon themselves to exit campus through Alumni Gate one last time, figuratively signifying their departure from the Ohio University Community. 

The inscription on the campus facing side of the archway reads: “So depart that daily thou mayest better serve thy fellowmen thy country and thy God.” This statement assumes that the graduate now has the tools to go forth into society and be a contributing member. 

Overall, Alumni Gate, as a place, encompasses a 200 year old tradition. The tradition of higher education, to learn, grow, and contribute to society. It is through the physicality of Alumni Gate that these traditions and concrete examples of culture come to life at Ohio University. 

Rule #2: Only the students of Ohio University know the value and importance of Alumni Gate.

Insight to rule: As new students of Ohio University we initiate our journey as bobcats by crossing under the entrance of Alumni Gate. As we grow and experience this ‘space’ it starts to become more of a ‘place.’ However this is a place that's meaning differs for everyone. Cresswell states, “Here ‘place’ is not so much a quality of things in the world but an aspect of they way we choose to think about it” (Cresswell 11). To each bobcat, the Alumni Gate means something special. Although that ‘special’ meaning changes the sense of ‘place’ is understood overall to be a space of importance by all. We come to know that upon graduation, we must revisit the gate to signify our completion as a student, an important part of the bobcat process.

Cresswell, Tim. 2004. Place: A Short Introduction. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing. Pp. 1-12.

Rule #3: Everyone is welcome here

Insight to the rule: Alumni Gate is an accessible area. It functions as the connecting point between campus and up-town. People can walk, or bike through this area. The public bus also stops nearby. During the day, people of all ages are seen at this spot on campus. There are professors, families, students and community members. However, at night the age range is mainly determined by the students passing through on their way to Court Street. Since Alumni Gate serves as a connecting point between up-town and campus, a variety of people must pass through here. On one side of the Gate are classrooms and dormitories, while on the other side, there are restaurants, churches, neighborhoods, banks and stores. During the day, people are passing through the gate for a variety of reasons. However, at night the main reason people pass through this area is to access Court Street. While this is an accessible and inviting place during the day, at night this changes. Certain people may not feel comfortable going to the Gate at night due to its proximity to the bars. It is also more likely that groups of people will be found here, unlike during the day where it is normally individuals passing through. 

Meaning and importance: Overall, rules of a space reflect larger values. In this instance, this rule reflects Ohio University's goal of diversity and inclusion. For the most part, this space does not have any socially constructed normalities for the types of people who should be seen here. While it is more diverse during the day, the night life of the University reduces this diversity at night. Fewer people will go there at night for a variety of reasons, but one being that they want to avoid intoxicated college students. Spatial justice is present in this space because of the fact that it is an accessible area. It’s connected to the University, is free to visit and doesn’t have any stairs. The main accessibility issue for this space is that some people may have a difficult time walking on the bricks in College Green. Next, no one can sleep, or stay at this place permanently, which is related to spatial claims. However, you could spend the day sitting and hanging out here. Police would be more likely to tell a community member than a student to stop sitting there. At night, the police would be more suspicious of anyone spending a prolonged amount of time there. To relate this space to spatial links, it is a key connecting point on campus. The Gate symbolically connects the University to up-town Athens. This is a good example of spatial power because it provides the right to thrive to a lot of people since it is an inclusive and accessible space. However, it is important to note that not everyone will thrive, or feel included in this public space. There is the question of who belongs in this space? Overall, the space itself can be for everyone, however, people occupying this space have the potential to limit people’s right to thrive in this space. For many people it can be difficult to determine which places they belong and don’t belong. In order to answer the question of where you belong, it is important to think about and notice your body in different spaces. The sense of belonging is determined by the individual and influenced by the other people in a space. If you’re interested in learning more about how to answer the question of where do you belong? Check out this short Ted Talk https://youtu.be/c0mVa7d08tg . Finally, this space has an important spatial meaning because it is a symbolic spot on campus.

This is a current example of Alumni Gate’s spatial meaning. A club is offering portraits with your parents in front of the gate to help fundraise for their networking trip. 

The article written by the Design Studio for Spatial Intervention, cited below, is a great place to read and learn more about spatial claims, power, links and meaning. 

 Design Studio for Social Intervention. Spatial Justice: A Frame for Reclaiming our Rights to Be, Thrive, Express, and Connect. Accessed at: http://ds4si.org/storage/SpatialJustice_ds4si.pdf. 

Rule #4:    Be active and aware & Move efficiently 

 Being alert while walking is natural, but in tricky intersections such as Alumni Gate there is more to understanding the complexities of traffic and human flow. The intersection and many paths converging from College Green create a hectic epicenter.

When entering areas of traffic such as this it is expected that each person works to maintain the flow of pedestrian movement. Maintaining speeds, using respectful amounts of space and distance, and moving efficiently. 

This expectation can be oppressive to those that cannot meet its standards. Many foot traffic travel spaces were not built with those who are differently-abled in mind. Creating hindrances in the physical spaces (such as no ramps and high curbs for those who use walkers or wheelchairs). This rule brings notes of ageism as those who are higher or too low in age cannot always easily abide by it. Making those people ‘othered’ in the eyes of our society. 

Rule #5: Tabling in front of the gate is encouraged

Insight to the rule: Tabling, meaning that one has a table set-up in front of Alumni Gate, is a great way to interact with the student body and community members. During the day, there are often tables encouraging people to register to vote, or educational tables run by different clubs and offices on campus. At night, it is usually student organizations selling food as a fundraiser for their program. The people who are running the table are strongly encouraged to be as interactive as possible. This includes handing out free food, or information to people passing by. However, if you’re passing through Alumni Gate and don’t want to interact with the people running the table, there are numerous rules you should follow. First, you should avoid eye contact with the people, if you make eye contact they will try to talk to you. Second, you can pretend to be on an important phone call. Third, if possible, take a route so that you can be on the opposite side of the path as the people tabling. Lastly, if you are approached by them, be polite and listen to what they have to say. If you don’t want to avoid the people tabling, it is encouraged that you walk up to them and ask them about their table. 

This is an example of the Office of Sustainability tabling to create awareness for stormwater drain pollution. 

 

Meaning and importance: While tabling seems like it could be open to anyone, it represents privilege. For example, you have to get permission to table in front of Alumni Gate. One has to know who to contact to plan their tabling and how to acquire permission. Because of this, student groups are better able to table than community members. This is also an example of spatial power because those tabling can make other people feel uncomfortable, or unwelcome in this space. This can also cause a problem of spatial links because some people may not want to encounter a group, or person that is tabling. Therefore, a person might have to find an entirely different path to take. In these instances the table can become a mechanism to separate and control bodies. Although tabling creating a “wall” is on an extremely smaller scale and does not create as serious of issues, the idea of tabling as a “wall” can be attributed to the article by Samer Alatout, cited below. While tabling can create issues, it came to be to encourage and promote student engagement and education.  

Alatout, Samer. 2009. “Walls as Technologies of the Government: The Double Construction of Geographies of Peace and Conflict in Israeli Politics, 2002-Present.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 99(5): 956-968.

Rule #6: Alumni Gate is a place where voices can be heard.

Insight to the rule: Alumni Gate is a place where you most often see the coming together of  marches and movements, or petitions begging for your signature. Those who come to this place know what it provides: attention from the public eye. We know that each day hundreds of students pass by, usually half of them purposefully avoiding your advocations, but to the other half, either willingly participate or subconsciously acknowledge the cause. However, Alumni Gate is more than just a common meeting place, it is symbolic in the sense that it is here when you begin your journey and where you end you time in college. This feeling can be transferred to the meaning behind the speeches and marches that occur within college gate. There is a perceive emotion and context that Alumni Gate harbors that facilitates those actions.

Rule #7: Loud noises and some tomfoolery are permitted to an extent during the day but not at all during the night

Insight to the rule: During the day this is a very public space. Loud noise is acceptable. It’s more socially and legally accepted to yell or make some sort of ruckus during the day. In some cases it might even be encouraged like when the Marching 110 is coming by for homecoming, or if you’re a part of an organization that’s trying to sell something. Usually a public space has a high volume limit as deemed by society. However this changes during the night. Ohio University has a reputation of being a party school. Not to mention at the start of every year students get many emails about sexual assault. Due to this there's extra caution placed around some areas. Once you step away from Court Street there are police out and waiting for a drunken scene or screams. They are both trying to prevent danger and squash the party school reputation. This rule is common knowledge among students but ever so often it's forgotten, causing heads to turn and sober people's eyes to roll. 

Meaning and Importance: The idea of being quiet during the night is a “rule” that has been taught to us since we were children. Denis Wood and Robert J. Beck elaborate on rules like this, courtesy rules, in their book Home Rules. We’re taught that it’s rude to be noisy at night because night is for peacefulness and sleep. It’s one of those rules that is “justified as rational where failure to comply could result in catastrophe” as said by Wood and Beck. This failure to comply to peace and quiet can be helpful to alert to harm but other than that it’s truly just a rule that has been ingrained into us since we were little. To be loud is to be rude and it cannot happen at night. 

Rule #8:    Dress Code

 Ohio University is a traditionally liberal campus supporting many diverse groups of people. Because of this, students grow accustomed to the unique dress they witness or even experiment with themselves. Being a campus itself, there are fewer dress rules outside of our society’s basic rules such as requiring some form of dress at all times in public or the well coined “no shirt, no shoes, no service”. There are still some cases where ‘othering’ can occur due to extreme dress, when even the free and open societal dress norms are surpassed. One example comes from this young man when he, attending Ohio University as a student, dressed as Anna, the heroine from popular Disney movie, Frozen.

As most spaces do, the dress code rules change at night for many spaces, especially public ones such as this. When it comes to women and the horrific subject of molestation there is always the same question, “What was she wearing?”. This question reveals the socialization of women to accept fault and take blame for their own sexual assault, but also the social norms of dress we ascribe to each other. Huffpost released an article about an art project, started in 2013 by Jen Brockman and Dr. Mary A. Wyandt-Heibert at the University of Kansas, that featured stories of sexual assault victims and outfits inspired by what they were wearing when they were assaulted. The goal being to show that the clothing on a person is not and should not be tied to sexual assault. For more information on this please visit: https://www.huffpost.com/entry/powerful-art-exhibit-powerfully-answers-the-question-what-were-you-wearing_n_59baddd2e4b02da0e1405d2a

Vagianos, Alanna (2017) Art Exhibit Powerfully Answers the Question “What Were You Wearing?” Retrieved From https://www.huffpost.com/entry/powerful-art-exhibit-powerfully-answers-the-question-what-were-you-wearing_n_59baddd2e4b02da0e1405d2a

Rule #9: Pictures in front of the gate are allowed

Insight to the rule: The Alumni Gate has been a place that freshman have taken pictures in front of to show that they are going to OU. When finished with their undergrad they take pictures in front of it again to show they've succeeded in completing their 4 years. Professional photos are often taken here. Alumni pose in front of the gate to show they're back for maybe one last 4 for 4 from Wendy's. People recognize the gate as a prominent feature of OU so it has become socially acceptable to form a group to take pictures. People recognize this as a social marker. Had there been people taking photos in front of a common lightpost it would be different.

Meaning and importance: However this is a part of something bigger. In this day and age everyone has adapted to the rapid growing pace of technology. Social media is a big part of everyone's life and documentation of someone's life has never been easier. We are at a point now that it’s very rare that you encounter someone that doesn’t have some form of media to keep track of family and friends. We have almost cultivated a rule that you have to have some form of media otherwise you become left out of the loop. We have a drive to post and to post constantly as we go through life we document it with “significant” pictures.  Now when you are taking big steps in life like, going to college, graduating from college or returning to an important place in your life you have to take a picture. 

Rule #10: When walking through Alumni Gate at night—as a female presenting person—never walk alone.

Theoretically, Alumni Gate is a public space open to all. However at night, Alumni Gate becomes a space only for men to exist on a solitary level. Women are expected to be accompanied on their walks home at night, a social rule enforced by people of all genders. The normalized threat of assault keeps many women from walking alone at night, but this forces them to become dependent beings. They do not have the autonomy to leave the party or the bar on their own and walk back to their dorm room whenever they feel like it. Many girls feel that they must ask a friend, or a group, to ensure they arrive safely at home.

Furthermore, this rule may be imposed by others, but it is also imposed by the self. Samer Alatout points out that people will begin “internalizing the illegality of one’s body in the space in which it is traveling” when society enforces—even a figurative form—of this illegality. There is nothing physically stopping a woman from walking home on her own. However, if a woman walked alone at night and was subsequently attacked, some might blame her for “putting herself at risk,” for being “vulnerable.” It is not only the threat of assault that keeps women in groups, it is this harsh social norm as well. 

Alatout, Samer. 2009. “Walls as Technologies of the Government: The Double Construction of Geographies of Peace and Conflict in Israeli Politics, 2002-Present.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 99(5): 966.