Virtual EMS FAQs

Events Management System (EMS) is the University’s primary source for scheduling events on campus. We also use this system to populate our Master special events calendar, featured events page and event listing on the homepage of our website. To learn more about our EMS implementation, please visit our resource site.

President Dr. Tony G. Waldrop created the Office of Special Events (OSE) in an effort to create greater transparency, consistency, and coordination of special events within the USA community. Learn more about the Office of Special events by visiting our website.

Visit EMS at eventrequest.southalabama.edu and select the most appropriate request template. You are encouraged to submit your request far in advance.

All guests have the ability to browse events, facilities, and space. To request space or request approval for your event online, an EMS account is required. All faculty and staff members of the university, as well as approved officers of registered student organizations (verified by Org Sync), are eligible for accounts.

On the EMS home page, click on “My Account” then choose "Create An Account." Fill in the blanks and click save.

Our Master Calendar can be found at www.southalabama.edu/calendar. Events listed on this calendar have received the appropriate campus approvals and include additional information about the events. For questions regarding the Calendar of Events, contact specialevents@southalabama.edu

Large conferences and events are complex operations. If you are planning an event or conference which spans multiple dates and locations, it may be best to schedule a consultation with Conference Services office. Please note that Continuing Education/Conference Services charges for their services.

If the venue has already been identified, complex requests may be submitted through EMS using the following instructions:

Complete the following steps for a new reservation request:

1. Login to EMS Account.
2. Select the Conference & Event request template option.
3. From the left hand menu select one building at a time
4. Select date and time then “Find Space.”
5. Next to each room, select the green box with the white plus sign.
6. Repeat steps until each space is added to the top section “Selected Locations.”

For existing events, complete the following steps:

1. Login to EMS Account.
2. Select “Requests” then “View My Requests”
3. Click on the name of the Reservation you plan to add to or edit.
4. Select “Add Booking” from right hand menu.
5. Complete steps for submitting a request.

Next to Date, click on Recurrence. EMS will allow the web user to choose weekly, monthly, and sporadic meetings and events. Once the recurrence is applied, the system will prompt the web user to provide the attendance and set-up type. The system will show the available rooms and how many times a specific room is available. Be aware the same room may not be available for every meeting or event date and/or time requested. For remaining rooms, click on the yellow button to the left which reads “Search Remaining Dates.”

Hours are listed in real-time in EMS. To view hours, click on “Our Space” then “Browse Facilities.” White areas represent open hours. Standard building hours are typically displayed on department websites.

“Holiday” is a term used by the University to identify major university activities and closings that may impact special events. For instance, select USA athletic events may be listed as holidays if it is expected event attendance or access may be disrupted. All University academic holidays will be indicated in EMS.

The University does its best to honor all requests. Due to building resources and fire and life safety standards, there are times the room and set-up preferences requested cannot be met. In these cases, the next best alternative will be booked.

This can happen for many reasons. First, make sure you have selected the correct building under “Facility.” All rooms have maximum occupancy loads. Attendance cannot exceed the maximum occupancy load. If a room you are searching for does not appear, it is possible the capacity cannot accommodate your request. For additional assistance, please contact us.

The status of requests submitted through EMS can be checked at any time through the “My Requests” section of your EMS account.

The campus police department scrutinizes reservation requests very closely to ensure that a high level of regard is met for all members of the university and local community in the areas of life safety and the preservation of university property. The following event characteristics will be considered, but are not limited to venue type, crowd size, event type, event history, traffic, parking, weather, geography, intelligence information, etc.

Clients can most certainly be proactive when applying for an event request by considering many of these areas of concern and requesting security/police services. Your request for security will be reviewed by a law enforcement representative, who may or may not make a security requirement.

All events with non-USA sponsors held anywhere on University property will provide a certificate of insurance for general liability including coverage for event participants for claims arising out of bodily injury and/or property damage.  This coverage shall be in an amount of no less than $1 million per occurrence/$2 million annual aggregate and the certificate of insurance coverage must name the University of South Alabama as additional insured on the policy. Event insurance may be purchased online at https://tulip.ajgrms.com/QuickQuote.  Please contact the office of Risk Management and Insurance for additional information.

The system is set-up to accept reservation requests that are submitted a designated number of days or hours in advance per venue. Requests made fewer than this advance time limit are possible only if the client contacts the building they are interested in directly. Similarly, changes to events cannot be made without proper advance notice.  Please contact the building administrator for further assistance.

Each building has its own operating hours. If you receive this error, select a different time and/or date and resubmit. For assistance with building hours or to request an exemption, contact the Event Management Office.

EMS has a "time out" after a period of inactivity of 60 minutes as a security feature. For large events, it is recommended you prepare answers to the questions in advance and/or submit supplemental documents. As long as the webpage detects activity, the page will not refresh.

Please contact the Office of Special Events at specialevents@southalabama.edu. We are often out of our office serving the campus but will respond to your email promptly. Urgent emails will receive a same day response during traditional hours.