How to Use the New Columbia Events Calendar System

October 1, 2012 

Earlier this year, Columbia College Chicago launched a new online calendar system, Columbia Events. The new system has a dramatically improved design and user experience, and a number of new features, including integration with Facebook and Twitter, search engine optimization (SEO), Google Maps integration, and a mobile-friendly design. 

If you haven't already, please visit the site and create an account using your Columbia email address. After you register, you can submit events for inclusion on the Columbia Events calendar. Please refer to the Columbia Events submission guide. All events are reviewed for adherence to the guidelines, and all events must be official Columbia events, sponsored by at least one department or official student organization.

Below are some suggestions to facilitate event submission:

• Use Firefox, Chrome, or Safari. Internet Explorer 7 causes issues, especially with the event date field.
• Many campus locations can be automatically selected using the "Location of Event" field. Start typing the name or address of the event location to see if your location is already in the system (e.g., "600 S. Michigan Avenue" or "A+D Gallery"). Even if your location isn't already in the system, please fill out the "Location of Event" field, and add the address and room number.
• The calendar has some features available to admins that are not available to regular users, such as entering recurring dates for events such as gallery exhibits. Please use the "Note to Approver" field to request and specify such features.
• If your event requires campus space, please reserve your space in 25Live before adding your event to Columbia Events. Enter your 25Live confirmation number in the appropriate field in the event submission form—this will help the event approval process.

For consistency and to avoid confusion, each department should appoint an individual responsible for entering events into the Columbia Events system. Please email Will Vautrain (wvautrain@colum.edu) with the name of that person so he can keep in regular contact regarding the Columbia Events system. Web Services can assist with bringing a feed of your department’s events from the new calendar system into your department or office website. Please email webmaster@colum.edu to initiate this process.

Columbia Events is a collaborative effort between Creative Services, Information Technology, and Web Services. All events are approved by Norman Alexandroff, director of internal and external partnerships, in Student Affairs. Questions regarding the event approval process should be directed to Norman at ext.7416 or by email.

Columbia Events is not a replacement for the Event Scheduler (25Live), the system for room and space reservations. You must continue to use the Event Scheduler to reserve space for your events.