Verbal Jousting

Two posts in one day! This is what caffeine and angst will do. In response to my email this morning the Assistant Dean wrote this:

Hi again-

You'll notice that on page 2 the first sentence states: "The following Parking Regulations...", and NOT 'sleeping' or 'living' regulations.  By it's very definition 'parking' is just that.  Not something else.

On page 5, letter E: "All vehicles using University facilities, other than pay-parking facilities, Monday through Friday between the hours of 7 a.m. and 5 p.m....", thus the designation of when these lots are in use.

Finally, on p. 8 there are overnight lots, but these lots are available only to employees, graduate students, or commuting students who are conducting business overnight... not those who are living/sleeping on campus.

As I've stated, we can not guarantee a person's safety if they are sleeping in their car on campus.  This isn't realistic.

I hope this is clear.

My response (not too snarky, I hope)?

Thanks for the info [S]. Just so you're aware

1. "Parking regulations" are the same thing that any RV park has which doesn't distinguish between living and parking.
2. Lot 11 is an overnight parking lot which students may park in overnight (according to parking services). The sign states that a permit is required between the hours of 7am and 5pm.
3. Page 8 item #2 doesn't state anything about conducting business overnight, it simply states that overnight permits are available in certain areas (lot 11 being one of them).

I absolutely understand why a university would not want students sleeping overnight in their parking lots and because of this I made sure to thoroughly research the policies of [the college] before beginning. There are no rules that state this action is not permitted but, in future, it seems like something the University may want to put in writing.

Thanks for taking the time to deal with this.
Ash

Their response? The Dean of Students (this guy's boss) now wants to meet with me. I'm pretty stubborn and really have nothing better to do than deal with this, which is good, because it seems like it may take a while.