Banning a visitor prevents them from being invited to campus by any resident. Banned visitors cannot receive new invitations, and the system automatically cancels any existing future invitations for that person. Use banning for visitors who violated campus policies, pose safety concerns, or are subject to no-contact orders.
The ban system tracks who banned each visitor, when, and why. Bans remain in effect indefinitely until an administrator manually removes them.
You need the banVisitors permission to ban or unban visitors. Navigate to /admin/visitors/[visitorId] to ban individual visitors, or /admin/visitors to view all banned visitors.
When to Ban a Visitor
Ban visitors in these situations:
A visitor violated campus conduct policies during a previous visit, such as underage drinking, vandalism, or disruptive behavior. Your conduct office may issue a campus ban as part of resolution.
A visitor poses a safety concern to residents or staff based on previous incidents or credible reports.
A court issues a no-contact order or restraining order requiring that a specific individual stay away from campus or a specific resident. Ban the individual to prevent residents from inadvertently inviting them.
Campus police or security requests that a person be prohibited from campus access.
A visitor repeatedly failed to check in properly, violated visitation hours, or abused the guest system.
Banning is a serious administrative action with potential legal and safety implications. Consult your residence life leadership, conduct office, or campus legal counsel before banning visitors in complex situations.
Banning a Visitor
Navigate to /admin/visitors and search for the visitor by name, email, or phone number. Click the visitor's name to open their detail page.
The visitor detail page displays the profile information, visit history, and current status. Review the visit history to verify you have the correct person before proceeding.
Initiating the Ban
Click the Ban Visitor button near the top of the visitor detail page. A confirmation dialog appears explaining what will happen when you ban this person.
Enter a reason for the ban in the text field provided. This reason is saved in the system but not shared with the visitor or residents. Be specific about the conduct issue or policy violation for your records.
Click Confirm Ban to finalize the action.
What Happens When You Ban
The system immediately marks the visitor as banned. Their status changes to Banned on their profile page and in all visitor lists.
Any future invitations for this visitor that have not yet occurred are automatically canceled. The hosting residents receive a notification that their invitation was canceled.
Past invitations and visit history remain visible in the system for record-keeping but cannot be modified.
Residents can no longer create new invitations for this person. If a resident tries to invite a banned visitor by entering their email address or phone number, the system displays an error message stating that this person is banned and cannot be invited.
The system matches banned visitors by email address and phone number. If a banned person attempts to be invited using different contact information, the system may not detect the match. Monitor for attempts to circumvent bans.
Viewing Banned Visitors
Navigate to /admin/visitors and apply the status filter. Select Banned to show only visitors who are currently banned.
The banned visitor list displays all individuals currently prohibited from campus. Click any visitor to view their profile, ban reason, and who issued the ban.
Export the banned visitor list to CSV for reporting to campus safety, conduct offices, or residence life leadership.
Understanding Ban Details
Open any banned visitor's detail page to see complete ban information.
The profile displays a red Banned status badge. Below the basic profile information, the ban details section shows who banned this visitor, the date and time of the ban, and the reason recorded by the administrator.
Review this information when coordinating with other departments or when a resident questions why they cannot invite someone.
Unbanning a Visitor
Remove a ban when the restriction is no longer necessary. This might occur when a conduct sanction expires, a no-contact order is lifted, or an administrative error is corrected.
Navigate to the banned visitor's detail page at /admin/visitors/[visitorId]. Click the Unban Visitor button near the top of the page.
A confirmation dialog appears. Optionally add a note explaining why the ban was lifted, such as "Conduct sanction completed" or "No-contact order expired."
Click Confirm Unban to remove the restriction.
What Happens When You Unban
The visitor's status changes from Banned to whatever their most recent invitation status was, or to no active status if they have no current invitations.
Residents can now create new invitations for this person. The system no longer blocks their email address or phone number.
Previously canceled invitations are not automatically restored. Residents must create new invitations if they want to invite this person again.
The ban record remains in the system's audit log for historical tracking but is no longer enforced.
Communicating Bans to Residents
When a visitor is banned, residents who previously invited that person may have questions about why their future invitations were canceled.
The system notification to residents states that their invitation was canceled but does not automatically disclose the ban reason. This protects visitor privacy and reduces potential conflicts.
If a resident contacts you asking why their invitation was canceled, provide only the information necessary according to your institution's policies. In cases involving no-contact orders or safety concerns, coordinate with your conduct office or counseling center on appropriate disclosure.
If a resident tries to create a new invitation for a banned visitor, they see an error message stating the person cannot be invited. The error does not specify that the person is banned or provide reasons.
Coordinating with Campus Departments
Visitor bans often involve multiple departments. Establish clear communication channels with campus police, conduct office, Dean of Students, and counseling center.
When you receive a request to ban a visitor, verify the request comes from an authorized source. Document who requested the ban, when, and under what authority.
Notify relevant departments when bans are issued or lifted. Campus police may maintain their own ban lists and need to know about residence hall restrictions.
If a banned visitor attempts to enter campus through other means, alert campus security immediately. The Housing.Cloud ban prevents invitations but does not physically restrict access.
Handling No-Contact Orders
When a court issues a no-contact order or a campus conduct process establishes a no-contact restriction, ban the restricted individual to prevent accidental invitations.
Record the no-contact order details in the ban reason field, including the case number, effective date, and expiration date if applicable.
Set a calendar reminder to review the ban when the no-contact order expires. Coordinate with your conduct office to determine when to lift the ban.
If the no-contact order involves two students at your institution, the hosting resident may not be aware they should avoid inviting the restricted person. Proactively communicate the restriction to the protected party according to your conduct policies.
Managing Multiple Contact Methods
The ban system matches visitors primarily by email address and phone number. If a banned visitor has multiple email addresses or phone numbers, they might still receive invitations if a resident uses different contact information.
When banning a visitor, check their visit history to see if previous invitations used different contact information. If you identify multiple email addresses or phone numbers for the same person, consider adding notes to watch for those variations.
If you discover a banned visitor receiving invitations under different contact details, search for the new visitor record and ban that profile as well. Link the records in your notes.
Privacy and Legal Considerations
Ban reasons and details are administrative records. Handle this information according to your institution's record retention and privacy policies.
Ban information should only be accessible to administrators with the banVisitors permission. Do not share ban reasons publicly or with unauthorized staff.
If a banned individual requests information about their ban under public records laws or student rights policies, consult your institution's legal counsel before releasing information.
Document all ban and unban actions thoroughly. In cases involving conduct violations or legal restrictions, detailed records protect your institution if the decision is later questioned.
Auditing Ban Activity
Periodically review your banned visitor list to ensure bans are still necessary and properly documented.
At the start of each semester or academic year, export the banned visitor list and review each entry. Verify that conduct sanctions have not expired and no-contact orders are still in effect.
Check that each ban has a clear reason documented. Update incomplete records with details from conduct files or police reports.
Remove bans that are no longer needed. Keeping the banned list current improves data quality and reduces administrative burden.
Troubleshooting Ban Issues
If a resident reports they were able to invite a banned visitor, verify that the contact information they entered exactly matches the banned record. Small differences in email addresses or phone number formatting can prevent the system from detecting a match.
If you banned the wrong person by mistake, unban them immediately and apologize for the error. Verify you have the correct visitor before issuing a new ban.
If a ban was lifted but residents still cannot invite the person, check that the unban process completed successfully. Refresh the visitor's detail page to verify the status is no longer Banned.
Related Articles
Viewing and Exporting Visitor Records
Guest and Visitor Management Overview
Managing Canceled Invitations (For Residents)
Setting Up Guest Management Policies