We have parking permits on campus. You would think that means you have a right to park in your designated parking spot, especially when it's busy around here. I guess not. From today's campus email:

In order to accommodate the many prospective students and their families who will be visiting our campus on Thursday, October 20th and Friday, October 21st, Public Safety will not enforce parking on these two days.

We've had "Year of the Student" and I guess now it's "Year of the Parents Who Can Afford A Day Off to Drive to Campus and Give Us Tuition Money." I can't wait until the university declares "Year of the Employee".

UPDATE: A couple of loyal readers think giving away parking spaces paid for by employees is part of customer service. The university notoriously has done a lousy job providing parking to visitors. But the fee for students, faculty and staff, at $200+, is supposed to pay completely for parking lot maintenance and improvement, per MnSCU regulation (see here, for example). So the university, at its discretion, is putting a cost of its student recruitment program onto present students and employees. Does your boss ask you to help pay for advertising?