Big Red Barn Graduate and Professional Student Center Reservation Guide

Big Red Barn Mission

The Big Red Barn fosters a welcoming and inclusive community where graduate and professional students can build meaningful connections, develop a sense of belonging, and thrive personally and academically. Through traditions, programs, and shared experiences, the Barn brings students together across disciplines, cultures, identities, and life experiences in a space intentionally shaped by and for graduate and professional students.

Spaces and Capacity

The Barn is a multi-use facility with several reservable spaces that can accommodate a variety of event types. The entire building has a maximum occupancy of 156 and may only be reserved on weekends.

• Main Space (101) – The spacious first floor includes tables, chairs, and access to the mezzanine above. The space is accessible by ramp.
  • Maximum Capacity: 56
• Upstairs Mezzanine (201) – The second-floor mezzanine features lounge-style furniture suitable for small gatherings, meetings, and study groups.
  • Maximum Capacity: 50
• Greenhouse (103) – The greenhouse offers a bright, sunlit atmosphere with access to the outdoor patio and may be closed off for private functions.
  • Maximum Capacity: 48
• Outdoor Patio (PT) – Available seasonally, the patio includes picnic tables and garden seating. Groups may reserve the outdoor patio only if the greenhouse is also available as a backup location in the event of inclement weather. Requests for the outdoor patio must therefore include a reservation for both the outdoor patio and the greenhouse.
  • Maximum Capacity: 85

During weekdays, at least one area of the Barn must remain available at all times for regular snack service and drop-in use by individual students and small groups. Because this designated space may change from day to day based on operational needs, it will not be available for reservation or event use.

Reservation Priorities and Eligibility

Weekday Reservations

Because the Barn serves as a community hub for graduate and professional students, weekday reservations are limited to graduate and professional student-serving organizations and departments. Reservation requests are considered during the following hours: Monday through Thursday, 3 to 10 p.m. To maximize access to the Barn for a variety of organizations and programs, most events are limited to two hours in length, with a maximum reservation time of three hours.

To accommodate the many reservation requests received by the Barn, we may assign your group to a different Barn space based on attendance, the nature of the activity, and space availability. You will be notified of your assigned location when your event is approved. We appreciate your flexibility and understanding as we work to maximize the use of Barn spaces for all groups.

Food options:

• For events requiring on-site food service, Cornell Dining/Cornell Catering is the provider of catered food services within the Barn.
• Food delivery or drop-off from outside vendors is permitted when no setup, service, staffing, or food handling is provided by the vendor.

This is a pilot program for 2026-27 to provide additional food options available to our graduate student community.

Weekend Reservations

Weekend reservations may be requested by graduate, professional, and undergraduate student-serving organizations and departments.

Food options:

• For events requiring on-site food service, Cornell Dining/Cornell Catering is the provider of catered food services within the Barn.
• For graduate student-focused events only, food delivery or drop-off from outside vendors is permitted when no setup, service, staffing, or food handling is provided by the vendor.
• If an undergraduate event is approved and includes food service, all food arrangements must be coordinated through Cornell Dining.

Importantly, weekend reservation requests are evaluated based on the following factors:

• Staff availability: Weekend events require support from Barn student staff. Because student staff may have academic, research, and other responsibilities, staff support cannot always be guaranteed. We will make every effort to determine availability and communicate decisions as promptly as possible; however, we cannot guarantee approval of a request or a specific response timeline. If you require a guaranteed event space, we encourage you to explore additional venue options.
• Operational capacity: Operational considerations may affect our ability to host certain events. Although the Barn is available to all student groups, the Barn’s bar will not be open for alcohol service during weekend events in fall 2026 due to operational and staffing constraints. Groups interested in providing alcohol service may coordinate directly with Cornell Dining to hire bar service for their event.

External Events

Requests for conferences, receptions, alumni programs, weddings, corporate events, and other external functions are coordinated through Student and Campus Life Enterprises (SCLE).  Groups interested in hosting these events should begin the process through the Conference and Event Services website. During the academic year, external events are generally limited to weekends.

Reservation Policies and Procedures

To support the Barn’s mission of fostering community and belonging, preference is given to programs that encourage engagement among graduate and professional students and make effective use of this shared campus resource.

Event preference details:

• We prioritize events that are open to the broader graduate and professional student community.
• Our staffing model relies on graduate and professional students as employees. Event support requires appropriate staffing, and events cannot be approved unless sufficient staff coverage is available; this is especially relevant for weekend events.
• The Barn generally operates in accordance with the academic calendar. Reservations during fall, winter, and spring breaks are granted on an exception basis only.

Before Submitting a Request

Organizations should:

• Review this reservation guide carefully.
• Ensure the event aligns with Barn priorities and policies.
• Submit reservation request through 25Live.

It is the responsibility of the sponsoring organization to understand how to submit a reservation request for the Barn through 25Live. Helpful resources include:

• Cornell’s Scheduling website
• Student and Campus Life’s Reserving Space and Registering Events webpage
• Instructions on Using Cornell Scheduling
• Scheduling questions: scheduling@cornell.edu

After Submitting a Request

Please wait for a reservation decision before proceeding with event planning. Do not advertise or market the event until approval is received and do not assume that submission guarantees approval. Additional event instructions will be provided upon approval. 

Reservation Requirements

Requests will be denied if:

• It is submitted fewer than seven days before the event.
• The event extends beyond 10 p.m.
• The event conflicts with Barn operations or TGIF programming.
• Adequate student staffing is unavailable.
• The request does not align with Barn priorities and policies.

Rates, Staffing, and Event Support

Included with Approved Reservations

Approved events include:

• Student staff coverage.
• Access to available audiovisual equipment.
• Standard facility support.
• Popcorn service when beer service is provided during the weekday events (for graduate and professional students only).

Review the Big Red Barn Reservation Quick-Reference Checklist.