2008 Woodie Awards
New security changes measure up
Josh Perttunen
Issue date: 9/6/07 Section: Opinion
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When word got out that the master key to the residence halls was missing, NMU was quick to reevaluate and make changes to current resident hall security policies.
A system was put in place where students were required to show their identification cards to gain entrance to the residence halls anytime between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. They were also strongly encouraged to follow the often-disregarded policy of not allowing anyone in the building or propping side doors open. According to public safety, more security cameras were added to look in on the lobbies of each building.
These are policies that should continue even now that the master key has been found.
Students having to present their ID's at the main doors before they can gain entry to the building may seem like an inconvenience, but in the grand scheme of things, it is not a big deal. We live in a culture where passwords are required before we can do things such as check our e-mail or purchase things on a debit card.
Fingers fly on a keyboard to type eBay passwords without giving it a second thought. It does not require any more energy to fish in one's pocket for an identification card.
Similar policies are in place at campuses across the country. Students at Michigan Tech are issued ID/access cards instead of keys, which they have to swipe to gain access to their hall between midnight and 7 a.m. They are similarly encouraged not to prop open doors or let someone in behind them, according to MTU's housing and residential life Web site.
With the April 16 campus shootings at Virginia Tech demonstrating the kind of devastation that can happen within the space of a few hours, having a solid security plan is increasingly important in this day in age.
Keeping the side doors closed and locked just makes sense. If the residence halls were a single abode and only one person or a group of people were affected by a singular lapse in judgment, then it would be different.
But since gaining access to a side door pretty much gains access to every room within the complex, (with the open-door culture of the residence halls), students should be respectful of each other by not allowing easy access.
A system was put in place where students were required to show their identification cards to gain entrance to the residence halls anytime between 10 p.m. and 8 a.m. They were also strongly encouraged to follow the often-disregarded policy of not allowing anyone in the building or propping side doors open. According to public safety, more security cameras were added to look in on the lobbies of each building.
These are policies that should continue even now that the master key has been found.
Students having to present their ID's at the main doors before they can gain entry to the building may seem like an inconvenience, but in the grand scheme of things, it is not a big deal. We live in a culture where passwords are required before we can do things such as check our e-mail or purchase things on a debit card.
Fingers fly on a keyboard to type eBay passwords without giving it a second thought. It does not require any more energy to fish in one's pocket for an identification card.
Similar policies are in place at campuses across the country. Students at Michigan Tech are issued ID/access cards instead of keys, which they have to swipe to gain access to their hall between midnight and 7 a.m. They are similarly encouraged not to prop open doors or let someone in behind them, according to MTU's housing and residential life Web site.
With the April 16 campus shootings at Virginia Tech demonstrating the kind of devastation that can happen within the space of a few hours, having a solid security plan is increasingly important in this day in age.
Keeping the side doors closed and locked just makes sense. If the residence halls were a single abode and only one person or a group of people were affected by a singular lapse in judgment, then it would be different.
But since gaining access to a side door pretty much gains access to every room within the complex, (with the open-door culture of the residence halls), students should be respectful of each other by not allowing easy access.
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