I’m a senior this year, and I’ve lived on campus with the original ID card policy for the last four years. I’ve also worked as a resident assistant for three of those years, and I’m happy with the new ID card policy.
During my time as an RA on Yoder 1, all throughout the day, people would cut through the floor to get across campus. To me, my floor felt more like a glorified hallway than an actual residential space. This led to a number of really awkward and uncomfortable situations.When I would take a shower, I would walk down the hall in my towel. So imagine my embarrassment walking past classmates who don’t live on my floor, especially men I didn’t know well, wearing nothing on but a towel. I would try not to make the situation more awkward than it already was while they cut through my floor to get to Java Junction 30 seconds faster.
On the surface, the policy may seem to inhibit community building, but I don’t think that it does. If your friends are too lazy to walk down a few flights of stairs to meet you at a door, I think that should raise questions other than the fact that your ID doesn’t open the door. We still have access to common spaces, which may be inconvenient, but that’s what they’re there for.
The student senate held a meeting on Monday, October 7th to discuss the issue in person. I was one of three people that attended the meeting other than the senate. One was my boyfriend who I asked to go with me, and the other was a reporter from The Record who was there to take notes. If people want to have a discussion and make a change, I encourage them to actually get involved and show up to conversations instead of blowing smoke, and barking up the wrong tree.
Alyssa Mcdonald is a senior broadcasting major.
