As part of a test program to decrease theft in the residence halls, Clark and Roper Halls have electronic locks on dorm room doors, according to Department of Public Safety Chief Michael McNair.
McNair said most thefts occur because students leave their dorm doors unlocked. These new electronic locks automatically lock the door as soon as it is closed, so there is no room for human error.
With these new locks, Public Safety can tell who enters a room at what time. Every time a student’s AU ID card is swiped — for residence hall access and meal plans as well — Public Safety is able to track it.
McNair said this monitoring should help the department solve more thefts and said confidentiality is not an issue because it is for security purposes.
Student Advocacy Center Assistant Director Matt Kabak, a junior in the School of Public Affairs, said he had not heard about these locks but the SAC plans on looking into it.
AU ID cards for residents of these dorms are encrypted with smart chips that give access to the bearer of the resident’s card. This replaces the standard locks and keys found in the other dorms. Now, if a student loses their key, they won’t have to pay to replace their key, their roommate’s key and the lock itself – which costs $90 overall, according to Chris Moody, the executive director of Housing and Dining Programs. With these locks, only the AU ID will need to be replaced, costing $20.
McNair said if the electronic locks work well in Clark and Roper, the University will look into using them in other dorms. Clark and Roper were chosen for the test because they have recently been renovated into dorms, so no old locks had to be replaced.
Several other places have these electronic locks, including rooms in Mary Graydon Center, the Sports Center, the Beeghley building and Hurst Hall.
Individually, the electronic locks cost about $650 each, which is the same as the standard lock. The back-end software, which includes the network and hotspots, has a one-time cost of $15,000.
sdazio@theeagleonline.com
